Nerd, geek, boffin. However you define it, the term 'geek' has undergone a major transformation. No longer having their lunch money stolen, geeks have suddenly taken over the world and become cool (with a little help from Brian Cox).
If your true geek personality is screaming at the new cliche, it’s time to take your mind off it and geek out to some of these jobs…
Comic book illustrator/Cartoonist
Everybody secretly wants to be a superhero. There, we said it. There’s something cool about donning a cape, flying across cities and having a super-power that you gained through the most unbelievable series of events.
But while you wait to discover what your powers are, why not create a new superhero and live through them instead? Perfect for anyone that got told off at school for doodling all over their exercise books, being a comic book illustrator is the ultimate way not to grow up. Plus you’ve got a great excuse to start comic book collecting again… it’s research, after all.
Computer games tester
If you’re a computer geek that spends all day playing computer games and beating 12-year-olds on the other side of the world, how would you feel if we told you that you could do it for a living?
Computer games testers get PAID to play games, notice any glitches and feel smug about having such an amazing job. Calm down and stop jumping on the sofa, you’ve still got to finish Level 12 before you can rescue the princess in the castle...
Anything in IT
Want to feel like a god amongst men (and women), then the world of IT is ideal. It’s the most cliched stereotype around and you probably don’t want to be pigeonholed, but the truth is IT geeks hold the power in any company. As long as businesses have technophobic employees panicking whenever restarting the computer doesn’t fix the problem, there will always be vacancies for IT geeks. Fact.
Want an IT job but want to know more? Good thing we've got a handy IT career guide
Librarian
If you shudder at the thought of books being forgotten and love to surround yourself with mountains of literature then the life of a librarian is calling…very quietly, obviously.
Perfect for academic geeks, it’s the ideal way to catch up on your reading as well as helping to inspire the 2-3 people who still know what a library is.
See our librarian career guide
NASA employee
If you’re a member of MENSA and have been laughing at the stupidity of the contestants on University Challenge since you were a toddler, maybe it’s time to look to the skies for some inspiration - literally.
Whether you’re working on the ground with all of the important-looking people in white coats, or you're shooting off to the moon to find out if it’s really made from cheese, a job at NASA is sure to impress at parties.
Scientist
If you loved science at school because you got to experiment with chemicals that could blow things up, or if you still like to pretend you’re a crazy scientist by not brushing your hair and wearing a stolen lab coat then the life of a scientist is probably the only road for you.
From helping to discover medical cures to messing around with test tubes just like you did at school, there’s something for every science geek to enjoy.
Want to make a difference in the world of research? Better check out our research scientist career guide
If all else fails…
Become Doctor Who
Travelling across time and space in a vintage police box is the only way to see the world. Picking up cool friends and ditching the really annoying ones, you also get to wear a really smart suit so you can look cool as you run away from the Daleks.
