BE PREPARED FOR EVERY OPPORTUNITY
What This Means To You
Education after high school IS A MUST!
You do not need to go to college to get some of the great jobs that are available, but you still need to spend your high school years preparing for the equivalent of college if you want a military, business, or vocational career. Any career that offers a significant salary will require significant preparation in academic classrooms during and after high school.
For almost every job, you will need to have strong skills in English, Science, and Mathematics at no less than the high school level to successfully complete a training program and pass the required certification tests.
Some examples:
You could become an electrician. Salaries for electricians range from $30,000 to $70,000, depending on training and experience. Salaries also depend on location. In California and Alaska, where electricians are hard to find and the cost of living is high, electricians can easily earn $100,000 a year. Many electrical workers unions and private organizations offer the classroom-based and on-the-job training you would need to become a state-licensed contractor. While a college degree is not necessary in some places, the big electrical power companies want electricians with Associate Degrees (and they will pay your tuition if your grades are high and stable).
You could make $100,000 as a trained, experienced welder. You would start your welder training with classroom courses that are offered by a number of industry-based organizations. You would need to be able to read books written at least at the high school level and understand a certain amount of Science and Math to successfully complete the training and pass the certification test. Anyone can enter a welder training program, but successful completion of these programs, and being able to pass the state licensing test, depends on your knowledge of English, Science, and Mathematics at, minimally, the high school level.
If science and math isn’t your ‘thing,’ you can become a McDonald’s or Walmart manager at the store or district level and earn a significant salary. Many, but not all, individuals who are successful retail managers start their careers as part-time workers in the organization and gain the experience they need as they climb the ladder. Both McDonald’s and Walmart, and many other companies, have their own training programs – they prepare their own ‘talent’ in their own private classrooms.
Top level managers in these companies can easily earn a six-figure salary (that’s $100,000 a year or more) with full healthcare and vacation benefits. While some of these positions do not require a college degree, they require a solid background in high school Math and English. Retail managers need to be able to understand the math behind sales and marketing statistics, manage a budget, and must have extremely well-developed communications skills. Many lower-level managers go back to college to earn a degree so they can climb higher in these organization. So being prepared for college is important, even if you don’t enroll in a college until many years later.
No matter your plans, you never know where life will take you, or where you will make your life. Be prepared for anything. The courses listed below are the MINIMUM you need to take. Do well in them, and you will be prepared for anything you may want to be.
- Algebra I, Geometry, at least a semester each of Algebra II and Statistics/Probability
- Biology, Chemistry, Physics
- English I, II, III, IV
- Two years of the same World Language
- Three years of Social Studies
- One semester of Economics
HARD WORK IN CHALLENGING HIGH SCHOOL COURSES WILL SET YOU ON THE RIGHT PATH.
YOU WILL BE ABLE TO MAKE IT RAIN!
Start now to learn, practice, and apply the skills you will need to earn your future success.
Participate in your school’s Rainmakers Internship Preparation Program.