I've finally found my calling...in a general way.

[sweetapogee]

8. my opinion fwiw

EMT: I'm an EMT (and firefighter). As far as firefighter is concerned I'm a volunteer and always have been. I do have a lot of paper... national/state certs. As far as EMT is concerned unless your a paramedic it is a low paying job and paramedic isn't a whole lot better. In my state, you first become and EMT which takes about 5-6 months then you work in the field (can be a volunteer) for 1 year then apply to medic school which lasts a year. Most paramedic students continue to work FT as EMTs during the year of training. Around here, medic school costs 5-6K but if your a working EMT the company will generally pay if you graduate but you will be required to agree to work for them for 2-3 years. One good thing about EMS is you are finding out if having actual patient contact is really for you.

I worked PT for 5 years with the regional EMS council here and as such I know many in the EMS service and have enough connections to get employment in the field with ease. The money is just not there and it's really a young persons job. However your age will not disqualify you at all. If you want to be a paid firefighter, your chances are vastly improved if you are a paramedic already but you will have to work as a medic for some time before switching over to fire. The highest paid city firefighters in my state start at about 45K. This is hard work but very satisfying. I truly love fighting fire.

Teacher: My BS degree is in Elementary Education and my partner is a school teacher with a masters degree. Pay is great and hours fantastic. Getting a job in our area is problematic. To get certified to teach in a public school will certainly require more schooling, I would imagine at least a year probably two. I don't teach btw. ESL I would imagine would be difficult unless the primary language is either native or you are very fluent in that language.

Nurse: Your pay requirements demand that you look at being an RN minimum. If I were young again this is what I would do. As others have said most RN programs require acceptance into the program. My state, and I assume others may be headed that way, is looking into requiring all new RNs have a Bachelors degree. I would be imagine that there is little in a business degree portfolio that would transfer to an RN program. I know nursing students in the community college I attend that are in their 60s.

Again if I had it to do all over again I would go for a BSRN degree, work in the field for a time and then go for nurse practitioner.

Having said all this I urge you to dream big and never give up.

ON EDIT: as Heddi above as said so well, health care in it's various forms is hard on the body and demanding of your time. It is rare that you will be thanked for your efforts. I have been on the hose line where we have saved lives and homes and not a word of thanks. I have cut people out of wrecked cars and performed CPR in ambulances and in the ER in my bunker gear as a volunteer with similar (lack of) acknowledgement from patient or family. You do these things for you not for the compensation. Getting out of bed at 01:30 hours to run a call then leaving for work at 05:30 requires that you love doing the job.