AIBU to try and increase my earnings?

[Saffie980]

posting here for traffic as I really need a response:

I spent my twenties in a bit of an existential crisis. All sorted now! But in the midst of the crisis I tried lots of jobs and finally settled into being a social researcher in the Civil Service after completing a masters in Social Research Methods.

I have been working at a junior level (HEO) for over a year now and thinking about the long term, I really need to make more money. I am desperate to buy my own home and I don’t have any family wealth to inherit, so it’s really important that I set myself up. I also have a great love of fashion that I need to better fund!

I have been doing some digging and come across ux research as a career option. I love research, user design and it could be a way to make more money! I currently earn £34k and if I remain in the civil service, I hope to increase that to £41k in a year.

Are there any ux researchers or people who work with them that could give some advice on the sort of salaries available in London? I’ve been looking at job adverts and have signed up for a few industry events so actively trying to build my known, but any guidance on how to get into the field would be greatly appreciated! I work at the ONS on economic statistics, so fintech could be a good match for me.

So AIBU to think that I can get a job as a UX Researcher? And am I unreasonable to think it would pay really well?

I have no idea but consider your pension, the civil service has a decent pension.

I work in tech. I would actually say UX researcher can be a bit tricky, as a lot of UX Designers - who will actually build the wireframes and create the designs and the flow - will do UX research as part of their role. This makes them very desirable staff members. But it does mean that someone who is just the researcher looks a bit lacking next to a designer who does both.

I know two UX Researchers and both were made redundant as the companies realised their jobs could be done by others in the UX team. One retrained in design and is doing well as the hybrid UX/UI/Research designer that is more sought after, but the other is still struggling to find work.

It's an interesting field, and if you really carve out an exceptional niche you could still be in demand. Your challenge will be proving what benefit you bring that a UX/UI Designer with experience in research doesn't already bring to the role. Obviously she UX Researchers have managed to keep proving their worth. But I think they're becoming a bit less common now as research merges into the designer role.

Look into a Business Analyst as well. They analyse the needs of the business, the needs and expectations of the users, plot out the product requirements, liaise with relevant stakeholders and so on... All of the research, no designing, and the best ones are adept with data and metrics as well. They are highly desirable specialists and can command high salaries when experienced.

Great point. That will definitely be a factor. However, I am really committed to earning the largest salary I can, and making investments that can offset any employer pension loses.

I take your point about designers having the edge over pure researchers! I was a bit worried about this.

And thanks for suggesting Business Analyst as an option. I’ll do some digging…

Business Analyst would be a good fit with that degree and there's a huge shortage. You may be able to get some training within your current role, check with your HR. The highest BA salaries are in finance or insurance, so you'll need to switch fields and there's a much lower pension to take into account; talk to some specialist recruiters when you've done some training (literally Google "niche insurance recruitment" "niche financial services recruitment" and identify companies that specialise).

Thank you! Really appreciate your advice.

Top BAs can attract six figure salaries, they're is definitely way more money in that than in UX, who in my experience, tend to have fairly low salaries compared to the rest of the tech team, like the developers, Business Analysts and QA testers.

Also, be aware that without industry experience you might only get low offers for junior roles initially, say £30k. As soon as you have even a year under your belt, your earning power increases enormously, especially with your other work experience added in, so it's ok to take something small for a year and then move if they don't quickly.increase your wage.

I am more than willing to take a £30k role if there are are good progression opportunities!