Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To consider retraining as I head towards 40?

28 replies

twolittleboysonetiredmum · 14/01/2018 15:04

I’m 38 and have been a primary school teacher for 11 years. I don’t think I can do it until I’m 70 which is my likely retirement age. I like it just resent the fact I have to engage with it constantly in my free time. I’m also being steadily pushed into management which I dislike as it removes me further from the reason I enjoy my job.
I would like to retrain to be a nurse. I have always wanted to enter nursing but had a disrupted childhood and entered teaching as an easy in with my scattered education. I don’t have a scientific background and have an English degree.
Would I be nuts to enter a similarly pressured role like nursing? Is it daft to retrain at my age? We could handle the financial pressure for a few years until I qualified. Our children are fairly young now but after 3/4 years training we could manage the shift pattern element. I just can’t decide if I’m mad to even consider it but cannot bear to be in this job endlessly.

OP posts:
EastMidsMummy · 14/01/2018 15:06

YANBU to retrain at 40 , but teaching > nursing doesn’t sound like a great way of easing back on work pressures!

LucheroTena · 14/01/2018 15:09

You’re crazy. At least you get good holidays now. Nursing is a miserable, short staffed and downtrodden profession and the shift work in the early years is awful. I’m not saying teaching is much better but it’s a frying pan to fire proposal.

Mishappening · 14/01/2018 15:10

Retraining at 40? - a doddle. I retrained at 50 and had 10 years of satisfaction from a new career.

If nursing is what you want, then go for it. There are roles in nursing that are not so physically challenging - e.g. working in OPD.

Grab every chance you can to do what you want with your life.

PinkCrystal · 14/01/2018 15:42

Go for it. I am a similar age doing a similar health course. It's great and there are lots of mature students. Some unis are more family friendly and many training do 3 x 12 hour days. I know lots who love it! Also consider looking into allied professions such as physio, occupational therapy, posiatry, radiology, prosthetics etc. Good luck

swingofthings · 14/01/2018 15:50

The reasons you've given for wanting out of teaching are a worry as most nurses would complain of the same issues.

If you want to retrain because you desperately want to be a nurse, being clear what it entails taking into account all the negatives, then go for it, but if it's mainly a way out of teaching, then don't do it.

Do you know any nurses that you could speak to to get an idea of what their work-life balance is like?

Original poster
twolittleboysonetiredmum · 14/01/2018 16:01

Thanks for the responses. I know a few nurses in various settings but not really well enough to have an in depth discussion about conditions.
I think that is the main thing that has stopped me pursuing it any further the last few years - that id swap one role for another but end up with the same frustrations and probably worse conditions (eg fair point on the holidays - massive perk).
I have always loved the idea of nursing but never had the strong enough desire to do much about it. I feel like I’m at a turning point age wise - if I don’t do it now, will I ever? But obviously along with a desire for change are all the negatives it will bring that will impact on our family.

OP posts:
LyraPotter · 14/01/2018 16:07

I certainly don't think your age is a problem - you could be working for another 25 years! That's a very long time to be in a profession that you aren't happy in.

I do think nursing is a difficult and stressful job, and the pay and benefits aren't amazing considering that. Having said that it's a vocation, and if it's something you feel passionate about and would love, you should go for it!

spongebunnyfatpants · 14/01/2018 20:47

Nursing is far more physical than teaching and with shift work and far less holidays.
I went from nursing to teaching and I wouldn't go back.

Original poster
twolittleboysonetiredmum · 14/01/2018 22:15

I hadn’t thought about the physical side of nursing actually - glad I started the thread now! I’d love to specialise in treating children and I wonder if I could hack that come my late 50s. Teaching is tiring but not as much as being on your feet all day. I am very passionate about it but I don’t know if I could call it a vocation really.

OP posts:
kw1091 · 14/01/2018 22:17

Do it! I’m a student midwife and there are ladies on my course in their fifties. If it’s your passion then go for it! X

BookWitch · 14/01/2018 22:21

I'm a teacher and thinking of retraining at nearly 50 so I'm glad people think I'm not too old!
I too would have loved to be a nurse and if I had my time again that's the way I would have gone , but I think nursing is a sailed ship for me now.
Still unsure about what I'd actually like to do.

Lovestonap · 14/01/2018 22:22

You'll be on shift work from almost day one, or whenever you start your first placement.
You could start training, the first year of it would tell you what to expect from a nursing career and if it wasn't a good fit you haven't wasted too much time.

HeelsHurt · 14/01/2018 22:22

Age not an issue but I think you would be entering a stressful world into an equally or even more with less pay and much less control over shift patterns. The NHS used to be quite family friendly but currently unless you get a 9-5 job which would decrease your pay by several hundred pounds a month we are on a system which a computer dictates your shifts every week and you can have 4 requests a month .
It’s an absolute nightmare to predict any sort of childcare arrangements.

CappuccinoCake · 14/01/2018 22:24

I wondered when I saw the thread title if it would be a teacher. I'm a similar age wanting a different job and wondering if retraining is the only way.

I'd love to be a psych or an OT but can't see how we'd afford it or manage childcare :(

I'm not sure nursing itself is an easier career to take into older age though.

Allthewaves · 14/01/2018 22:29

I work in nhs. I think your mad retrain as a nurse from teacher. Nursers are over worked, not as well paid as teachers, some.have bad work/life balance. No guarantee you will get holidays when kids are off so paying for childcare when you would be taking a salary job and years to build to the same level. Nevermind physical strain of the job

ladystarkers · 14/01/2018 22:30

Yanbu to retrain at 40 but nursing? Can you see yourself doing that until 70Confused

Polarbearflavour · 14/01/2018 22:30

Getting in 50k of student debt to be a nurse?!

The only good thing about nursing is there are loads of jobs around!

OneWildNightWithJBJ · 14/01/2018 22:33

I'm a teacher, a couple of years older than you. Have also thought about doing something different, as the thought of doing this until 68 or whenever isn't great! Part of nursing appeals - more the therapy side, but no way could I handle shift work.

I don't think nursing will be any easier than teaching. However, having said that, if it's what you really want to do then I think you should at least give it a go.

Betarocker · 14/01/2018 22:33

I'm retraining to be a social worker. I'm 51 and enjoying a fabulous, tiring, stressful, fun, enriching education. Never too old.

Glitterkitten24 · 14/01/2018 22:37

I came on your thread to tell you I am retraining at almost 40, but I am doing my pdge so maybe you won’t trust my judgement! 😂

Seriously though, do it. Life is too short to be stuck in a job you don’t enjoy. I have a whole new lease of life to be using my brain, stepping out of my normal life and taking a risk. It’s a heady feeling!

ToothyMcPuthy · 14/01/2018 22:49

I retained as a nurse in my mid thirties and I wasn't the oldest on my course by around 10 years so I don't think your age is an issue.

I would just say that nursing can be very stressful and emotionally/physically draining. The government have withdrawn bursaries for student nurses, so you would need to take out a loan to cover your fees (£9k x 3 years). Once qualified you can expect to earn around £22k.

Student nurses work 37.5 hours per week on placement (I did 2 x 12 week placements each year but this will vary uni to uni) which are a mixture of long days/nights and weekends. On top of this there are essays, practical assessments and exams to study for. It didn't do much for my work/life balance.

All of this aside, I am glad I did my training but it is very stressful at times. If you want to do it OP then go for it. Good luck with whatever you decide.

Monr0e · 14/01/2018 22:52

I'm 42 and in my second year training to be a midwife.

My friend is 46 and in her final year training to be an OT. So definately not too old to retrain.

But it is a very physical job and the shifts including nights don't suit everyone so definitely research the role and the training before making any decisions

Ohyesiam · 14/01/2018 23:24

I live with a teacher and used to be a nurse.
Yes, nursing is a pressured job, and the NHS is being dismantled. A lot of nurses tend to leave the fracas of the ward by becoming a specialist, which is better died to being older. Things like cancer care specialist, or stoma specialist. These roles depend on experience, but it might be Wirth you enquiring how much.
So your training would take you to mid forties, you could spend 5 years in a field you like, and look to become a specialist, or nurse practitioner I think they are called now. Much less running about, but lots of responsibility.
My timing on how much experience is needed may be way out, but you could do some research.

pottersotters · 15/01/2018 08:08

Being a band 5 nurse is often very stressful and physically demanding. The shifts can be brutal and childcare can be difficult. You’ll also take a pay cut initially and have a lot of debt. However if you’re not worried about the money and or have a very clear career plan that might be ok? I have a colleague to intends to go from a newly qualified band 5 to community matron in 10 years, so that’s band 5 to band 8a, with Monday to Friday 9-5 shifts.

Otherwise have you thought about therapy? PT, OT, speech and language? Or how about play therapist? Therapists have better shifts, often more opportunities to progress to band 6/7 and you can still specialise in kids. Also more opportunities to work privately if that’s something you’re interested in.

butterflybuns · 15/01/2018 13:11

YANBU to retrain to do a different job if you want to get out of teaching however jumping into nursing is not the best idea. I would actively advise against it. Yes in time you may be abke to get a nurse specialist job but to be honest there aren't that many about and are hard to get and need experience within that speciality. If it's healthcare you love why not try a therapy instead i.e. physio, OT, SALT, orthotics?

Can you not get a different role within education, one that's not frontline teaching? Frontline nursing is not the simple get out you may think it is and like teaching is not the profession it used to be.