Better paying Careers.

[BirdFeederFun]

My daughter's thinking about A level options and I thought I'd ask here.

Lots of people say nursinf/teaching isnt well paid (35-45 once established) so I'm curious as to what you can plan to go into that pays more. It's not really in my realm of expertise.

Obviously there's doctors and lawyers and programming but there's all these general jobs that people go into what do they look like and how?

The other things she wondered about are optometry and psychologist but I know the psychologist route is hard.

People seem to switch careers on mn is that more general "business" jobs. And what are they? Project management? I do t really know. Do you just do any degree and a graduate programme or can you go into that world a different way?

Thankyou

A marketing or finance director for a charity will still be making substantially more than an operating technician or an OT assistant though won't they.

Start in civil service or a policy consultancy. Dont see it as a job in the civil service as for life, move into a consultancy at a higher level working up to partner, move into a bank or other large org as working towards head of policy / director of policy become a senior advisor in government. Def a 6 figure salary if you’re good and ambitious

But an OT assistant can retrain to be an OT then become a head of, then move into non-clinical management/commissioning with can start at £60k and reach the mythical 6 figure salaries.

Hi OP, in your initial post you mention 'general business jobs', and yes in my experience these are the careers where you can earn quite well.

I did A levels and my degree in subjects I was good at- degree was English Lit.

I had a vague idea I might like to go into teaching or publishing but after graduating, in the end I took the first admin role I was offered as I just wanted to start working.

I started on £14k and now 20 years later have just started earning 6 figures- I now work in marketing procurement which was an industry I didn't know existed before I started working. I absolutely LOVE my job.

My advice would be for her to study what she enjoys, she can always specialise later.

My husband’s nephew, who was very average academically, is doing a degree apprenticeship in project management with BAE Systems. He loves it. He gets a salary, no student debt. He’s about to start his second placement away from home and will probably do a year abroad next year. They seem to really look after you there, it’s quite paternalistic, all sorts of perks and allowances. And he’ll be a pathway to make very good money with very transferable skills.

I was a teacher for 18 years and now retraining as an accountant. I think any kind of 'business and finance' type route for A-Levels and degree would stand anyone in good stead for both earning good money in the future and also being able to apply it to something they find enjoyable and fulfilling.

But where would she live whilst moving from job to job - maybe if DPs are in the SE she will have options but elsewhere she’d need to move and rents are sky high.

Try this free quizhttps://www.16personalities.com which might give ideas.
Her school should provide careers guidance- it would be worth looking at getting work experience in a few areas to see what those sort of careers are actually like. Even shadowing day an optician would be worthwhile.

I’m surprised she’s considering the nhs. Medical roles aren’t flexible and -well it doesn’t look a great place to be.
i encouraged DDs to look at traditionally men’s jobs. And they are well paid.

House share like most other young people?

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I don’t know enough about the pathway or the job. It seems oddly specific. I assume (if you really don’t want to train in nursing or medicine) the pathway up is into general hospital management, whether NHS or private.

if she’s interested in working in healthcare, which you’ve indicated, there are lots of allied health professions - my friend is a clinical psychologist and worked her to consultant in the NHS and now has a bit of a portfolio career doing a bit of NHS work, private work and research with a charity.

Yes clinical psychologist is an example of a health care job that earns very well early on once qualified. Although takes a good while to qualify.

That's a route I do know about as I considered retraining in it myself (and really wish I was able to!!) Significantly higher earning than OT/nurse/teacher so perhaps what sparked some of my interest in other sectors that I know less about.

I think only in that as as a teenager teaching/NHS/etc is what you see in your everyday life.

Hence the thread. She hasn't a clue what happens in "business" jobs other than an idea you're sat "doing paperwork" so no clue what other routes are possible.

When you know what's possible it's easier to choose A levels. At the moment degrees with specific career pathways are attractive to her whereas I was taught a generic subject kept options open. Although I guess say an optician or nurse degree does lead you into an actual job.

https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/

Has she had a look on here?

Most organisations will have the following in the back office:
Finance
HR
IT (that will encompass a broad range of jobs - not just IT helpdesk stuff)
Facilities
Communications/marketing
Governance (company secretary, in-house legal counsel)
Sustainability will be an increasingly important area.

Experience and training in one of these areas will give lots of career options.

I’d look at industries that have a lot to deliver - look at the big infrastructure companies including energy distribution, water, transport. Also look at what can get a foothold in finance (not necessarily front office). Find a degree with good industry connections, career pathways. Or apprenticeships.

There is a huge emphasis on Russell Group but there are many others that can lead to a career that pays v well.

there was a thread on here not long ago re Quantity Surveying - v underrated but fantastic opportunities, or industry focussed project management.

Careers advice tends to lean towards these vocational careers but actually most well-paid people end up doing something that doesn't turn up in children's books about jobs, with names like:

HR Business Partner
Business Analyst
Reconciliations Manager
Portfolio Co-ordinator
Compliance Officer

What do they actually do? No-one knows.

If she loves Chemistry then I'd suggest she looks at Chemistry degrees - uni websites will have a 'what our graduates go on to do' page which might inspire. If she'd be happy doing post-grad quals then working in big Pharma could be lucrative.

Ha yes this exactly right down to the careers service advice!

It's fine to have a well paid job, but if you hate it, it wouldn't matter what figure you're bringing into the house. Being miserable for money is a no go in my opinion. But each to their own.

I don't think anyone's suggested going for a high paying career they hate have they?

finding out about jobs - could she visit the workplace of friends and neighbours for a day/ afternoon. Depends how confident she is.
DS did a workplacement through someone DH had worked with in the past.
DD had a week where my DH worked mostly shadowing someone. And discovered that contractors in that field earned 700 pounds a day - quite an incentive (this was many years ago).

Complete agree with this as it also allows you to move between sectors (I'd recommend starting in private and moving to charity later; much easier that way round).

I think that also helps with future-proofing - I often think about which jobs will still exist in 20 years. IT may become less desirable with the evolution of AI, but generally back end will always be required.

As she is good at maths, keep doing that as long as she can. Many more high-earning jobs involve good maths skill.

I'd agree with looking at financial services companies, actuarial law firms, and seeing what they have available in the way of work experience or careers information.

My ds has great maths ability but chose to do a computer science degree in the end. The very top maths and computer science graduates going into financial tech jobs can start at £250,000. That's unusual, but hell, why not aim there? Ds himself probably wont get there. He may be able to start as a new graduate at around £42,000 aged 21.

If the maths isn't quite at that level, I'd look for routes into sales. If she turns out to be able to sell, she can earn brilliant salaries and it's a great route towards board-level business jobs.