AIBU wanting to leave "admin"/clerical/support work?

[CagedAnimalWorkingFromHome]

I've been doing this work for a few years, it doesn't fit with my aspirations or my pay expectations. I feel like a caged animal working from home. I don't want to continue with admin or anything in that category of work, and getting a promotion in my current company is impossible due to lack of qualifications. I can't currently study either, because I don't have free time or money due to having a toddler. So, how do I leave admin, I feel like it's a prison/hell which mainly traps women?

I don't live in London but in provincial UK and I think I'm realistic to expect to earn 26k full time but I'd rather more. Ideally I want 40k.

There are a lot of things which I think I can do, but I perceive it's only possible to do these things freelance as the jobs don't exist or won't hire without specific criteria being met. I'm exploring working freelance as a way out, already, and I know I could use freelance experience to evidence meeting job criteria.

What's you AIBU?

I make over £200pd in a niche admin role. Technically its not admin but it is if that makes sense.

my AIBU is: is it unreasonable to want to leave admin at all? It's something I currently do and I don't know what other job I could get hired to do. I get the impression that all employers see when they look at my experience is "admin".

YANBU but to earn 40k you might need some qualifications. I teach but do an admin role part of the week on a different contract and it's 29k for the admin part of my job which is I believe top admin rate in school. I just don't think ordinary admin roles are that well paid.

Maybe you need to retrain. I couldn't do admin all week - it's fine for me as I get to teach 50% which keeps me on my toes.

Could you do an apprenticeship? Some of those are reasonably well paid & you can do qualifications alongside? For example lawyer? Engineer?

I can't currently study either, because I don't have free time or money due to having a toddler.

You’d be surprised at what you might be able to do. Take a look through the Mature Study and Retraining board, here:

www.mumsnet.com/talk/mature_students

About a zillion people studying and training while bringing up children (and often continuing work full or part time throughout).

If you could say what level of qualification you currently hold, if any, people might be able to suggest helpful ways forward.

@CrkdLttrCrkdLttr Thank you for the encouragement. I have been attempting to see if it's possible to study at masters level (e.g. part time, online learning, etc.) but until my child has 30 hours funded nursery it isn't possible. I have 3 hours of free time per week, currently, and I use those 3 hours to plan a freelance venture with another mum who similarly doesn't have time until her child is in school. We're planning to launch our freelance activities in September.

I hold a BA level qualification in a creative subject from over 10 years ago. I would love to work as a designer for the construction industry, as I have a very keen interest in this particular subject and I've built up a massive amount of research. My employment is not linked to this. As a freelancer I run a small pop-up shop that I set up a few years ago and open every few months at events/have an online portfolio of products. Maybe I'm completely unrealistic about being able to find a job as a designer?

<Struggles>

So you’ve said I know I could use freelance experience to evidence meeting job criteria. Is this in relation to designing for the construction industry? If so, you don’t have a problem, surely?

If not - I admit I’m a bit puzzled by the multiple elements to your thread.

You seem to have plenty of plans in place for the very near future. That’s great. But your question seems to be ‘Why can’t I get the job I want paying £40k, without having either the necessary qualifications or experience?’ But possibly I’ve misunderstood?

You may need to just be patient until your child is at nursery. £40k with no quals isn't going to happen over night. Try getting an admin role where you're supporting the likes of a finance team, the natural progression is into that team while you are also studying outside of work. That's how I hit £40k, it took me 5 years to go from a £17k admin role to a £42k accountant role (climbing and payrises along the way based on the work I was producing).

@CrkdLttrCrkdLttr 40k is just my ideal salary, but I absolutely don't think I'll get it now. And certainly won't if I stay working in admin. I'd expect to get 26k first. I think the thing I struggle with is the idea of moving on from the place I am now and what my CV shows I do. It's easy to freelance because people want to purchase a specific service, but to get a job with a company means I have to persuade not customers but a professional team.

Admin can be great, flexible and often public sector which is much more family friendly. Its natural to feel a bit trapped if realistically you want to be doing other things but circumstances are preventing you. I'm not sure it's that helpful to be set on a particular salary though.

I'm a Document Controller in construction. You absolutely could use your admin skills to get into Document Control, get better pay, then get the company to train you in what you want to do through the women into construction schemes.

Experienced Document Control jobs can take about 220 per day so you can earn the money, you just need to get niche. A lot of DC jobs are also going hybrid now.

Most DC jobs are also freelance/umbrella etc so you can be free to be SE.

@TaRaDeBumDeAy Thank you for that recommendation! I've seen those courses advertised on Facebook, free leadership courses for women at masters level if you have a job in construction already. This is exactly why I made a post, I'm looking for specific job titles I can use as transitional roles.

Look up Design Manager roles. You'll want to research Design and Build. You can also get a foot in the doro through arcitectural practives. Have a look at RIBA.

You'd probably need to do a HND in Construction Management and then move to the course you want, althoug there is also the graduate scheme route, but being 10 years post study, that might not fit.

What kind of design do you want to do? Depending on what, you will need to learn programmes like BIM 360 and CAD, and need to know how to read drawings as well as design them, it is a huge scope of knowledge involved in designing a building from the inside out. You don't just plot walls and windows and doors, or interiors, you need to plot where all the electricals and HVAC go and all the best practice on design and all the rest of it.

As you can see, you don't need great typing skills though 🙄😂

@TaRaDeBumDeAy Thank you so much for speaking with me about this. I'd like to go into environmentally responsible construction: rethinking the way things have been done in the past and turning them into a beautiful, ergonomic and socially well designed future. I'm a very visual person but also a theoretically minded person, so the visuals that I design I would turn into something that was both eco and good for people's lives. I love the utopianism of construction in the mid 20th century, but there were glaring errors. I want to bring their utopian spirit into the world we live now with all of our updated knowledge. I currently design and make products for bathrooms and kitchens.

being a PA for a director is quite well paid. Its still admin kind of work but would it be more worthwhile if you get a higher salary?

my friend is a PA for a partner in a law firm- she is on £42k.

@CagedAnimalWorkingFromHome I’m not sure what creative degree you have taken but im guessing something like architecture or interior architecture from what you’re describing you want to do. Depending where you are in the country it can be hard to get into that (as an interior graduate myself I never took the move to London plunge) however I got myself a role as an administrative assistant and did CAD work on the side for a multi million £ retailer. Progressed to store design and then on to project management. I’m now a project manager on just shy of £40k. It is possible but maybe you need to get an in with a business then show them what you can do. Such as working for an architectural practice

Hi @CagedAnimalWorkingFromHome we can see it's already been mentioned but if you'd like us to move your thread to our Mature study and retraining topic we're sure you'll get lots more good advice. Just hit the report button to let us know.

Skanska could be worth looking at, they are very envionmental and very forward thinking, and allow people to move up, a receptionist on my last site there became a BIM Co-Ordinator.

@TaRaDeBumDeAy Thank you very much!

Three months since you started your thread, @CagedAnimalWorkingFromHome - I wonder if you’ve moved any closer to what you wanted?

Yes, how are you getting on?