Career change at 50? How?

[Careerme26]

Hi, I'm 50 next year and have no career due to working around dc in my 30s and 40s. I hate my current role and think its time to try something new, rather than carrying on working in minimum wage admin roles. I was thinking of starting in project management; what do you think? What's it like? What do i need to do to get there? Is there anything similar to consider too? AIBU to try a new career this late? I know I could be working for another 15 years.

You’re not being unreasonable OP. Volunteer first at likes of Citizens Advice and make yourself invaluable until you get a paid post.

I’d look for something in local government. Lots of older women and often recruits on skills. Look on your council website. Fixed term is a good way to get foot in door.

I think if you’ve worked in admin those skills lend themselves very well to project management! You could start in a project assistant role, which would be more admin focused and probably work your way up quite quickly if you were good at it. I agree that government is a good sector to look at

And I wouldn't. Most Councils are focused on reducing the 'head count' due to funding cuts and there's no money for extra posts. I've been trying to go full time for nearly 4 years now and keep being told there's no money to create me a job. Unless you're very skilled and experienced at what you do, or you want minimum wage admin or cleaning, I'd give local government a swerve!

I started a new career at 60 with the court and tribunal service and love it!

I started a new career at 60 with the court and tribunal service and love it!

Ooh how exciting! I would love this too!

Does anyone know about getting into project management for the first time?

https://www.charityjob.co.uk/jobs?keywords=project+management&jobtitle=project%2Bassistant%2Cproject%2Bcoordinator%2Cproject%2Bofficer%2Cprojects%2Badministrator%2Cproject%2Bworker

I don’t - but if you browse the Mature Study and Retraining board you may well find threads on it. Or find inspiration for other options.

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/mature_students

@BurnTheDress thanks, I didn't know that existed.

There is a site called Noon as well. https://noon.org.uk/old-jobs-page/

@PeonieLover @rivalsbinge thank you both. Lots to look at. Need to overcome the feeling of being washed up.

Has anyone got any areas that I can explore? Looked at NHS and MoJ. Also local councils. Anywhere else?

Spend two hours on the Mature Study board. Scroll back to older threads and work forwards. There are countless different experiences related there.

Many local councils have recruitment freezes at the moment and are making huge cuts. I doubt you'd get a project management role without prior experience.

Some local authorities offer apprenticeships for adults which allow you to get experience in different departments. That could be an option if the authorities near you are still recruiting

Thanks just trying to think out of the box and things that might not have occurred to me.

Most project management roles will require project mgt qualifications such as PRINCE2, PMP or CAPM.

use AI to help you think through based on your likes and skills sets. And then to find out what qualifications etc you need.

Do you think its worth doing a qualification without practical experience or would it open doors?

I don’t think you’d walk straight into a PM job just because you have a qualification.

I have been in this type of role for 20 years and I recruit PMs. I would not hire someone with PM qualifications but no practical experience.

My suggestion would be to get a job in a large company that is in a front line team like Contact Centre, Underwriting, Fraud, Collections or whatever. Then when you know the business, apply internally for a job in the project teams. They will want your business experience and customer knowledge and be prepared to support your PM training then. You could do a PM qualification alongside the front line role if you wanted to.

I did.

I got a job in Adult social care with the LA two years ago and I’m doing an apprenticeship which hopefully will lead to a degree

I’m starting a business at 46 after 20 years in higher education. I fully expect to be working another 20-25 years so why not do something you love?

The thing is I’d make sure that what you’re going for is something you’re passionate about and you’re good at. Have you done project management in your current roles? Have you done any voluntary work that you could emphasise project management skills (you planned an event for a charity, for example)? Have you project managed building work on your home so you know you’re good at it?

I would think about where to get experience and how you can sell the experience you already have. And I’d look into a qualification you could get. Yes, it would look good on your CV, but also so you can test the waters and see if it actually is something you enjoy and are good at. (I’ve done project management in my academic role and I’ve taken a course in it. It bored me to tears! I thought I’d enjoy it but it was too much micromanaging for me). So you need to find out if that’s really your thing if you haven’t done much of it before you take the plunge.

Hey OP. I don't know anything about project management but my DP retrained in his late 40s and it turned out very well for our family. He was previously in a mundane admin role. He retrained and now works in higher education. He loves having more agency and seeing his skills and experience appreciated. It's been great for his mental health and self esteem. Of course this also came with challenges, the grass isn't always greener. He carries a lot more responsibility for not that much more extra pay. But it was the right thing to do. Good luck!

Thank you. I do have a degree and postgraduate and professional qualifications but have never got past supervisor level. I don't think my sector has much to offer me going forward.

Maybe you need to get better at selling yourself?

Your qualifications should have been in your OP!

But they aren't in anything i want to pursue and not really doing anything for me job-wise. Im just term time admin and am stuck. Ive not really had any confidence professionally.