To start a new career aged 40 odd?

[Newhorizons123]

So, I hate my job. I deferred uni then just never went. I've had some great jobs and some terrible ones, then been a sahp.

I've applied to uni, and been accepted, to start an accountancy degree I'm September. I've had a change of heart.
Post degree I'll be 40ish with school aged children.

Please tell me what you would do in my situation? What would you study/retrain in?

What would be a good industry to move into? What's a valuable degree to have?

Help!

Well unless you’re going to retire early, by the time you are trained youll have about another 20-25 years of working life to go, maybe more

thats probably more time than you’ve even been an adult currently.
so I don’t think it’s too late

Sorry pressed send too soon
that’s a long time to still be working and I don’t think you can just pick something someone here says will get you a job
who knows what the landscape will be by then. You need to look at what you enjoy and what you want to do. Maybe look at the university stats and see their figures about employment figures post degree

What do you enjoy? What are your strengths?

You’re definitely not too old. I qualified mid 40s… went back to uni 42… and wasn’t even the oldest!!!

So what is the current situation with the university you’ve been accepted by?

Are you able to change subject at this stage? Or would you have to withdraw and re-apply / apply elsewhere?

In any case surely any alternative subject depends on your skills and talents and abilities, rather than random opinions on the job market?

I changed career aged 43, no regrets at all. Knew I couldn't do my previous job full time when we had our son at age 42 so applied for another job in similar field but with more flexibility and part time. Go for it, you're still young. 10 years later I'm not as young but still going for a different job, interview next week with vibes I will get it. X

If you want to be an accountant, then you need to do the professional qualifications not an accountancy degree. Shelling out tens of thousands of pounds on an accountancy degree would be a waste of time and money - at most it would get you a few exemptions from the prof exams. You would be better off finding a training contract.

Did you want to become an accountant or did you just want the degree?

I'm 42 and just changed career, new career is far better in terms of earning potential and career development.
I'm anticipating working for at least another 25 years so there's plenty of time!

I'm not sure of the reasons you were initially planning to go to uni; was it because you want any degree, or because you want to be an accountant?

If it's that you want any degree, I would look at subjects that you really enjoy and have a good interest in.

If it's that you want to be an accountant, a degree in accounting will be a waste of your time. You would be better off taking a bookkeeping course, or the AAT foundation course before then going on to do the full certificate (ACA, ACCA, CIMA) if you feel it's for you.

I've been an accountant for 20 years, and it's a very well-paid, very steady career, there's always jobs, and it can be done from home, depending on which line you go in to.

Thank you for all the information and great ideas.
Originally it was a degree which could lead to a job that I love and is well paying. I have always loved numbers (A in Higher maths) though and assumed (wrongly it seems) accountancy degree was the way to go. I am in Scotland and earn under £25k so my degree would be fully funded.
I'm so confused and stuck on what to do! I also have ADHD (pending diagnosis) so it's hard for me to be decisive!

Ah …

So essentially you need to do much more basic research on career paths and professions, before committing yourself?

The National Careers Service has a database of jobs and how you train for them.

And UCAS will walk you through every possible degree and apprenticeship in the UK. (Though you presumably know that already as you’ve successfully applied for a degree?)

You do honestly need to undertake this step, slowly and carefully, before making any decision. A forum like MN can only offer advice and random opinions - but no one here knows you, so we cannot tell you which degree would be best for you out of all the infinite possibilities.

Depends if you are 41 or 49.

Why?

Because it's almost a decade difference. Just saying 40-odd is not saying the actual age.

You'll be 43 either way, 43 in a job you hate or 43 with a degree!

But what is the specific relevance to whether the OP could successfully retrain and forge a new career?

Are there particular age limits you’re thinking of? Grants, bursaries, training schemes that she might be excluded from depending on her exact age?

(I’m aware that Government Postgraduate loans have an age limit of 60 for the first day of your course - but even if relevant, the OP is a long way from that being a factor.)

FWIW more than one person close to me has undertaken a Master’s in their 50’s, come out with a Distinction, and carved out rewarding new careers. It’s hardly unusual.

Definitely don't make this decision based on assumptions, especially if you only have one shot at a funded degree.

As pp says, you need to do far more detailed research on your planned career path.

Qualifying as an accountant takes a minimum of three years even with a degree - so if you do a degree first you're looking at 7 years just to attain newly qualified status and properly get your career going, versus 3 years if you skip the degree.

How much do you know about training contracts, professional qualifications and what the job involves?

Age isn't really the main issue here, it's whether you've enrolled on the right qualification to achieve your goals. Based on what you've written, I'm not sure you have.

Here are a couple of places to read more on accountancy qualifications:

https://www.icas.com/become-a-ca/routes-to-becoming-a-ca/how-to-become-a-chartered-accountant-ca-by-the-school-leaver-route

https://www.icaew.com/learning-and-development/aca/aca-employers/routes/routes-to-chartered-accountancy-in-scotland#:~:text=Graduates%2C%20school%20and%20college%20leavers,and%20Business%20(ICAEW%20CFAB).

Sorry just getting back to you all! Thank you for all the great advice sa far. Will try to answer everything...

So I love writing, I find numbers interesting and in my current role, I deal with some numbers (think payroll type thing) which is the only interesting patt of my job.

Accounting, I thought I had to pursue a degree then do the accredited course afterwards, now I know I'm wrong, I will look into that more. As I'm in Scotland, I have access to almost fully funded degree but not sure if the qualifications I'd need for accountancy would have any sort of funding available. Something more to look at.

I'm just feeling a bit lost to be honest and finding looking into everything a bit overwhelming.

I'm looking for something interesting, which I'll enjoy but also has to be something which will enable me to start a career which I can work in for the next 30ish years.

A training contract for one of the professional qualifications will mean your employer funds the fees and usually also gives you paid study leave to attend courses (on top of your annual leave allowance).

You need both the exams and practical work experience to qualify, so there would be no point paying to put yourself through the exams unless you were also in a relevant post to meet the practical experience requirements - in which case your employer should be paying for it.

Good Luck @Newhorizons123 Did you come to a decision in the end?

@Starseeking Could you say a bit more about which roles offer hybrid and/or WFH please?

I'm also considering whether to retrain as an accountant (slowly, starting with AAT) & flexibility & WFH would be great.

I have degrees but don't think I could realistically jump straight into CIMA as I'm switching from healthcare.

Thanks