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Mature study and retraining

Talk to other Mumsnetters who are considering a career change or are mature students.

How honest should I be about retraining into my profession?

8 replies

PleaseDontAsk · Yesterday 18:18

I have an old Uni friend, someone Im not close to anymore: moved 200 miles away back home, years ago.

She has a chequered CV and work history. That's fine if its what she wants but she never seems to stick at anything despite being smart.

She did a MFL degree and while I knew her at my uni, dropped out took a gap year and finished somewhere else.

Moved on immediately to librarianship. Got the qualification, and studied whilst working. Did limited fixed term contracts in specialist libraries and now hasnt worked in one for around a decade.

Moved straight in to doing IT at university again, undergrad again, part time whilst working. Has never got an IT job.

Fancied doing something creative and took some design courses and hasnt managed to make a go of anything.

None of this is intended to be a criticism at all.She's a great person and people can do what they want with their lives and if she likes to change things up, that's her choice.

Im in a top profession, which is hugely competitive and very oversubscribed. She's now put the feelers out and started asking me about doing postgrad courses to join my profession. Should I just give general stats about the profession. Or should I just be totally honest and say that with her kind of chequered c v and work history, she will find it very difficult to convince anyone that she wants to be a part of this profession?

It would cost a considerable amount of money to do the courses and throwing good money after bad to collect another qualification that she's probably not going to use.

OP posts:
everynowandthenifallapart · Yesterday 22:21

Just keep it general, she’s a friend not a colleague she can make her own decisions.

MelonSorbet · Yesterday 22:23

I would lean more towards the general stats route, and really emphasise that it's competitive. Be honest about how hard it is to get into but definitely don't say you think she's not suitable for it! That's up to her and ultimately if she wants to spend more time and money studying for it, that's her choice.

TheFlandersPigeon · Yesterday 22:33

I'd start by being general. You could say it's so bad getting into it now that you wouldn't recommend it to anyone you care about, different world to when you got your start. Even if neither of those things are strictly true.

TaleOfTwoHalves · Yesterday 22:38

Let me guess she wants to do a psychology conversion? Just tell her, pie in the sky.

Casualuser · Yesterday 22:45

Id be very careful. I wouldnt want to give career advise to her, once you start it wont end.

PleaseDontAsk · Yesterday 23:03

TaleOfTwoHalves · Yesterday 22:38

Let me guess she wants to do a psychology conversion? Just tell her, pie in the sky.

Law. In her late 30s with no long term employment in any career in particular, taking time out of work to do design courses, it's just going to look very bad.

OP posts:
Casualuser · Yesterday 23:15

If she targets you and corners you signpost her to some generic resources. But your very busy, office is crazy with everyone off.

TaleOfTwoHalves · Yesterday 23:17

PleaseDontAsk · Yesterday 23:03

Law. In her late 30s with no long term employment in any career in particular, taking time out of work to do design courses, it's just going to look very bad.

Edited

Just let her crack on. She probably just enjoys the process of dreaming.

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