To ask what alternative careers might suit me.

[HamnetandJudith]

Ok, not really an AIBU, but I’m wondering where to go next with my career. I have an ancient Oxford degree in English Literature which probably isn’t relevant anymore! I’m an experienced English teacher in middle management and while I enjoy aspects of my role, I am not sure I want to progress further in teaching.

When I left university I wanted to study law, but I was worried about the financial cost and I decided not to pursue it, something I now regret.

I’m really at the beginning of the process of exploring my options, so just wanted to gather ideas.

I am worried that my age (late 30s) and lack of experience outside teaching is an issue - but I do want to consider my next steps. I would consider further training (if I could do this alongside working). I like the look of some civil service/public sector roles and I’ve been looking at roles connected with education/training that might utilise my skills.

I still feel like I’m drawing a blank though and my fear is that a lack of decision making will ultimately lead to inertia and me seeing out the rest of my days in my current role.

I know I’m very lucky to have a secure job at the moment and I’m not jumping ship just yet, but planning ahead.

Has anyone seen a career coach - or would recommend one?

Appreciate any thoughts!

Not a relevant comment at all but I forgot to mention last time how much I love your username.

That's all

@TaraR2020

Not a relevant comment at all but I forgot to mention last time how much I love your username.

That's all

Thank you. I’m a Shakespeare obsessive and I love the Maggie O’Farrell book of the same name.

Can I ask those who are recommending the civil service for any tips on how to get into it/how to find roles? Its something that has been recommended to me a few times but when I looked, the jobs that were advertised all seemed incredibly niche/specific, and the other info was the graduate fastrack which made it very clear that you would be required to work anywhere that they wanted you to go. Am I missing something?
I get that transferable skills are important but that wasn't what I picked up when seeing advertised roles. (Am a social worker btw, so not the same as the OP but it's often an area I hear recommended to teachers and social workers looking to change roles)

Thanks for that post @Cheesyblasters - that’s something I have been wondering too.

@HamnetandJudith I've been in two minds whether to read it or not, but I shall take that as a recommendation!

DH retrained as a lawyer in his 30s. He did the conversion alongside working full time over 2 years (self funded), then secured a training contract and they paid for legal practice course.

@HamnetandJudith I've gone looking a few times over the years and I can't tell if I'm being deliberately obtuse or if it's the middle class equivalent of 'just get a job in Tesco'
I know of someone who got in straight from uni with a history degree and did the fastrack scheme which worked well for him as a new graduate, and another who got a job when there was a big recruitment drive due to a new tax office opening up where they lived. But apart from those two examples I'm always baffled when I look, the roles I see tend to require very specific skills/experience/knowledge bases.

@Cheesyblasters and @HamnetandJudith - the faststream does emphasise that they might post you anywhere, but actually in reality, if you’ve got kids in school, they are definitely not going to post you miles away. This FAQ says “Fast Streamers are expected to be mobile and flexible - most Fast Streamers will need to relocate at least once during the course of the scheme. We will consider requests to work in specific locations based on personal circumstances like caring responsibilities.” see here.

As an ex fastreamer myself (a while ago!), and having managed several over the years, or had one in my team, I do think being an older fastreamer might be pretty difficult. You will usually be one of the most junior members of staff; although there is definitely no upper age limit, I don’t think I’ve ever met a fast streamer older than 30, and you have to move role and usually also department every 6 months for the first 2 years. On the other hand, it’s a great scheme and a good way to get your foot in the door.

@cheesy - what grade / salary were you looking at, with the very specific skills requirements? One issue is that loads of jobs (below senior civil service) are only advertised to internal candidates, so they often only advertise externally either because the dept has a general rule to do so (think DfE does this), or because they are looking for a particular set of skills not already in their civil service. So more jobs are open to you once you get inside the civil service. You might therefore have to start lower than you’d hoped, but it’s not too hard to be promoted once you get in, if you’re good.

@HamnetandJudith - ah, exam boards, that’s a good option! DH is a Principal Examiner for one of the boards in addition to his (part time) day job teaching, and really enjoys it. He started off just marking ALevels, but is now involved in setting papers, moderating grades etc, which he finds intellectually challenging and because he loves his subject (and has a doctorate in it), he loves getting properly stuck in.

I think it’s possible you are doing the classic (female) thing of looking at a job description and ruling yourself out because you don’t meet all the criteria, when actually no one does - why not ring up the recruiting manager next time you see that kind of job, and get a sense of whether someone with your skills and experience really is not qualified for whatever job it is?