To want to change careers from nursing into teaching for better work life balance

[TwinklyRoseTurtle]

I’m aware both are highly stressful careers, I’m quite senior in my role and would be taking roughly a 15K pay cut. However it keeps niggling in the back of mind, from posts I’ve seen this on previously I’ve seen it commented that teaching means taking work home- in my nursing role this is also very common- you never switch off even on days off. I’m finding the shift work increasingly difficult but not just that, I still like helping people it’s my favourite part of the job but I just feel like nursing is not for me anymore, I’ve still got a long career ahead of me and can’t deny the fact I would prefer Monday- Friday hours and all half terms off for childcare also. I’m interested in hearing from anyone else who has done this? Is it an unrealistic expectation for work/life balance?

What could you teach?

If youre looking for a better work life balance then teaching isnt the job for you.

You might be better looking at school nursing or perhaps some other kind of support/pastoral care role rather than having to retrain as a teacher. Or do you mean teaching nursing?

I used to teach.

it’s not known for it’s work life balance.

most teachers do a lot of marking and prep and paperwork at the weekends and at half terms.

Multiple subjects- Triple Science, English, Health and social care etc

Nursing AND teaching are probably both at or near the top of most people’s lists as two of the most stressful, exhausting jobs going. I’m a school governor and you couldn’t pay me to move into teaching these days for eleventy billion pounds.

No I don’t want to teach nursing actually was looking at secondary school teaching

Is there a reason you aren't thinking of applying for a more 'clinic based' role within nursing, so you are more Mon - Fri and 9 - 5 than 12 hour shifts at hospital covering all 7 days ?
As that would seem a much more logical step.

If you have qualifications in those subjects then go for it OP or would you retrain at uni?

Long ass hours in teaching too though, has to be said.

You’d be better off looking for a more 9-5 job in the nursing sector like health visiting / something community based .

I currently do a lot of paperwork and study days in my own time too at present

National Nurse job freeze, been going on around 18 months or so. There are no jobs.
Student nurses qualifying do not have jobs so working elsewhere.

Teach nursing. You will earn more than starting as a teacher in a school and it’s less stressful.

I’m looking away from nursing for multiple reasons

I think you need to get some work experience in a secondary school first. The pastoral role could be a good shout, but that would be a big pay drop.

Do you have young children yourself? You would need childcare for inset days, illness, after school care etc. Your own school & class come first within the working week, offset by the holidays.

I’m already community based, I’m very experienced in nursing without being too outing - but it’s just not the job it used to be, which is a shame

Teaching has a notoriously high workload, would not recommend. On top of the pay cut, to qualify you would need to do a PGCE for which you would need to pay fees and you wouldn’t be earning for a year at all. I trained and didn’t go into teaching, every minute of my day was accounted for and it was high stress.

Not young children but I have teenagers, just thinking of forward planning really, maybe I’m having a bit of a midlife wobble 🤣

Sorry to add to this- exact same issue in nursing need childcare etc, job has to come first only difference is people life depend on you

Do you have qualified teacher status?
if so, then secondary schools are often crying out for science teachers.
if not, you will need to look into studying to be a teacher.
teaching is not known for its work life balance.
with regards ti the pay cut, I’m assuming that you’ve also taken into account that teachers are paid pro rata.

No harm in looking at different options and if your children are older childcare etc. is easier. A non-teaching role in a school would be a good option, or a sideways move into teaching related to nursing?

There are loads of opportunities in nursing for better hours. You won't get the school holidays off, granted, but the teachers I know are leaving because of the amount of work they have to take home and the stress and abuse they get. No way would I have wanted to do a teaching qualification after having worked so hard to get my nursing qualifications. I worked as a midwife until I had my first child, back in the late 1980s. There were no part time options apart from night shifts, on first year staff nurse pay and it wouldn't have worked anyway as maternity leave was 5 months and I had no child care. I got a P/T job in community health.
After my dc started primary school I went into clinical research, working school hours. Did quite a lot of further training while working.
When they were at secondary I worked in General Practice. Lots of my friends and colleagues were working in GP, community, local government, occupational health, teaching and training nurses and care workers, clinical nurse specialist roles.

No, I’m looking at completing 1 years PGCE with QTS. I have extensively looked into it. Yes aware it’s salaried - just divided it by 12, to work out roughly what I would earn

So you’d be swapping a stressful job with lots of extra outside work commitments to another highly stressful job with extra commitments and for less money ?

Totally see where you are coming from OP, it’s a shit situation for you no doubt at all x