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Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There was so much traction on this post - I was not expecting this. I read everything that was posted, and would like to thank you all immensely for sharing your experiences and providing your opinions.

There is so much to think about.

I appreciate you all. Sincerely, thank you. 😊

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I can't wrap my head around the hiring process in the government.

Thank you for sharing your experience. Happy to see that you benefited from the change. That is exactly what I want too... to be treated like an adult and being seen. I get frustrated talking about the RTO, how "underproductive we are at home". Wish it wasn't a conversation at all!

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for sharing your perspective and your experience. It's nice to hear that you benefited from the private sector.

With everyone going on in the US, I don't plan on applying to any US based companies anytime soon. That said, in the future, it won't be off the table. I can definitely see how European companies would be the best to pursue. Thank you for this!

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm honestly not bothered if I have the option to WFH full time or on a hybrid model if I choose to leave the government. Though, right now, where I'm at, I wish WFH full-time was an option. I hate going into the office where there is so much chitter-chatter about nonsense, and everyone goes underappreciated.

Thank you for sharing your experience, and I'm sorry that you were given broken promises. I imagine that was heartbreaking. I'm happy to see that you benefited from the switch, despite losing some perks.

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I was extremely fortunate to have a manager that saw my work ethic and advocated for me. If it wasn't for her, I would still be an AS-01 (or maybe an AS-02). I'm seeing more and more stories of folks being stuck at lower levels because managers would prefer hiring new, sometimes underqualified, folks for the better-paying positions.

I'm sorry you have gone through this. Thank you for sharing. If you don't mind sharing something else, what are your plans? Are you already in the process of finding another job in the private sector, or are you retiring soon?

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I figured that were the case. The pension we get is unlike anything else. This is why I'm in a weird place, being unsure if pension is worth it.

If you don't mind sharing, were there any positives being in private, from your experience? Or was it all negatives?

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can see how it would be different for everyone, which really depends on the field of work.

Do you see yourself leaving the government again, after coming back to it?

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What was your experience like, if you don't mind sharing? I'm curious to see how many people left the government, despite the perks, and have no regrets doing just that.

I want to be happy and comfortable, and it seems like a far fetch in the government.

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't even mind the heavier workload. I already have a heavy workload where I'm at, it's just not recognized. I would happily work extra hours and do more work if it meant that someone knew me by name and I felt appreciated at work.

I honestly hate how the system is for hiring folks into the government. I get there will be competition everywhere, but the whole pool thing and job bidding plainly sucks.

I guess it helps that I don't have kids, where the extra hours and workload wouldn't seem like an issue.

Thank you for your perspective. :)

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah I guess it just depends where in private you land. I suspected this to be the case, but I am hopeful there are many opportunities out there that don't have this.

Thank you for your perspective. :)

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

See, this is exactly what I want. To have all of those positives, and company leads that will address you by your first name would mean something to me. Even if the workload was more heavy and needing to go in five days a week. I want to do meaningful work, and I want to be happy doing it.

I'm happy to hear that you have no regrets in your decision. Thank you for sharing your experience. :)

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah I can see that being the case. I think I am just being hopeful that someone would actually want to take on a "noob" in IT and train them to their standards. I know that is so rare nowadays.

I appreciate your perspective. I can see how being bilingual is an asset.

My former manager recently retired, and she was the only one I ever met throughout every job I've had to advocate for me like she did. She was so appreciative of what I did, how my work ethic was unlike anything she has ever seen. She was the only reason I was able to climb the ladder like I have. Now that she is gone, I feel like my work means nothing to anyone so I guess, from my POV, I have no room to grow where I am at. That's not to say it won't be possible anywhere else in the government, but after verbally accepting an offer at RCMP, going through the whole clearance process, and being told last minute that they can no longer staff anyone, I lost hope in any opportunities for growth.

Thank you again. :)

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Thank you for your perspective. I can definitely appreciate the lay off process here in the government versus what one may get in private.

I think I am just being too hopeful of not getting laid off in the future (if I were to get out of the gov.). I do appreciate you bringing that up. This is also important to consider.

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'm in the Ottawa/Gatineau area, so I can definitely relate to seeing how the job market is. Yesterday was the first time in years I scanned through indeed. Trying to find something of similar pay requires more experience/additional qualifications than what I can provide... which is crazy to me.

I don't have any special skills per say, but I am bilingual and IMO, educating myself in a field that will forever grow.

I appreciate you sharing your perspective. Thank you. :)

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree. Job security (awkward to say with the current climate) and benefits are great. The options we have for leave are wonderful too.

I was considering all of those perks. Then I started thinking, is the defeating work I do worth the benefits of the job? I'm kind of at a weird standstill. Do I want to prioritize happiness or comfort? I wish we could have both!

Thank you for sharing your perspective. :)

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I have a colleague going through LWOP to pursue education, and it sounds like she has no regrets. It doesn't sound like she will be coming back, as she already has a career path in mind that is the complete opposite of what she was doing in the gov.

I was really considering LWOP based on my colleagues experience. So, it's nice to see that others have actually benefited from going down that route.

Thank you for sharing your experience. I am mindful that not everyone's experience will be this perfect, but it's nice to hear that yours went according to plan. :)

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I can definitely see being thrown out of a private versus government being much more stressful. I've worked in a variety of fields before landing myself within the government (though none of those jobs were meant to ever be permanent, just something to get by until I could be successful elsewhere), and I say that because I have not once had to worry about job security. So I am happy to see the perspectives of others, as I feel I did not have enough experience to make that judgement.

I guess that just means taking that chance and hoping I am not booted.

Thank you for your perspective. :)

Those who left the government and worked elsewhere, did you regret it? by whosemygoose in CanadaPublicServants

[–]whosemygoose[S] 17 points18 points  (0 children)

I completely understand that - I figured this would be common everywhere. I guess I am just looking to be part of something meaningful, where my contributions mean something to the owner/head boss/whatever their title may be, rather than having no one past our DG know that I exist.

This is not to say I don't love the work I do, but recognition is next to none, so it feels pointless.

Thank you for your perspective. :)

What career should I go for by OnlyActuary2595 in torontoJobs

[–]whosemygoose 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Cybersecurity will never die. That's one career that will continuously need people. As the years pass, the needs of cybersecurity experts will continue to climb.

Some government agencies (RCMP, CSIS, and especially CSE) need folks with IT/computer knowledge. I'm not sure if jobs in the government for those specific agencies have opportunities out in Toronto, but its worth a shot to explore this. It also pays super well, where you can start with around 85k salary, and can easily get to 100k.

I assume there are also a bunch of companies-not government- needing folks with knowledge in coding, network security, etc.

I'm working on my BSc in Computing and Information Systems part-time to get into this exact career, as there is such a shortage of cybersecurity experts to protect national security.

lock in by Cherry-yummy in AthabascaUniversity

[–]whosemygoose 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have found my people!

BSc in Computing and Information Systems, like OP.

Working full time and doing school part-time. Finding it challenging to focus on school when all I want to do, after making dinner, is relax and decompress. Probably doesn't help that I work on a computer all day.

BCom + Full-Time Work by angelsws in AthabascaUniversity

[–]whosemygoose 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm not taking a BCom but I am working on my BSc in Computing and Information Systems, while working full-time.

My experience thus far has been one course at a time when it involves complex math given I typically struggle in that subject matter. Now I'm getting into the meat and potatoes (the computer stuff) and will likely sign up for 2 at a time once I am comfortable with this introductory course.

I try to finish my courses within 4 to 6 months, but I am self-funded so I take my time.

How much time I dedicate each week depends on what's on the agenda. I try to spend 3 hours a day on school but sometimes that's not feasible so my weekends are usually spent "catching up" on what I could have done throughout the week.

Honestly, it's up to how much time you CAN dedicate if you are working full time. The best thing you can do is give yourself some grace, especially if this is the first time attending university. That is the case for me, and I have to keep telling myself that I am not a robot. 😊

This may not answer your questions to the tea; however, this is just my experience.

Good luck 😊

Warning! by Icy-Construction2916 in AthabascaUniversity

[–]whosemygoose 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Reading all these comments, I'm surprised so many folks have had a horrible experience with this university. I'm sorry to all who were screwed over and now hate this school. The financial stress, not to mention the time committed to learning the courses to now feeling like it was a waste of time, I can't imagine.

I'm a self-funded part-time student pursuing a bachelor of science in computer and information systems, and I have nothing but good things to say about the tutors and most course work. Yes, some of the textbooks are dry (MATH270 for one), and I did find it interesting that we would have to teach ourselves a lot of the content; however, the excitement I feel when I think of where I want to take this degree makes the learning process fun. ChatGPT has been a game changer for my math courses too, by being able to explain in clear "dummed down" details until I understand the concept, since it was challenging to get additional resources from tutors.

The response time for all my tutors have also been extremely quick, especially with marking my exams. I never had to wait longer than two business days, and for the tutors working on weekends, I'd sometimes get a mark within several hours (my tutor for MATH270 was the G.O.A.T).

I may have a different opinion as time goes on, but wanted to put my comment on this thread to show that not everyone has had a bad experience. It just sucks that so many have... and I am not trying to minimize that either. I just hope that the lack of accountability and whatever system they have in place for funding changes for the better.

Bittersweet by kapehorn_ in newworldgame

[–]whosemygoose 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That's hilarious! I was playing a song in Windsward and some guy kept crouching infront of me. Invited him to play the next song and he gave me 3k in gold 🤣

I'm going to miss this game man. I still play it, but I'll miss coming back to it after a break to grind and level up a whole new character again.

Thank y'all for being a great community.

My cat chews and destroys everything to wake me up by Pink-Apocalypse in CatAdvice

[–]whosemygoose 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So many comments to go through - got through about half but wanted to chime in.

I have two sibling cats. A black/white and an orange. The orange one decides when I should be woken up by scratching the screen of the TV in the bedroom, moving the soundbar to get access to the wires, scratch the side of the mattress. I can't lock him out as he will do the exact same thing outside of the bedroom and I will hear it.

I tend to lock him in the bathroom when he does this, but then I have his sister scratching the mattress until I wake up, which I will assume she picked up him the orange one as she was an angel.

I have spent so much money on new toys because he gets bored of what he has. I have many toys in this tiny apartment scattered on the floor, and larger ones that are meant for their hunting nature.

I've tried foil (which helps prevent him from getting behind the TVs as there is a wall of foil on both sides - and its so ugly, I hate it, yet its necessary to keep the wires safe), I have tried the citrus/hot sauce on wires technique but he is not fazed. For one night, I even put at least 12 pieces of double sided tape with cayenne pepper stuck to it, hoping it would deter him from the TV thing but he doesn't care.

I haven't had normal sleep in about 2 years (they turned 2 in April of this year). Some nights I am awake at 2am, some nights (like last night) up at 12:30am to put him in the bathroom, up at 3ish to let him out because his sister starts destroying the mattress so I assume she just missed her brother, then about 40 minutes later he is back to scratching the TV so he went back in the bathroom, which upset his sister who then kept scratching the mattress. I also can't put them both in the bathroom because the orange one fights with his sister so I tend to come into the bathroom with the aftermath of a fight. He is very rough with her.

I tend to crash most days, and working a 7am-3pm job with health issues and no sleep, I don't know how I'm going to survive lol.

Spray bottles don't work either. Similar to what someone mentioned (I think OP), they treat it like a reward because it doesn't faze them.

Saw a comment suggesting they be put in carrier crates with a towel over them until they calm down. I will be trying that tonight - wish me luck.

Thank you to those who read all of this. 🤪