Any ideas for a career change ?

[Sunshine38]

....to ask if anyone has any ideas for a career change ?
I am 38years old and really feel like I wish a complete career change
Has anyone here done this in their late thirties
I have a good science based degree but don't mind if it's a career change which is unrelated to this
I'm not afraid of hard work and feel I am best suited to mainly work on my own Any ideas?

[RainyDaisy]

What do you/did you do before?

[Lellikelly26]

College lecturing? You don't really work with other staff too much but of course you do have the students to deal with.
Otherwise what do you enjoy spending your time doing? What do people tell you you are good at?

[topcat2014]

SIL changed from being a scientist to an accountant.

[Sunshine38]

Rainy ...work for a science based company but want a change
I had thought of lecturing as someone suggested above
and accountancy is also an idea

[Sunshine38]

Lelli....I'm a good communicator but I think I'm suited more to working on my own instead of within a team so lecturing is a good suggestion

[chocoLit]

Watching with interest as having just turned 40 I want to sell our business and get a job. I can't go back to the job I had previously and am at a loss. DH won't entertain my thoughts of moving abroad to buy a property where we can live/work e.g.holiday rental/B&B etc so it's back to the ole drawing board..............................

[AddToBasket]

Academia, do a PHD. Universities are a really different environment to business. I went back in my mid-thirties and found being a student again very invigorating.

[chocoLit]

I'd love to do lecturing unfortunately my 20yr old degree isn't relevant to what I've been doing for the past 8yrs and I've no formal qualifications in that.

I was told by an HR bloke yesterday to apply for a job lecturing in it at a college fairly local to us but I totally bottled it and didn't submit a form

Is there a way of getting into it without the more formal route - does industry/private experience count?

[Sunshine38]

Add to....Thanks, I enjoyed the University environment when I was a student so some kind of teaching or employment within a Uni would be suited to me . Cost wise, how much would it be approximately to do a PHD?

[chocoLit]

Sorry sunshine38 - wrong thread I have a similar thread on the go about CVs etc.............

[Sunshine38]

Chocolit ....no worries

[whatishistory]

Do not go into academia unless you have a full grasp on the working conditions. Yes, you need a PhD. You will then almost certainly have to work a couple of temporary contracts and be prepared to move anywhere in the country for work. The chances of you then getting a permanent contract are not good, and you would again have to be prepared to make anywhere in the country. 50-60 hour weeks are the norm. A working culture where taking a holiday is frowned upon. Academia is still rife with gender discrimination & even worse for women who have children.

There are a lot of positives about being in academia & I love my work, but you need to really understand the demands. It's a completely different world to lecturing in a college/FE.

[Familyof3or4]

Doctor? There are graduate entry courses for 4 years.

[whatishistory]

Sorry, that wasn't a particularly positive post . But most people really don't understand what being an academic involves (beyond giving the odd lecture). I'm also at the point of wanting to punch the next person who says to me 'so are you enjoying having the long summer holiday?'

[Myfirstbornisacollie]

My DH became a radiographer after working in banking with a chemistry degree. He likes it, lots of options to choose an area you like. Means going back to uni though you might get a bursary?

[TheWindInThePillows]

I do know someone who did a PhD later in life and then moved into consultancy work doing academic projects, which worked out extremely well.

However, I do agree in general with whatishistory - there's a huge difference between being a lecturer at a FE college/A levels, than being a lecturer at a university. At a university, it's usually a role involving research and administration as well as teaching, and requires not only a PhD but also a few years of post-doctoral study, this is not well paid really (depends what you do now). There are teaching only roles though, and you can do science demonstrating as well.

[TheWindInThePillows]

whatishistory I sympathise, lots of people are very surprised to hear academics/lecturers work like normal people in the summer, having a couple of weeks off, and don't get teaching holidays at all!

[RowenaDahl]

Myfirstborn, how did he approach the radiography route? Did he do job shadowing or work as a radiographic assistant or just dive into a course? I'm thinking about OT but not sure where to start as previous career is very different.

[HeyMicky]

Medical signatory for a pharma company. Pays a bloody shedload and all companies are totally under resources in this area

[chocoLit]

Heymicky - how do you get into that? Sounds like something DH could do with his background /degree.................

[Sunshine38]

Thanks for the realistic advice about academia
It's extremely useful to hear the more negative side of options as well as the positives

[Sunshine38]

Also interested in how to go about the medical signatory route ....how do you get into this?

[Myfirstbornisacollie]

Rowena he spoke to some radiographers ( I was a junior doc at time so got to know some) and then applied for uni. work experience type things difficult to come by with patient confidentiality etc. I'd definitely try and speak to people doing the job as reality often different to the theory

[Bluechip]

Hard to know without knowing more about what you do. Are there freelance opportunities? That can be a daunting leap but rewarding and would allow you to branch out into new areas. Can you afford a year out to retrain in something new/do voluntary in a new area. It isn't too late to move into teaching (primary or secondary not university) but a big change and not one I can advise on. Is there something you're keen on? Something you do outside of work? You're definitely not too old but need to think about what you want to do

[eurochick]

Patent attorney?