AIBU to leave my job and study full-time at university?

[SquirrelySponges]

Hello,

I am currently trying to make a decision after weighing up my choices and need to know if I am being really silly or am actually doing the right thing!

I am in my 40s and a single Mum of a primary school child. I currently work 19 hours a week doing shifts (days, lates and nights) and get a UC top up too and the housing element to help with my rent. I want to make some changes, get a better paid job with better hours etc. And to get off benefits and eventually buy a property etc. The only way to do this is retrain as I dont have the qualifications to get a very well paid job. I have been going to college in the evenings and got a level 3 qualification but need to take it to degree level get a job in it.

I was going to do this part time at Uni, cut my hours at work to 17 a week to get Tuesdays off to attend, and do a lot of course work from home. But being part time I can only get student finance for the fees and not get a maintenance loan or any other grants etc. I went to a meeting with the Uni finance team today and they have advised me to do it full time instead. Then I can get a maintenance loan and a parent learning allowance and UC should give me a bit more as I will be earning less so they reckon I may not need to work to give me more time for study and family life.

I have asked so many official people and bodies how this will work so have an idea but I want to hear from people that have done similar. I've heard scare stories that UC can insist you work instead and may sanction me for leaving ny job. But I really am trying to better myself and my life.

So I am after a bit of advice from anyone that has been through similar or well anyone that knows a bit about this sort of thing please.

Thank you for reading and for any advice

YABU - Stay at work and dont be silly
YANBU - Go for it, do the full time course

Best off doing it as a open university degree and working alongside. Counselling isn't big money, you're going to be in debt up to your eyeballs if you stop working too.

The difference is that your husband will presumably keep the family afloat while you study. This is not the OP's situation. If you can afford it, go for it, money buys you options.

I get it, I'm sick of my job too. I'm also a lone parent, like OP, but busting a gut to support my family - no UC, paying higher rate tax while hemorrhaging money living life as a single person. I looked into a law conversion degree with a view to practicing family law locally (as opposed to more corporate drudgery), but when I looked into it, there aren't many jobs and they pay is worse than my current job. Sometimes we get these great ideas...except when you really look into it, they're not great after all.

I'd seriously suggest trying to get a job with some some career progression.

Don’t even think of counselling as a career for regular money and a mortgage. Do it for interest and enjoyment as an addition to a steady income. And if you want to do a degree for a career think ahead to see how AI might affect your chance of even getting an entry level position.

You’ll need a psychology or psychiatry degree and probably a masters
Just on this to clarify...to be a psychologist with the NHS, you need a PhD. Getting into the PhD programme is extremely competitive and you heed a psychology degree and masters first.

Psychiatry is a discipline of medicine. You don't study a psychiatry degree, you study medicine and then specialises in psychiatry.

If you want a decent income, speech and language therapy is by far the best degree to get. There is a great shortage in that discipline and much demand. Al ost guaranteed a job at band 5, going up to band 8a after years of experience and some management.