| When I was a child, I wanted to become a prominent lawyer and when I was studying law in the university, I discovered that philosophy was my passion. So I decided to study philosophy and to go deeply into the studies of religion. When I finished my studies I started to work, teaching in different colleges, and I had the opportunity to travel to other countries. When I lived in Central America, I had an opportunity to work for an international foundation for helping harmed people. My life has been a little intense.--Jorge |
| In Russia, I used to work as a piano teacher for almost 23 years. I began to work as a music teacher when I was 19 years old. I was always surrounded by children, and I still love my job. When I came to San Francisco, I thought finding a job would be very simple here. Unfortunately, I didn't find one yet. It is very difficult to find a job in a foreign country if you don't know the language enough and if you don't have enough friends. I like that people in the USA usually have many skills and some of them change their jobs many times. I think the best thing is that they can study for that at different ages.--Elena |
| I used to take BART when I was in the East Bay. I was so impressed that two out of three BART drivers are women. Also Muni drivers are the same as BART's. How come we can't do it in Japan? Japanese don't admit women have abilities? No, they don't. Japan is 30 years behind America. The position of women is still low in our country.--Keiko |
| I am not descended from a rich family, so when I was young I didn't have any aim and ambition. I was only a simple and innocent person, but when I became a mother, I had a greedy mind. I wanted my children to be well-educated people. If they have a good educationm when they grow up their lives will go smoothly and they can easily get a job. In our country, men do heavy and important jobs. Women do light and small jobs that don't make a lot of money. When you get older, if you work for the government then you will get retirement from the government; otherwise, you must keep your money to spend for the rest of your life.--May |
| In my native country, everybody needs to go to school until we graduate from junior high school when we are usually 15 years old. Some of my classmates started to work but I worked at 22, after graduating from the university. When I was a child, I wanted to be a teacher because I respected my teachers more than my parents. I don't want to be a teacher now because it's hard work and needs a lot of patience. I think I wouldn't be qualified to do this work. I used to be a computer analyst. I did this job just because that is what I learned at school. I don't like it because I think I'm not really interested in it and it's really hard work. If I can choose what subject to major in, I would choose what I am really interested in, not what sounds more fashionable or what I might make more money in.--Emily |
| In my native country I was a military officer. I was an officer from 1943 until 1970. then I worked in a factory from 1971 until 1999. I like all jobs. All the time my work was very hard, but I didn't complain. I was happy at all places where I worked. In my country women and men work at the same job, except hard work. The weather in SF is better than in my country and I like it. It's very helpful for me and my family.--David. |
| In San Francisco, if you just understand a little English, it is so difficult for you to look for a job because you don't know how to read and don't know how to communicate with other people. So, maybe you just find a hard job and get low pay (like working in a restaurant inside the kitchen, in a bakery or grocery store, or as a construction worker or a painter.) These kinds of jobs I think are easier to get. Or if you have time, you go to school first and then find a good job in your future.--Julie |
| In my country, people usually begin to work after they graduate from college. Maybe work starts at 22 to 24 years old. However, there are many social problems there recently. Most young people couldn't get a job. According to the newspaper, 50 million young people are not able to work because they don't want to get a hard job which has a low salary. Also, there are not enough companies to give them a job so every day the media talks about losing young people's jobs.--Myung Sook |
| Finding a job is not easy. It depends on the individual. Someone who is capable, punctual, and has a good education has the possibility of finding a good job. But someone who can not speak good English may have to work for a lower income. Having a good education is very important for everybody. Can you imagine if you have to do your lower income work for all your life? Continuing education might help you find a better career.--Nam |
| In my country I worked in a bank. That was my first experience after I finished my high school. I worked as a secretary or cashier, a supervisor, and my last job there was credit analyst. I enjoyed these jobs pretty much because every day was different. I met many people and I liked to help them. In these jobs you have to be kind and you need to have a lot of patience and to always be happy because you talk with many people. I worked there for 11 years. I loved it.--Wendick |
| When I lived in my hometown I worked as a textile technologist in a laboratory that controlled the quality of production. I can't say I liked my job very much, because it was pretty boring. I don't work here now, but I hope to get a new profession and find a job. Unfortunately it's a very big problem to find a job in S.F. When I was a child, I wanted to be a ballerina very much :). And now I want to have a job that will allow me to make enough money and use my brain.--Inna |
| I have been working in a retirement company for three years. At first I didn't like the job, because the people are very old. Some people can't take care of themselves, and aren't patient. That is difficult for me.--Tiffany |
| I am a cashier working at a restaurant. I don't like my job because I work a long time and standing makes my legs get a problem. I don't have extra pay when I work overtime. I want to find a new job so my legs stop hurting, but in San Francisco, if you want to find a good job it's very hard. The economic slowdown means a lot of people have no more jobs. I am lucky I still have a job, but the boss cut my hours when the pay got raised to $8.50 per hour. I hope everyone can get a job in S.F. That's why I came to school to study English. I want to learn more knowledge and find a good job.--Elisa |