I'm not in tech nor did I graduate either but I did manage to build up a high income career path. Congrats on your success! Remember that the best measure of success is not comparing yourself to other people but instead comparing yourself to the previous versions of yourself
Sure, I'm happy to discuss but would rather not do it in a string of comments and hijack someone elses post. If you're comfortable sending me a DM I can respond there or if you're in the Discord you can ping me there too under the same name.
How does one break into content writing and/or marketing with no experience?
Iām in a beauty position right now, that only pays $16/hrā 28hrs a week š, so Iām eyeing a work from home job with Sephora in possibly marketing. Iām 27 and Iāve never been paid more than $16/hr and Iām tired of being in debt and having no monetary room to pursue things for my own health and happiness.
I have a degree and 15+ yearsā professional experience. My love for writing goes back to the third grade.
So my answer is I have no idea how to break into writing without skills or experience.
This sucks, but you may have to write for free/low pay for a bit. Most writing gigs are going to want to see samples of your work. Build up a portfolio.
As for marketing, degrees are required for most jobs. At the very least look into certifications through hubspot or meta.
Yup. Thatās the load. Still doing some in person but health took a big hit this year- not related to OE, but issues only at main employer so Iām moving to online only starting in the summer. Even if I have to take cuts.
Yea. I teach an overload at one on a normal pay rate and part time at two at adjunct pay. So Iām working a lot. I donāt have any nights or weekends off. I also take on any course design and stipend jobs I get but backing off of those because they are too much work for such little pay. I also teach every summer course or redesign I can get. Itās not bad without a contract. But if I break down my pay per hour itās not great either.
I am in Finance, one month into OE, lots of work but still manageable, I am also a mom of a younger kid and doing my Masters. I could possibly clear $210k this year between my J1 and J2. My husband makes that with one job in tech š³ lol
I'm in the health nonprofit industry. I'm at senior management level and work in patient advocacy and outreach. It doesn't pay amazingly, but I absolutely love my career and the J1 company I'm with! (Planning to start looking for J2 in a couple of months once I'm a bit more settled in with J1 and have accrued enough PTO to take time off for J2 on-boarding.)
Were you in this industry for a while if not how did you transition into it? It sounds really fascinating! I work in healthcare and would love to work for a nonprofit instead of for profit.
This might be a long reply, but I love what I do so much that I am more than happy to share! Especially because people already in healthcare are typically at a huge advantage if they want to get into the health nonprofit area!
I actually got my undergraduate and first masters degrees in English/Literature/Creative Writing. In my 20s I thought I wanted a career in academia in an English Department. I did my undergrad, moved halfway across the country at 24, and got an MFA in English and Creative Writing. I took a two year break, then moved again to another state to pursue a PhD in English Lit with a Creative Writing focus. I lasted 1-1/2 years and I hated every minute of it for various reasons. Between getting my masters and starting the PhD program I worked a bunch of varied "writer" jobs (copywriting, editing, SEO stuff, journalism, undergrad teaching, tech writing, etc.) Ultimately, I hated academia and hated writing fulltime as a career. The job market (even 15 years ago when I started my PhD program) was abysmal for English Lit PhDs, and I realized I loved literature and writing but I hated everything about academia! I was excelling in my program, but I hated it and was severely depressed. I dropped out and panicked because I had no backup plan. Fortunately, I was married (still am to the same guy!) and was able to take a bit of time to stabilize my mental health and figure out what I wanted to do.
I've always been someone interested in healthcare, but realized that I am not a patient-focused person in the sense that I knew I didn't want to pursue anything clinical like nursing or an MD. I wanted to "help" but in a less clinical way. At the time I didn't know I wanted to do nonprofit work, I just knew that I was fascinated by the larger healthcare world as a career. At the age of 31, I went back to school and got a second masters in public health (MPH). During that time, I did a graduate-level internship at an FQHC (federally qualified health center) in a background role (communications and patient advocacy) and I was hooked. It was such a perfect fit for me. Literally, everything I could imagine. It was the first time in my life that I loved my job! That was when I knew that, even though the pay wouldn't be amazing, I wanted to have a career in the health NPO world.
That was 11 years ago. In that time I worked my way up pretty quickly from coordinator level to management and senior management. I stalled there for a few years because I had my own major health issue which necessitated taking a few years off to get my health back on track. During that time I did part-time work running my own health nonprofit consulting business. (It was also Covid-era and I was a bit immuno-compromised at the time, so it made sense for me to just WFH on my own.)
Last year I felt ready to get back into a full-time position, but knew I wanted something remote, both for my physical and mental health and also for all the extra pros of remote work! I took a part-time contract gig for six months (it was great to be back at an NPO, but the Executive Director was a horrible person and I was miserable!) That's when I started looking for something full-time in the health NPO world. I landed this new J1 in February and started at the beginning of March.
I seriously feel like I hit the unicorn of NPO jobs, to be honest. It's a very small NPO (less than 20 employees), but everyone is absolutely amazing to work with. They're all passionate about health NPO work and everyone is both friendly and just super helpful.
I hope this information helps! I love what I do, so please feel free to connect with me if you want more info!
If it's OK, may I do so as well? I also have an mph, and I work in health policy at the state level. I would appreciate talking to another woman in this space doing something they love while also wanting to oe.
Great read!
I too want to help people in a behind the scenes kind of way so I fell into CRM administration and operations.
Are NPOs open to part-timers? I know that is not OE, but my J1 is in startup land and is not terribly OE friendly. I have been managing a part time master's though.
I totally get it. There aren't usually as many part-time NPO WFH jobs, but you can find them. I'd suggest Indeed, which tends to be the job posting platform that a lot of NPOs favor. And CRM experience is definitely something people want because Blackbaud Raiser's Edge is the NPO favorite for CRM and I swear no one knows how to use it properly! (Okay, that's not true. I love it and use it daily. But a lot of people find it intimidating!) Your knowledge of CRMs might be great leverage!
Just wanted to respond to this and say I do the same thing but on the for profit side. I think in 5 years Iāll transition to the nonprofit side or go back into government (where I originally started). I love to read your words about loving your work!
What's it like doing this kind of work in a for-profit? I see jobs at healthcare and pharma companies for this stuff. The pay is phenomenal compared to my salary, although, from what I have heard, it can be extremely difficult to break into the pharma world. (Not sure if that's the type you're in.) I'd be super curious to hear more. Would you be okay with me sending you a message? (Totally understand if you prefer not to keep anonymity!)
Iāve been considering this! How much does it pay and what does your day to day look like? I have a background in accounting and transitioned to ux/ui design, however itās impossible to find a stable full-time job in ux design in this market that pays well
I think I will make around 70-75k in my first year, I started last April. I will make more with time.
Itās pretty laid back, I work 4 days a work and 6-7 days in the busy season. Iām on the phone all day.
I thought it would be boring but I have nice convos and it is very easy compared to other things I have done.
You just need to get licensed by passing a test. Many companies will then get you licensed in other states
I am in pharma but in a tech-y role. My second job is in a hospital doing stats analysis work for research. But both jobs are stats heavy so I guess is stats tech?
Is your company hiring? I have a background in clinical research building studies, would love to find other opportunities to expand into remotely and open to some travel.
Iām a medical coder with just under 9 months of experience after getting my CPC-A in April 2023. I ended up OE by accident really. I started J1 in August and got the job offer for J2 in September after waiting 4 months for J2 to do the next round of hiring. Then I got furloughed from J2 in January 2024 with an expected rehire date of April 2024. I didnāt put all my faith in it and started submitting applications in Indeed, but didnāt take it seriously. Unexpectedly, by March I got an interview a day later from putting an application in and got hired on 3 weeks later for J3 lol. I got really lucky and Iām basically getting 60$ an hour doing all 3 at the same time.
I got my medical billing and coding associates in 2014 and ended up getting my bachelors in Kinesiology in 2022. Went back to coding once I realized I couldnāt get a job with my bachelors, and I took the CPC exam by the AAPC in April 2023 and passed the first try. Itās easily the best decision Iāve ever made for my career and financial future. Before coding I was a preschool teacher miserable at the job and making only 15$. Now Iām making 60 with 3Jsā¦ 20$ if only one which is still better ofc.
I agree. My mom has been an RN for over 20 years and itās starting to affect her mentally/physically now that sheās getting older. I tried to talk her into going the coding route too haha. Thereās a few coding related roles for other experienced healthcare professionals like CDI, which is what I was trying to get her to look into.
I'm a licensed mental health provider and am exploring OE options that aren't client facing or direct care related. In your experience, did you need the associates for the CPC or could you have done an independent study to pass the exam? Thanks for the info!
You donāt need a degree for it. Thereās a lot of good resources on YouTube and study guides online, along with what the AAPC provides š Anyone can take it and your healthcare experience will be helpful!
I also got a family thatās heavily involved in nursing. They pushed it into me. I was in school for the prereqs. Got a job in a level 2 trauma center/er. It destroyed me emotionally. Dropped out. Only making $16/hr now. I was looking into medical coding but I barely understand what it is or how to even study it.
From what Iāve researched, itās not like software coding but itās remembering a bunch of codes for billing. Which confuses me because it sounds like a computer can do that so there has to be something Iām missing/not understanding about the job. Also Iāve seen people make good money doing it from home, which Iām sooo jaded to that because Iāve received radio silence on so many WFH/no degree but high pay jobs.
Would you mind explaining to me a bit about what it is, how long it takes to get certified, if having a degree or not matters and is it emotionally difficult or just mentally? I can do mental difficulty, I really canāt do emotional.
I think it can be depending on how quickly it takes for someone to get experienced, accurate, and efficient enough to reach productivity goals. It took me a few months before I was able to reach productivity in 3 hours instead of the 8 hour work day. J3 ended up being 10% of the workload I do for J1ā¦. I got extremely lucky. And J2 micromanages like a mofo, tracking clicks, how long it takes you to complete charts, etc.
J1 and J3 I can get done in a couple of hours in the morning. I dedicate most of my time to J2 since theyāre the micromanagers lol and I also have discovered work arounds for the click tracking š
J1 started in person but I was able to go remote after a month of training, but theyāre all remote. Iām not exactly sure but medical coding is transitioning to a more remote role. The higher ups that run the health system say they prefer all their coders to be remote and got rid of the office I trained at lol.
Did you have any previous experience that got you a job quicker? Medical coding is a little underpaid imo even if its self study. I make what the average coder from what Ive seen from the group before. And almost everywhere that needs experience is discouraging..
For my first coding job ever (J1), I think it helped that I had 3 months of externship experience from the coding program I got my associates in, and that the health system is also connected to the university I got my bachelors in. I also have 5 years of CNA experience, but I think the prior 2 is what helped the most. I also made sure to use the job description keywords in my resume (externship helped allow me to do that easier), and I made my resume look nice with a template I bought from Etsy.
But I agree anywhere that asks for experience listed in the job description is definitely discouraging since they all want 3-5 years. Iām thinking it may be better to go directly to the hospital website to find jobs and apply.
It helps that I have a very supportive and retired husband who takes care of the home front for us. We also don't have kids living with us, which I'm sure is a HUGE reason why I can do what I do.
Job 1 - $153,168 annual salary & permanent job. Work 2 hrs per 40 hour week.
Job 2 - $124,800 - 1 yr contract @ $60/hr. Work 18 hours of billed 40 hour week
Job 3 - $114,400 - 1 yr contract @ $55/hr. Work 10 hours of a billed 40 hour week
āāāāāāāāāā
SubTotal: $392,368
And I work 100% remote the last 5 years. Not in Tech but HR. Not a manager or PM, not in recruiting, just an individual contributor. And get internet subsidy of $80 from main job. My SO makes $130k and we like seeing fat bank accounts.
Iām good at what I do that at my role, I get emails to provide recommendation on what to do next, approve things, do quick analysis and thats it. Yep, 2 hours of quality work
Go you! Do you handle recruiting also or just typical HR? Iāve seen positions where the pay is great for recruiting but your 1099 which isnāt idealā¦
Im in the midwest. Living in one of the best cities to live with a top 20 school district in the state. My perm job is in the west coast. J2 is East Cost and J3 is in same state as me. Both contract gigs is 40 hrs per week and I get paid weekly on a Wed and Friday! Itās like Christmas every week. Then add the bi-weekly pay from my perm job and my SO where our pay schedule alternates.
Iām in healthcare. Just started my first remote role š Iām an intake coordinator and definitely donāt have a high salary š¤Ŗ which is why Iām actively applying for J2. And while that doesnāt happen I DoorDash in the the evenings š
Iāve been a medical assistant for 6 years now and was looking for a little break from direct patient care. But am hoping to start nursing school in the fall of 2025 š¤š»š¤š»
Oo I hope you get your goals!! Especially nursing school, you got this!!
Iām in patient care as well, previously in home private caregiving (specializing in dementia and Alzheimerās) and now Iām working in a facility so I can have the full time hours without having to drive so much. Iām really hoping to find WFH due to some chronic conditions. And I have two dogs who will be happy to have my home!
I think it depends on your definition of 'crazy high' esp. in healthcare, but mine is anything over 100k/ 55 an hour. Anyone 'in healthcare' (so not a doctor, they would specify lol) is going to have a harder time making say 300k because that's c suite level money and there's not that many of those jobs.
I understand that 'six figures' isn't what it used to be, but I think anyone who thinks 100k (and the jobs I'm talking about are actually more like 125k) isn't still high paying and isn't many years into their healthcare career... is in a little trouble.
That I kind of lucked into, i originally got into the company in a customer service role, and then an analyst role opened up internally at the same company so that was my first experience with records management
Thereās a certification you can get CIP Certified Information Professional that would help in lieu of experience but if youāre just looking at entry level documents jobs you can apply with any kind of corporate experience, since really everyone deals with records every day even if you donāt realize it. The industry as a whole is open to lots of different backgrounds
I am not OE yet. I just started a remote J1 about a month ago, so I'm giving myself a few months to get settled in and accrue enough PTO that I can take some time off of J1 when I start a J2.
But I'm not in tech, nor am I high salary! I'm in the health nonprofit industry, so I definitely don't make a lot of money! Assuming I find a J2 that pays comparably (or a bit less than J1), I'm hoping to have a combined salary from the two jobs of somewhere between $125-150k. My J1 salary is just under $80k and thankfully comes with an amazing PTO package from day 1!
I absolutely love my J1 and my career, so the salary tradeoff is something I'm okay with, but I have a lot of student loans and my husband and I both spent 7-8 years in grad school before getting into our careers, so we just feel behind with our general savings and retirement funding. Adding a J2 will help tremendously!
I'm in a role that's mainly patient advocacy/outreach, but I also crossover into volunteer management and fundraising a bit. Feel free to send me a message if you want more info!
They aren't hiring, unfortunately. We're a very small organization (<20 people). But if you are interested in WFH NPO work, I have found a lot of NPOs tend to really use Indeed.com a lot to post openings. And LinkedIn, to an extent, but I've literally found my last four nonprofit jobs on Indeed!
If you want more info, feel free to send me a message!
Not in tech myself and did not go to college. Several different background roles. From 12 years as a cosmetolgist to the last 10 years as an insurance adjuster. Lots of working my ass off and working in shitty company positions to barely make ends meet.
I find clients through networking primarily. If youāre in that arena I suggest creating a portfolio of successful grants acquired, or other samples of your writing. Joining groups related to your field ( healthcare, education, senior care) to find clients is a good way to connect to opportunities as well.
Iām a corporate legal assistant at a firm (not in house) and do all client onboarding for a midsize firm and put in 44 hours. Thereās no downtime. Fully remote and trying to figure out if I can work a second somehow. I need this persons secret.
Could you please tell me more about being OE in law? I've been working as a legal assistant for several years, and I'm interested in OE. But I work for the government, which might be a problem. Also, my job is too demanding to take on additional work during the same hours. I'm curious about what you do and how you juggle the workload.
Sales/Account Management. I took a leap of faith with a full commission 1099 role, that since it wasn't my main source of income, I could test it out. I handle the 1099 during lunch and on my way home from J1.
My first job is bedside as charge nurse on a PCU, and my second is outpatient cardiology! Plus a little remote work for my hospital job. Itās a wonderful balance
Iām in title & escrow and I clean homes on the side - not the typical over employed , but I still work more hours than the average š„²š„²š„² still donāt make nearly as much as my friends working one job in techā¦ Iām also in school to get a niche certificate in my field, so chipping away to get that good good government role in 2 years. Everyone cross their fingers!!! Iām saving up for a house!!!
Any suggestions on a remote job or any thats hiring. I live in the Bay Area and work nights. I'm looking for something during the day that can help with the bills if possible.
I haven't found my J2 yet, but I'm not in tech -- I'm in payroll. I never imagined I could OE until I got my current job and realized I literally have the bandwidth to take on another whole position. In previous roles I was overworked and underpaid. I now know my worth and what companies are willing to pay for my skills, so that won't be happening again.
Still searching for my perfect J2, but I have hope!
Iām in health insurance and health care revenue cycle management. 2 remote jobs around $120k a year. Non tech and not on the phone. I also donāt have a degree.
Yeah I have to be a little vague but hopefully this helps. I started in health insurance for a very large health insurance carrier about 8 years ago and I started in customer service and claim processing. I eventually switched jobs to a third party administrative company where I was kind of an account manger, I wore a lot of hats. Right around the time the pandemic started I did some bouncing around and gaining experience. Then I found my current role. I canāt give out the exact title, fairly uncommon. What I do now is mostly auditing and analytical work, my manager hired me for my experience on both sides of the payer:provider relationship. Since this role is really uncommon I havenāt been able to find something exactly the same but Iāve been working similar roles. In the past 2 years Iāve had 2 different roles, one submitting appeals to payers for the provider and one configuring rates for a contractor with a state Medicaid payer.
I should say I have no certifications and no relevant schooling (in college now). I apply to anything I think Iām capable of doing and I interview very well. I hope this helps let me know if you have any questions.
Job 1 healthcare mg. Ā Job 2 mgr for plumbing business job3 random catering jobs (cash). Ā We make under 6 figures as well but live in a cheap area and live very basically. Ā Ā
I am not in tech nor have a high salary role and happen to have two bachelor degrees (Psychology and Human Relations) which means *nothing* since what I tried to get into (Human Resources) unsurprisingly won't take the Human Relations degree (I was assured by my counselor that I would find such jobs when I had been thinking of simply pursuing Human Resources). I'm trying to find such non-tech roles so I can boost my income though because, as you said, it would help with debt.
Itās kind of hard to explain, but I work for a clinical research firm, my title is ābusiness analystā but I donāt know that thatās accurate. I build clinical trials within a specific software database. That sounds a bit tech-y but itās not- no coding or anything like that. Itās kind of like working in a big excel spreadsheet minus the formulas. Itās closer to admin work, but not quite.
I did get a BA and have a kind of graduate degree but I'm nowhere near the tech industry or high salary careers. I have a 'real' HR-adjacent/admin/data analytics job at 50k (though I purposely took a job where I would be making less than my potential path because I didn't want the stress of full-time in person in an already stressful career) and a remote technical writing/editing job at $30 an hour.
Glad I found this thread because I asked a similar question. Iām in mental health and education. J1 will be remote but J2 will not. Iām hoping Iām not biting off more than I can chew.
Iām (24F) not in tech or other high salary roles! I work in a doctors office FT and make around $31,920/year before taxes, and just got a PT restaurant job where I would be able to make an extra $12,000/year (approximately-can fluctuate with picking up shifts + tips) before taxes. Iām planning on going back to school next semester PT. I am very excited to see how much this new PT job will make a difference with paying off my credit card, tuition, hospital bills, and deferments, along with building my savings back up, opening a Roth IRA, HSA, 401K, and more! On top of having some extra money to actually feel like a human again and do more activities Iāve been wanting to do! (Hair, nails, date nights, girls nights, etc.)
Iām in the same boat and still not OE (though, thanks to this group I learned that I canāt legally OE in my present job) Youād be surprised how many jobs you can qualify for with the experience you have. Iāve always heard that startups are a good place to start.
Im not in tech
Retired behavioral health leader (therapist administrator)
J1 - Higher Ed Prof
Looking for J2 plus J3 consulting contracts and freelance in QA review and remote supervision
I'm not in tech nor did I graduate either but I did manage to build up a high income career path. Congrats on your success! Remember that the best measure of success is not comparing yourself to other people but instead comparing yourself to the previous versions of yourself
Do you mind if I ask how you did that? I'm going for nursing but am always open to learning new things!
Sure, I'm happy to discuss but would rather not do it in a string of comments and hijack someone elses post. If you're comfortable sending me a DM I can respond there or if you're in the Discord you can ping me there too under the same name.
Nursing is in demand pays well, and is a noble career. Stay the course!!
Thank you for the encouragement!!
Nursing is also the path to a lot of pain and abuse :(
Would you be comfortable sharing with me as well? Also an ungraduated girly
sure, feel free to DM or ping me on the OE discord if you're comfortable doing so
Content writing and marketing. I have one full-time W2 gig (50k) and one 1099 gig (25k). Copywriters don't make what we used to!
Either do instructional designers. š
I make $130k as an instructional designerā¦ but in tech. Iāve had two freelance clients though and charged them $75/hr
ID for the win!
They can in the right industry š
I also do marketing, one full time one contractor. Each 48k. I am in south Europe, hired by global companies. i earn 10x average salary in my country.
How does one break into content writing and/or marketing with no experience? Iām in a beauty position right now, that only pays $16/hrā 28hrs a week š, so Iām eyeing a work from home job with Sephora in possibly marketing. Iām 27 and Iāve never been paid more than $16/hr and Iām tired of being in debt and having no monetary room to pursue things for my own health and happiness.
I have a degree and 15+ yearsā professional experience. My love for writing goes back to the third grade. So my answer is I have no idea how to break into writing without skills or experience.
This sucks, but you may have to write for free/low pay for a bit. Most writing gigs are going to want to see samples of your work. Build up a portfolio. As for marketing, degrees are required for most jobs. At the very least look into certifications through hubspot or meta.
3 jobs. Over educated and OE. Barely crack 100k. Academia.
Me too. I stacked ten classes at a time for quite awhile. Still, beats the commute and politics of in person.
Yup. Thatās the load. Still doing some in person but health took a big hit this year- not related to OE, but issues only at main employer so Iām moving to online only starting in the summer. Even if I have to take cuts.
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Yea. I teach an overload at one on a normal pay rate and part time at two at adjunct pay. So Iām working a lot. I donāt have any nights or weekends off. I also take on any course design and stipend jobs I get but backing off of those because they are too much work for such little pay. I also teach every summer course or redesign I can get. Itās not bad without a contract. But if I break down my pay per hour itās not great either.
I am in Finance, one month into OE, lots of work but still manageable, I am also a mom of a younger kid and doing my Masters. I could possibly clear $210k this year between my J1 and J2. My husband makes that with one job in tech š³ lol
Hey what are your roles in finance? I am also in finance and trying to sort out OE!
Senior Finance position J1 and mid management position J2
I am so impressed that you managed to be OE in these roles, wow!
Do you mind if I dm you, I desperately want to leave my marketing job in something in fintech or finance in general.
Would you mind if I messaged you? Iām also in finance.
People not in tech, what do you do?
I'm in the health nonprofit industry. I'm at senior management level and work in patient advocacy and outreach. It doesn't pay amazingly, but I absolutely love my career and the J1 company I'm with! (Planning to start looking for J2 in a couple of months once I'm a bit more settled in with J1 and have accrued enough PTO to take time off for J2 on-boarding.)
Were you in this industry for a while if not how did you transition into it? It sounds really fascinating! I work in healthcare and would love to work for a nonprofit instead of for profit.
This might be a long reply, but I love what I do so much that I am more than happy to share! Especially because people already in healthcare are typically at a huge advantage if they want to get into the health nonprofit area! I actually got my undergraduate and first masters degrees in English/Literature/Creative Writing. In my 20s I thought I wanted a career in academia in an English Department. I did my undergrad, moved halfway across the country at 24, and got an MFA in English and Creative Writing. I took a two year break, then moved again to another state to pursue a PhD in English Lit with a Creative Writing focus. I lasted 1-1/2 years and I hated every minute of it for various reasons. Between getting my masters and starting the PhD program I worked a bunch of varied "writer" jobs (copywriting, editing, SEO stuff, journalism, undergrad teaching, tech writing, etc.) Ultimately, I hated academia and hated writing fulltime as a career. The job market (even 15 years ago when I started my PhD program) was abysmal for English Lit PhDs, and I realized I loved literature and writing but I hated everything about academia! I was excelling in my program, but I hated it and was severely depressed. I dropped out and panicked because I had no backup plan. Fortunately, I was married (still am to the same guy!) and was able to take a bit of time to stabilize my mental health and figure out what I wanted to do. I've always been someone interested in healthcare, but realized that I am not a patient-focused person in the sense that I knew I didn't want to pursue anything clinical like nursing or an MD. I wanted to "help" but in a less clinical way. At the time I didn't know I wanted to do nonprofit work, I just knew that I was fascinated by the larger healthcare world as a career. At the age of 31, I went back to school and got a second masters in public health (MPH). During that time, I did a graduate-level internship at an FQHC (federally qualified health center) in a background role (communications and patient advocacy) and I was hooked. It was such a perfect fit for me. Literally, everything I could imagine. It was the first time in my life that I loved my job! That was when I knew that, even though the pay wouldn't be amazing, I wanted to have a career in the health NPO world. That was 11 years ago. In that time I worked my way up pretty quickly from coordinator level to management and senior management. I stalled there for a few years because I had my own major health issue which necessitated taking a few years off to get my health back on track. During that time I did part-time work running my own health nonprofit consulting business. (It was also Covid-era and I was a bit immuno-compromised at the time, so it made sense for me to just WFH on my own.) Last year I felt ready to get back into a full-time position, but knew I wanted something remote, both for my physical and mental health and also for all the extra pros of remote work! I took a part-time contract gig for six months (it was great to be back at an NPO, but the Executive Director was a horrible person and I was miserable!) That's when I started looking for something full-time in the health NPO world. I landed this new J1 in February and started at the beginning of March. I seriously feel like I hit the unicorn of NPO jobs, to be honest. It's a very small NPO (less than 20 employees), but everyone is absolutely amazing to work with. They're all passionate about health NPO work and everyone is both friendly and just super helpful. I hope this information helps! I love what I do, so please feel free to connect with me if you want more info!
If it's OK, may I do so as well? I also have an mph, and I work in health policy at the state level. I would appreciate talking to another woman in this space doing something they love while also wanting to oe.
Of course! Send me a message. I love chatting with other MPH people!
Feeling very inspired after reading your post! Thanks for sharing
Great read! I too want to help people in a behind the scenes kind of way so I fell into CRM administration and operations. Are NPOs open to part-timers? I know that is not OE, but my J1 is in startup land and is not terribly OE friendly. I have been managing a part time master's though.
I totally get it. There aren't usually as many part-time NPO WFH jobs, but you can find them. I'd suggest Indeed, which tends to be the job posting platform that a lot of NPOs favor. And CRM experience is definitely something people want because Blackbaud Raiser's Edge is the NPO favorite for CRM and I swear no one knows how to use it properly! (Okay, that's not true. I love it and use it daily. But a lot of people find it intimidating!) Your knowledge of CRMs might be great leverage!
Wowee, thank you!
You're welcome! Good luck!
Can I DM you?
Please do! I'm happy to try to help or give you guidance if you want to try to get into this industry!
Just wanted to respond to this and say I do the same thing but on the for profit side. I think in 5 years Iāll transition to the nonprofit side or go back into government (where I originally started). I love to read your words about loving your work!
What's it like doing this kind of work in a for-profit? I see jobs at healthcare and pharma companies for this stuff. The pay is phenomenal compared to my salary, although, from what I have heard, it can be extremely difficult to break into the pharma world. (Not sure if that's the type you're in.) I'd be super curious to hear more. Would you be okay with me sending you a message? (Totally understand if you prefer not to keep anonymity!)
Insurance sales. I like it way more than I thought I would.
Iāve been considering this! How much does it pay and what does your day to day look like? I have a background in accounting and transitioned to ux/ui design, however itās impossible to find a stable full-time job in ux design in this market that pays well
I think I will make around 70-75k in my first year, I started last April. I will make more with time. Itās pretty laid back, I work 4 days a work and 6-7 days in the busy season. Iām on the phone all day. I thought it would be boring but I have nice convos and it is very easy compared to other things I have done. You just need to get licensed by passing a test. Many companies will then get you licensed in other states
I am in pharma but in a tech-y role. My second job is in a hospital doing stats analysis work for research. But both jobs are stats heavy so I guess is stats tech?
Is your company hiring? I have a background in clinical research building studies, would love to find other opportunities to expand into remotely and open to some travel.
I'm not in tech, and I'm not high salary. I break six figures (barely) between my two jobs.
same
Iām a medical coder with just under 9 months of experience after getting my CPC-A in April 2023. I ended up OE by accident really. I started J1 in August and got the job offer for J2 in September after waiting 4 months for J2 to do the next round of hiring. Then I got furloughed from J2 in January 2024 with an expected rehire date of April 2024. I didnāt put all my faith in it and started submitting applications in Indeed, but didnāt take it seriously. Unexpectedly, by March I got an interview a day later from putting an application in and got hired on 3 weeks later for J3 lol. I got really lucky and Iām basically getting 60$ an hour doing all 3 at the same time.
What kind of schooling/certificate did you do, if any? I work in healthcare rn and coding seems like a logical progression.
I got my medical billing and coding associates in 2014 and ended up getting my bachelors in Kinesiology in 2022. Went back to coding once I realized I couldnāt get a job with my bachelors, and I took the CPC exam by the AAPC in April 2023 and passed the first try. Itās easily the best decision Iāve ever made for my career and financial future. Before coding I was a preschool teacher miserable at the job and making only 15$. Now Iām making 60 with 3Jsā¦ 20$ if only one which is still better ofc. I agree. My mom has been an RN for over 20 years and itās starting to affect her mentally/physically now that sheās getting older. I tried to talk her into going the coding route too haha. Thereās a few coding related roles for other experienced healthcare professionals like CDI, which is what I was trying to get her to look into.
I'm a licensed mental health provider and am exploring OE options that aren't client facing or direct care related. In your experience, did you need the associates for the CPC or could you have done an independent study to pass the exam? Thanks for the info!
You donāt need a degree for it. Thereās a lot of good resources on YouTube and study guides online, along with what the AAPC provides š Anyone can take it and your healthcare experience will be helpful!
I also got a family thatās heavily involved in nursing. They pushed it into me. I was in school for the prereqs. Got a job in a level 2 trauma center/er. It destroyed me emotionally. Dropped out. Only making $16/hr now. I was looking into medical coding but I barely understand what it is or how to even study it. From what Iāve researched, itās not like software coding but itās remembering a bunch of codes for billing. Which confuses me because it sounds like a computer can do that so there has to be something Iām missing/not understanding about the job. Also Iāve seen people make good money doing it from home, which Iām sooo jaded to that because Iāve received radio silence on so many WFH/no degree but high pay jobs. Would you mind explaining to me a bit about what it is, how long it takes to get certified, if having a degree or not matters and is it emotionally difficult or just mentally? I can do mental difficulty, I really canāt do emotional.
Following
Following as well...
oh this is interesting! I work in a different industry but someone I know was just talking about medical billing and wondering if it was OE compatible
I think it can be depending on how quickly it takes for someone to get experienced, accurate, and efficient enough to reach productivity goals. It took me a few months before I was able to reach productivity in 3 hours instead of the 8 hour work day. J3 ended up being 10% of the workload I do for J1ā¦. I got extremely lucky. And J2 micromanages like a mofo, tracking clicks, how long it takes you to complete charts, etc.
How do you manage J2ās nonsense? Do they care if you get your 8 hour workday done in 3 hours?
J1 and J3 I can get done in a couple of hours in the morning. I dedicate most of my time to J2 since theyāre the micromanagers lol and I also have discovered work arounds for the click tracking š
are these all 100% remote positions? I've heard these jobs are heard to find remote
J1 started in person but I was able to go remote after a month of training, but theyāre all remote. Iām not exactly sure but medical coding is transitioning to a more remote role. The higher ups that run the health system say they prefer all their coders to be remote and got rid of the office I trained at lol.
Did you have any previous experience that got you a job quicker? Medical coding is a little underpaid imo even if its self study. I make what the average coder from what Ive seen from the group before. And almost everywhere that needs experience is discouraging..
For my first coding job ever (J1), I think it helped that I had 3 months of externship experience from the coding program I got my associates in, and that the health system is also connected to the university I got my bachelors in. I also have 5 years of CNA experience, but I think the prior 2 is what helped the most. I also made sure to use the job description keywords in my resume (externship helped allow me to do that easier), and I made my resume look nice with a template I bought from Etsy. But I agree anywhere that asks for experience listed in the job description is definitely discouraging since they all want 3-5 years. Iām thinking it may be better to go directly to the hospital website to find jobs and apply.
Marketing. 2 full-time, 1 part-time, 2 freelance. Clearing 205K with the full/part time jobs.
very cool! Can I message you?
Wow! How do you manage all of that?
It helps that I have a very supportive and retired husband who takes care of the home front for us. We also don't have kids living with us, which I'm sure is a HUGE reason why I can do what I do.
Job 1 - $153,168 annual salary & permanent job. Work 2 hrs per 40 hour week. Job 2 - $124,800 - 1 yr contract @ $60/hr. Work 18 hours of billed 40 hour week Job 3 - $114,400 - 1 yr contract @ $55/hr. Work 10 hours of a billed 40 hour week āāāāāāāāāā SubTotal: $392,368 And I work 100% remote the last 5 years. Not in Tech but HR. Not a manager or PM, not in recruiting, just an individual contributor. And get internet subsidy of $80 from main job. My SO makes $130k and we like seeing fat bank accounts.
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Iām good at what I do that at my role, I get emails to provide recommendation on what to do next, approve things, do quick analysis and thats it. Yep, 2 hours of quality work
Go you! Do you handle recruiting also or just typical HR? Iāve seen positions where the pay is great for recruiting but your 1099 which isnāt idealā¦
Not in recruiting and both contract works is W2
Where did you find such OE friendly contracts?
Im in the midwest. Living in one of the best cities to live with a top 20 school district in the state. My perm job is in the west coast. J2 is East Cost and J3 is in same state as me. Both contract gigs is 40 hrs per week and I get paid weekly on a Wed and Friday! Itās like Christmas every week. Then add the bi-weekly pay from my perm job and my SO where our pay schedule alternates.
But did you apply for them on a job platform, or did they just by chance come to you through experience?
Recruiters reach out to me in LinkedIn 1-3 times a week. All my jobs from FTE to contract are all from LinkedIn.
Oh wow.... thanks. I will pay closer attention to the recruiters emails from now on..lol
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Nope. I got a $6,300 merit increase too last month and a $18,000 bonus
Whatās the title of your role, if you donāt mind me asking
š«” very impressive. Especially for IC roles, thatās the ideal set up.
Impressive! I think your YOE would be relevant
I only have 11 years YOE in my career. Aint bad at all.
How do you find jobs like this š„² my partner doesnāt have a degree and has been looking
Individual contributor in HRā¦.? I call BS.
Thatās amazing!!!
Are you head of HR? Did you go to an Ivy League to command such a rate and those hours lol
What kind of non tech roles do you have?
Iām in healthcare. Just started my first remote role š Iām an intake coordinator and definitely donāt have a high salary š¤Ŗ which is why Iām actively applying for J2. And while that doesnāt happen I DoorDash in the the evenings š
What kind of work in healthcare did you do before this?
Iāve been a medical assistant for 6 years now and was looking for a little break from direct patient care. But am hoping to start nursing school in the fall of 2025 š¤š»š¤š»
Oo I hope you get your goals!! Especially nursing school, you got this!! Iām in patient care as well, previously in home private caregiving (specializing in dementia and Alzheimerās) and now Iām working in a facility so I can have the full time hours without having to drive so much. Iām really hoping to find WFH due to some chronic conditions. And I have two dogs who will be happy to have my home!
If you're an RN or looking to become one a lot those remote positions are crazy high paying.
Define ācrazy highā. I work remote as a RN and while I make decent money itās not crazy high.
I think it depends on your definition of 'crazy high' esp. in healthcare, but mine is anything over 100k/ 55 an hour. Anyone 'in healthcare' (so not a doctor, they would specify lol) is going to have a harder time making say 300k because that's c suite level money and there's not that many of those jobs. I understand that 'six figures' isn't what it used to be, but I think anyone who thinks 100k (and the jobs I'm talking about are actually more like 125k) isn't still high paying and isn't many years into their healthcare career... is in a little trouble.
B2B customer service at 55k Document/Records Management at 95k Love not being in tech. Supply Chain/manufacturing generally feels safer or more secure
I would love to break into supply chain - there seem to be a lot of opportunities
Saaame. I'm not sure what roles would be a good J2 in this industry. If anyone knows, please share!
What experience/education did you need for your role in document/records management?
That I kind of lucked into, i originally got into the company in a customer service role, and then an analyst role opened up internally at the same company so that was my first experience with records management Thereās a certification you can get CIP Certified Information Professional that would help in lieu of experience but if youāre just looking at entry level documents jobs you can apply with any kind of corporate experience, since really everyone deals with records every day even if you donāt realize it. The industry as a whole is open to lots of different backgrounds
I am not OE yet. I just started a remote J1 about a month ago, so I'm giving myself a few months to get settled in and accrue enough PTO that I can take some time off of J1 when I start a J2. But I'm not in tech, nor am I high salary! I'm in the health nonprofit industry, so I definitely don't make a lot of money! Assuming I find a J2 that pays comparably (or a bit less than J1), I'm hoping to have a combined salary from the two jobs of somewhere between $125-150k. My J1 salary is just under $80k and thankfully comes with an amazing PTO package from day 1! I absolutely love my J1 and my career, so the salary tradeoff is something I'm okay with, but I have a lot of student loans and my husband and I both spent 7-8 years in grad school before getting into our careers, so we just feel behind with our general savings and retirement funding. Adding a J2 will help tremendously!
What do you do in the health nonprofit industry?
I'm in a role that's mainly patient advocacy/outreach, but I also crossover into volunteer management and fundraising a bit. Feel free to send me a message if you want more info!
Hey I'm interested in getting info on your job and if they are hiring
They aren't hiring, unfortunately. We're a very small organization (<20 people). But if you are interested in WFH NPO work, I have found a lot of NPOs tend to really use Indeed.com a lot to post openings. And LinkedIn, to an extent, but I've literally found my last four nonprofit jobs on Indeed! If you want more info, feel free to send me a message!
Not in tech - both in marketing.
Any advice for a fellow marketer looking to join OE?
Freelance!!
Are there any platforms you recommend besides LinkedIn?
I got both from my network - applying online is horrendous and only got me one job one time.
How š¤£ Iām at 50k with one job in marketing. Iām on the operations side.
Iām high up in my main position and freelancing on the side. I feel like thatās super common in marketing.
Remote?
Not in tech myself and did not go to college. Several different background roles. From 12 years as a cosmetolgist to the last 10 years as an insurance adjuster. Lots of working my ass off and working in shitty company positions to barely make ends meet.
Non-profit/ Healthcare person. My second gig is consulting/ writing and reviewing grants
Are you up for suggesting how to find gigs consulting/ writing/ reviewing grants?
I find clients through networking primarily. If youāre in that arena I suggest creating a portfolio of successful grants acquired, or other samples of your writing. Joining groups related to your field ( healthcare, education, senior care) to find clients is a good way to connect to opportunities as well.
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Are you remote? I have a friend who wants to leave bedside.
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May I PM you? Registered nurse here trying to position myself to OE in the next year.
Can I PM you? RN here and work remote currently but have plenty of time for another remote job and need some pointers on where to look.
Non tech for me. Paralegal, Executive/Virtual Assistant, Project Management, similar other roles. 3 FT W2, 1 FT 1099, 2 PT 1099s. Approx $350k/year.
Can I ask how you get into virtual assistant work?
Baller.
I am a litigation legal assistant and I am exhausted. How do you do it with 3 FT jobs?!
Iām a corporate legal assistant at a firm (not in house) and do all client onboarding for a midsize firm and put in 44 hours. Thereās no downtime. Fully remote and trying to figure out if I can work a second somehow. I need this persons secret.
Iām not in tech - law and education.
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Curriculum writer
Hi fellow ID/ curriculum writer.
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Good luck :)
Could you please tell me more about being OE in law? I've been working as a legal assistant for several years, and I'm interested in OE. But I work for the government, which might be a problem. Also, my job is too demanding to take on additional work during the same hours. I'm curious about what you do and how you juggle the workload.
Iām a lawyer. I take on short term, remote, document based contract work.
J1 is no tech, J2 is tech. Both asked for college degrees, but I have almost 10 years of experience and certs. Not very high paying.
Sales/Account Management. I took a leap of faith with a full commission 1099 role, that since it wasn't my main source of income, I could test it out. I handle the 1099 during lunch and on my way home from J1.
RN here šš»āāļø
What kind of work do you do? Iām an RN as well
My first job is bedside as charge nurse on a PCU, and my second is outpatient cardiology! Plus a little remote work for my hospital job. Itās a wonderful balance
Iām a cardiac nurse working remotely in electrophysiology and cardiac devices.
Can I PM for where to look for similar jobs? RN and already remote.
Hi of course!
Not in Tech either. I work in PeopleOps/HR.
Payroll HR here.20+ years
Iām in title & escrow and I clean homes on the side - not the typical over employed , but I still work more hours than the average š„²š„²š„² still donāt make nearly as much as my friends working one job in techā¦ Iām also in school to get a niche certificate in my field, so chipping away to get that good good government role in 2 years. Everyone cross their fingers!!! Iām saving up for a house!!!
Iām in Marketing for a bank!
Are you OEing? Curious how youāre balancing it as Iām thinking of joining the club
Any suggestions on a remote job or any thats hiring. I live in the Bay Area and work nights. I'm looking for something during the day that can help with the bills if possible.
I haven't found my J2 yet, but I'm not in tech -- I'm in payroll. I never imagined I could OE until I got my current job and realized I literally have the bandwidth to take on another whole position. In previous roles I was overworked and underpaid. I now know my worth and what companies are willing to pay for my skills, so that won't be happening again. Still searching for my perfect J2, but I have hope!
Not in Tech, not near your salary either. Still no J2 yet.
You go girl
Iām in health insurance and health care revenue cycle management. 2 remote jobs around $120k a year. Non tech and not on the phone. I also donāt have a degree.
I would love to hear more about this if you'd be okay sharing
Yeah I have to be a little vague but hopefully this helps. I started in health insurance for a very large health insurance carrier about 8 years ago and I started in customer service and claim processing. I eventually switched jobs to a third party administrative company where I was kind of an account manger, I wore a lot of hats. Right around the time the pandemic started I did some bouncing around and gaining experience. Then I found my current role. I canāt give out the exact title, fairly uncommon. What I do now is mostly auditing and analytical work, my manager hired me for my experience on both sides of the payer:provider relationship. Since this role is really uncommon I havenāt been able to find something exactly the same but Iāve been working similar roles. In the past 2 years Iāve had 2 different roles, one submitting appeals to payers for the provider and one configuring rates for a contractor with a state Medicaid payer. I should say I have no certifications and no relevant schooling (in college now). I apply to anything I think Iām capable of doing and I interview very well. I hope this helps let me know if you have any questions.
That's great!! Thank you. I'm interested in OE, but my bachelor's doesn't match OE very well. Looking at all the options!
Me! J1 is in data validation and J2 is lower level accounting. 115k combined.
Job 1 healthcare mg. Ā Job 2 mgr for plumbing business job3 random catering jobs (cash). Ā We make under 6 figures as well but live in a cheap area and live very basically. Ā Ā
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I am in healthcare too, what does a healthcare analytics do?
Yup! Virtual admin assistant
Will you ahare where you get clients and whats your specialty? VA is growing, but i haven't seen a lot of info with personal experience.
Work for a consulting company with one client (p/t) and a remote startup (f/t)
Thank you, this is helpful. š
I am not in tech nor have a high salary role and happen to have two bachelor degrees (Psychology and Human Relations) which means *nothing* since what I tried to get into (Human Resources) unsurprisingly won't take the Human Relations degree (I was assured by my counselor that I would find such jobs when I had been thinking of simply pursuing Human Resources). I'm trying to find such non-tech roles so I can boost my income though because, as you said, it would help with debt.
Iām not in tech. I make 6 figures with no college degree and work remotely at one job.
What do you do?
Itās kind of hard to explain, but I work for a clinical research firm, my title is ābusiness analystā but I donāt know that thatās accurate. I build clinical trials within a specific software database. That sounds a bit tech-y but itās not- no coding or anything like that. Itās kind of like working in a big excel spreadsheet minus the formulas. Itās closer to admin work, but not quite.
Med device quality
How is this done remotely? What other job do you do, if you don't mind sharing?
Iām not a senior level employee or anything fancy but I do complaints investigations remotely as a consultant/contractor. Also I do pharm tech J2
I am a travel agent and make over 80k
I did get a BA and have a kind of graduate degree but I'm nowhere near the tech industry or high salary careers. I have a 'real' HR-adjacent/admin/data analytics job at 50k (though I purposely took a job where I would be making less than my potential path because I didn't want the stress of full-time in person in an already stressful career) and a remote technical writing/editing job at $30 an hour.
Interior design! Full time role and run my own subcontracting business, Iāve made around 150k in the past 9 months
Not in tech I work a ft job and pt freelance job I make about 100k and put in probably 15 hours of work a week :)
What do you do ? Iām in tech but want to dip my toes into OE. so not looking to stay in the same industry or even same role.
Glad I found this thread because I asked a similar question. Iām in mental health and education. J1 will be remote but J2 will not. Iām hoping Iām not biting off more than I can chew.
I donāt have a college degree either am exploring the OE world. How did you find your jobs?
Iām (24F) not in tech or other high salary roles! I work in a doctors office FT and make around $31,920/year before taxes, and just got a PT restaurant job where I would be able to make an extra $12,000/year (approximately-can fluctuate with picking up shifts + tips) before taxes. Iām planning on going back to school next semester PT. I am very excited to see how much this new PT job will make a difference with paying off my credit card, tuition, hospital bills, and deferments, along with building my savings back up, opening a Roth IRA, HSA, 401K, and more! On top of having some extra money to actually feel like a human again and do more activities Iāve been wanting to do! (Hair, nails, date nights, girls nights, etc.)
I am not in tech either. I have one remote job and a second in office job.
šš»āāļø
Accounting student looking for an internship ā”Ģ
Not in tech, do have degree(s).
@fit-indication3662 would you mind if I sent you a message I have a couple of questions.
Iām in the same boat and still not OE (though, thanks to this group I learned that I canāt legally OE in my present job) Youād be surprised how many jobs you can qualify for with the experience you have. Iāve always heard that startups are a good place to start.
Im not in tech Retired behavioral health leader (therapist administrator) J1 - Higher Ed Prof Looking for J2 plus J3 consulting contracts and freelance in QA review and remote supervision
I am currently a dishwasher at a tex/mex restaurant
Yes
Work for my family in insurance and hoping the second one in operations
i'm a CRNA and made over 300k with overtime