How do I get a job?

[Namebunny]

Once a high flyer, as a creative in advertising. somehow I’ve been a sahm for ages. Illness etc has kept me busy. I can illustrate, paint, design, think of ideas..but I don’t know where to turn as I’m knocking on (57) how did that happen! And I obviously don’t have a contemporary folio or skill set. Is it worth applying for some sort of graphic course to refresh my skills or am I just too ancient.
Have had shop work, but would love to somehow use my skills and get into an office, ideally creative in some way.What can I possibly do? Help!

The amazing thing about this board is that I’m meeting so many twins I never knew I had …

Briefly, yes - a fresh qualification could be your best bet. Not just to refresh your skills but, if you pick the right course, to put you back in touch with practitioners, to establish where you are in relation to your potential competitors, to get your name out (assuming that matters in your area of work?), and put you back in the loop.

Where were you in terms of qualifications before you stepped off the escalator?

If you want to go back to advertising it might be worth checking out the Creative Comeback programme for 2022.

This one?

www.creativeequals.org/creative-comeback-london

Do you have any info on 2022, Mufflette?

Thanks! I’m curious about your story’s now!
Will drop creative equals a line you never know. I had a degree and various industry awards. I can knock out a fairly good portrait ..am pretty good at making stuff and thinking laterally. I have an Etsy shop, I suppose I’d best take that more seriously and push it. I LONG for an office and creative challenge and wages
Seems no proper job wants me!

As I understand it from googling, Creative Equals runs an annual competition, and offers consultancy services to organisations. So I’m not sure that simply writing to them as an individual will bear fruit …

I asked about your past qualifications to establish what might be the next step for you.

If your past degree was at Bachelor’s level then you should be able to access a Government Postgraduate Loan:

www.gov.uk/funding-for-postgraduate-study

• for any Master’s course - which need not have any connection to your first degree. Though it sounds as if you are interested in carrying on in the same area of study.

Take a look around the rest of this sparkling new board - plenty of stories of vast leaps across time, circumstance and subject.

Oh gosh thanks Edmonton’s, had no idea you could get grants!
Certainly will look around board thanks so much indeed

It’s a pleasure!

Psst! No one talks about grants any more. It’s all loans. (And bursaries for some things.)

I’m soooooooo old

What part of the country are you in OP?

At this time of year are your local Am Dram group looking for help with panto set design?

Are you up to date with CAD etc? I don't think you'd need a Master's for that - there must be a refresher course you are able to do online.

Thanks Jam, I’m up north but happy to work online and pop to places.
I’ll refresh my Adobe which seems a bit random atm. seems job ads need whatever you don’t know!
Good idea re stage painting, I’d love to do that. I’ll think more widely.

Actually … I’d say, rather than thinking more widely, you need to focus.

Do you want to do a bit of this and a bit of that, in a possibly random fashion? Or do you want to re-establish yourself as a professional, working amongst other professionals?

The former you undoubtedly could do easily, with a few short online courses to bring your skills up to date. The latter would take effort - seeking out the best serious courses at the best institutions, contacting them to find out whether you’re in a position to make a successful application, probably putting together a portfolio and being prepared to talk coherently about what you want to achieve. Then organising your life for full time study and committing to a year or more of serious challenge, competition, stress, networking, doubt, exhaustion … In order to come out with a clear idea of your place in your artistic / creative / professional world, impressive references from highly thought of practitioners, a sturdy list of contacts, a group of more or less supportive colleagues, a 21st century artistic vision - and prospects to carry you through to your 99th year, with no thought of retirement!

That sounds BRILLIANT! Omg, focus, clarity, hard, directed effort. Would love it. Hate fannying about not knowing what to do to bring in money.
Then being too scared to move.
I love design, illustration, but painting portraits makes me feel alive. ( have won the odd award) How though?Dp is fed upbringing in most of the money. Not sure he’d be too impressed if I bugger off to art school. This is not the life I’d imagined!

Thanks Edmontonina. You sound pretty sussed yourself. Am sounding a bit victim y . Apologies.

When I was doing my MA most people in my year were desperately fitting the demands of the course around numerous professional commitments related to their specialism.

Being on a prestigious (creative) course is likely to enhance your financial prospects, even while you’re studying. For one thing it expands your address book exponentially. And the best institutions ensure that a large part of what you undertake involves working with well known institutions relevant to your subject - so you very soon acquire a lively looking CV. (You possibly know all this from your first degree.)

While, on the one hand it’s tough battling the new = young equation in the creative world, mature people do have the advantage of being able to talk more directly to middle aged industry leaders. And being able to see through whatever modish bullshit is coming out of their mouths. Long story short, your artistic voice is probably more individual than your younger competitors. But to approach the level of creative achievement that you might find satisfying, you do need to take your own work seriously.

But anyway. OP, what would be the top five institutions in your subject for a suitable postgraduate level qualification?

(Apologies for taking up so much space on your thread. )

Do you need your subject to be sitting for a portrait in the same room? Can you paint from a photo or via Zoom / Teams?

With Xmas coming up, a portrait would make a lovely gift for some people.

I think you need a website - and to big up your awards - and to advertise your services.

Can you paint pets?

Oh my gosh edmontina you are being super helpful. Take up all the space you need. I’d thought an MA would be impossible, so you have given me a flicker of possibility, though it’s probably a dream. enjoyed your wonderful encouragement re older ladies!
I find this really helpful..
But to approach the level of creative achievement that you might find satisfying, you do need to take your own work seriously.
That really resonated!
It’s dawning on me that this is what I need to do - and not put it last after kids, housework etc etc. Also we do need me to be earning.
It’s like burying myself.
Thinking about colleges got me all excited! My dream as a kid was to go to the royal college, then there’s Glasgow, parsons, the ruskin, Milano polytechnic..
Slightly ambitious!
I guess I could find out how to find out about applying…!

jammaking thanks for your help. yes, I can work from photos, and sketch on zoom.
I wondered about sketching meetings, iPad portraits at events. And yes I have painted pets. I need to get jiggly with the social media I guess and push the Etsy store, and pick one thing to focus on.
I wondered about some sort of admin course but my challenge has always been that I’m rubbish at proper jobs. Which is why I’m better in a creative environment.
Sorry wittering on..but you are so helpful, I really appreciate it.
as I’m writing this, I’ realise my dream is ofa studio, big canvases and really pushing my skills to paint portraits All The Time. ( but what if I’m crap)
But how….!

Thanks for putting up with my ramblings!

Painting? So, maybe this:

www.gsa.ac.uk/study/graduate-degrees/fine-art-practice/

rather than this:

www.gsa.ac.uk/study/graduate-degrees/graphics-illustration-photography/

?

What about being a Court artist and sketching all the defendants - although maybe a bit niche?

Gosh, I really want to do the Ruskin MFA. Just reading about it gives me the same feeling of being at home that I felt with my own, completely unrelated, MA. I can see why it’s on your dream list, OP.

(That said, it might be worthwhile spreading one’s net a little wider!)

That’s so nice of you to say. Of course I’m super curious about you and your MA now! I know what you mean, I once went to the RCA staff rooms and have never felt so blindingly at home. Glad you felt like that in your ma. What can it have been?!

Ruskin, Ha, yes! Well it is a dream!

And it’s very naughty of you to put links up! I had a peek and it’s made my fingers tingle with wanting to go! Either course would be great. I can’t help noticing applications are in jan, maybe if I start now…( falls to floor laughing!)
jammakingwannabe ( great name!) funny you should say that! It’s something I thought about whenever I saw them on tv. Not at all sure I could sit through grisly trials though!
Maybe I should do portraits in the street!
This is lovely, but I’m not sure any if it is helping towards finding a job!😂😂😂 you are both being super helpful helping me clarify a direction though. Thank you for letting me write nonsense!
You have galvanised me to have a sort out of Etsy shop ( back to Earth with a bump!)