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GI B1PLUS U4 The Longer Read
GI B1PLUS U4 The Longer Read
GI B1PLUS U4 The Longer Read
Jobs BLOG
How do I become a … ?
Episode 3: This week we look at another
three careers that consistently appear in
our surveys among young people.
Zoologist
You’re a fan of wildlife documentaries. For instance,
you watch all the BBC documentaries with Sir
David Attenborough, National Geographic’s nature
programmes, and you’re fascinated by the life of
Jane Goodall. You love animals, but becoming a vet
doesn’t seem appealing enough to you – that’s all
about cutting cat’s claws and inspecting dog’s ears!
If you want something more exciting, try zoology …
Zoologists study animals, their behaviour and how they live in their environment. If you become a zoologist, most of
the time you’ll be working in a laboratory studying data, but you’ll also be able to do things such as looking after
a group of animals at zoos or taking part in animal conservation projects. In your job, you’ll be studying animals
closely: e.g. their behaviour, their diet and the environment in which they live. You’ll probably specialise in a
particular group of animals.
You’ll probably have taken a university degree in zoology. Alternatively, you’ll have taken a degree like veterinary
science or biology, followed by a master’s degree in zoology.
Airline pilot
What will your life be like if you become an airline pilot? You’ll fly passengers all around the world, and you’ll be
able to visit lots of fascinating places for free. It sounds ideal, doesn’t it?
However, becoming an airline pilot isn’t easy because it will take a long time until you can fly alone. By the time
you qualify as a commercial pilot, you’ll have completed at least 250 hours of flying time. If you want to fly with an
airline, you’ll have to do 1,500 hours. You’ll also need to spend a lot of time as a co-pilot or even as an instructor.
You’ll need certain ‘soft skills’, including being a good communicator, being able to resolve problems quickly and
being good at time management.
You’ll need to train at a private flying school, although some people join the air force to obtain their training.
Newsreader
What about if you become a newsreader? Well, you’ll be on TV or on the radio every day. Your name will be well
known, maybe even your face. You’ll have to communicate important information to the public, and you’ll be
keeping up to date with all the latest events from around the world.
To become a newsreader, a degree in journalism or media studies is essential nowadays. However, the key
here is experience, so ideally you’ll need to get some while you’re still studying, such as by writing for your
school newsletter or your college newspaper. After you graduate, you’ll probably have to do lots of internships,
i.e. spending time working for companies without getting paid in order to gain experience. Then you’ll work as a
reporter, looking for information and interviewing people for your articles.
You’ll need to have excellent communication skills. As a reporter, you’ll have developed skills as a writer and editor
of your own work. Now as a newsreader, you’ll need to learn some performance skills, for example, how to stand,
how to move and how to interview people live on TV or on the radio.
Next week: nurse, biomedical engineer and hairdresser.