A construction degree is probably not the first thing that will come into the mind of most high school graduates. Construction careers can be creative, flexible and well-paying too.
When most people think of construction careers, they conjure up images of tanned burly men in hard hats working on roads, buildings, bridges, and home construction. However, degrees from construction schools can also prepare you for fun, artistic careers, and businesses that you can run yourself.
Work for yourself as a custom boat builder
While pursuing degrees, students take construction courses on wood working, how to use various materials, tools, safety practices, mold constructing, surface preparation, rigging, hardware and DC electrical – just to name a few of the courses that apply to wood boat building.
You’ll also take plenty of courses in management, accounting, and project management, which helps prepare you for entrepreneurship, if that’s what you desire.
The art of building custom hand-made wooden sailboats, rowboats, canoes, and yachts is not lost.
Starting your career pathway as a boat builder
Hilmark Boats, Fine Wood Watercraft, Seawing Boats, and Stan-Craft Boats are just a few of the places you may work. You will likely have to relocate for these jobs, as not every city will have this sort of position available.
After leaving schools for woodwork / constructing and working in the industry for a few years, many people choose to start their own practice. The overhead can be high, but if you have the money saved, it can be the start of a truly flexible and rewarding career.
Consider the plight of 32-year-old Jon Pobst of Lake Wenatchee, Washington. In 1999, he graduated from a construction and boat building school in Port Townsend, Washington and continued on to work for boat building companies in California and Europe.
He then went on to start his own boat building and restoration company based in Nice, France. After years of building boats for prominent billionaires and boat lovers, he decided to use what he’d learned to build his own house! How cool is that?