TBH, my career ladder didn't start until I was offered a part-time credit+pay position by my programming teacher in year 2 of community college. Before that, I

TBH, my career ladder didn't start until I was offered a part-time credit+pay position by my programming teacher in year 2 of community college. Before that, I was making 126% minimum wage at my first job (movie theater). So, I suppose if minimum wage had been higher I wouldn't have wasted three years of my life cleaning up used condoms and dirty diapers from the floor of a theater. But it probably wouldn't have kept me from being offered the (mostly credit) 3-month development project at the school I was going to. And arguably, that set up my career more than anything.