What should I retrain as?

[Bloballbovish]

I'm a SAHM with a background in education (teacher and TA). I definitely don't want to be a teacher again and a TA is poorly paid. I'd like something with a bit of career progression and decent pay.

Option one is bookkeeping/accountancy. I was thinking of doing the AAT route. The bonus with this is initially I could work in schools in finance jobs to get some experience and still enjoy most of the school holidays while my kids are young (they are primary and babies atm). There are these type of jobs around quite often where I live. Then when the kids are older I could move into 52 week jobs and get some better paid positions.

Option two might be a flash in the pan but it really sounds interesting, it's data analysis. I looked into the kind of things I'd have to study and I think I could do a lot by studying at home and then there are starter jobs that train you up. I did my degree in psychology and liked the data side of it. The main drawback is most of the jobs seem to be full time and 52 weeks and I'd really like to have a large chunk of the school holidays with my children.

So option one seems to fit my needs more but option two looks like something I'd really enjoy doing. But the whole school holiday thing is so important to me. If my kids were a bit older I'd definitely do option two.

I know a lot of you will think 'so what about the holidays, we all work school holidays'. But I worked low paid jobs for years so I could have the school holidays to help my stbex with childcare (aka be there 24/7 so she could work shifts without giving childcare a second thought). And I feel like I've done that for years and don't want to miss out on that time with my own children.

Option three - anyone got any suggestions of other careers that might work for me? I'm in my 40s so I'd like to get on a career path soonish to maximise earning potential and pay big into my pension.

If you want term time only but without the downsides of teaching or TA, that's a really, really small pool.

Data science is an office job at the the end of the day, so anecdotally with the right firm you will have potential for PT roles, Flexi working, WFH, a week or two of parental leave p.a.. Maybe look for public sector or similar, or maybe in a university for more annual leave.

Bookkeeping/accountancy is really dull and repetitive! If you had the motivation to do something creative like teaching I am not sure it would be for you- maybe get a level 2 AAT book and look at it it will give you an idea. Have you considered LA tutor work such as for sick children at home or at a centre for excluded children? According to my friend it is not as in your face as it sounds- lots of paperwork, preparing sessions for children who don't turn up, liaising for safeguardings. My friend is doing it through an agency though so not great for pension.

The world and his dog are looking for term time only jobs so good luck with that one.

I worked with excluded children before and I hated it. But tbh I really want to be out of the classroom regardless. The repetitiveness of accountancy did kind of appeal at first because I'm so fed up of the unpredictable nature of working with kids but I did wonder if it would grate after a while.

I am aware that term time jobs are rare, that's why I've been working as a TA for years, and dealing with the crappy pro rata salary that comes with it. I think part of me is just annoyed that I didn't put my own career first and get it going before I had my kids.

Looking for data analyst jobs in university type places is a good tip, I'll have to scout out how many of those there are in my area, there are quite a few unis around here.

Have you considered instructional design, with a focus on learning analytics? You could choose to work in corporate or education. I've been working in this field for the last 12 years and love it. I work in HE, so although I don't get school holidays, I get 44 days leave a year, a decent salary and flexible working.

How about school data manager jobs? Some are full year but plenty are term time only.

Most university data analysis jobs are full time full year but may include wfh now.

Thanks for both of the suggestions, school data manager or instructional design. They both sound like something I could consider.

I had to look up instructional design, but that does sound good. I don't know if I'm burnt out from working with kids but I'm a rare breed of education worker who would now prefer to do things like lesson plans and spreadsheets and making resources than work with the kids! Most teachers go the opposite and say they love the kids but have had enough of all the data and planning. So instructional design is definitely something I could do, maybe as a bridge to analysis or maybe just something I'd enjoy in its own right.

If you don't mind me asking @Cornishmumofone how did you get into it?

If you love data and statistics, get into data science. This is different to data analytics! You will need to learn Python/SQL and some other technical skills on top of your data analytics skills but many large, well paying organisations are now recruiting data scientists. I work for a large financial services firm and there is plenty of flexibility, job security, possibility to go PT, many many benefits e.g. good holidays, exceptional pension, flexible working arrangements largely accepted.

If you are good, you could freelance, which would get you none of the above benefits but would get you the holiday flexibility you are looking for and is well paying.

@user1471548941 I have been trying to learn a bit of Python to see how I feel about it, it's quite enjoyable. I was learning Python 2 for free just to see what it was like but might pay to do Python 3 now I've seen what it's like.

I don't think I'd mind working part time in the school holidays, so if part time positions were reasonably easy to come by, I'd do that for a while.

Is data science usually office based or is there much WFH?

I got into it by chance... I quit my secondary teaching job with nothing to go to. I went home and found my husband had brought home a copy of the local paper which had an Ed Tech job advert in it. Luckily I got that job and after 3 years I applied for a Learning Designer job that was closer to home.

There are loads of (mostly US-based) Facebook groups that give advice on getting into ID. Coursera and FutureLearn usually have some useful courses. Being confident with IT is helpful. ALT - Association for Learning Technologists - is the main UK network where jobs are advertised.

Thank you for the advice! It definitely looks like something I could work towards getting into, and enjoy. I will have a look at the courses, see if they give me a feel for what it entails.