Help me make an important decision

[Catsback]

I need to decide whether to accept the potential offer of a place on a vocational degree course this week, or defer for a year.

My situation is this: Late 40s, out of work for a couple of years looking after disabled child. From September, they will be starting at a new school and I will - hopefully - have time on my hands to retrain.

I would love to start it, but a/ it will cost money, and b/ there’s no guarantee that my DC will settle and I may well be called back and forth to take them to school and bring them home at unusual times.

Husband will take on some of this, but his work doesn’t have much flexibility. Add to the mix that I have an older DC who will be going to university in a year, so has an important year ahead.

The course sounds so fascinating, and I can do it part time, meaning that I will need to be on campus (an hour away) just 1.5 days a week. And I am so BORED!

I’m not sure whether to hold off, or to go for it, thinking I can work around anything that crops up? What do you think?

I’d go for it! I have read your OP twice just in case and that’s my conclusion (if you can afford it and there is a job at the end that you actually want to do of course). What is it in?

Do it or come a year’s time you’ll be thinking “I could have been a year through by now”!

Recommend checking the institutions regs and rules about suspending study, which can be an option if you start but cannot continue, you can restart again the following year. There may be financial implications of doing so, but it's worth considering, if it makes the option of going for it now more reasonable. Good luck, I hope you can make the right decision for you

Thanks everyone. That’s a good call @DCINightingale - it would help if there was that option, as there’s just no way of telling how things will go with the new school. I think we could afford it, as the course will be partly subsidised and I would be able to get a loan. It’s in Speech and Language therapy, and there aren’t enough SLTs about so there’s plenty of work once qualified.

@Catsback that's amazing. As someone who is taking DC to a wonderful SALT at the moment, best of luck. It is a profession that will change peoples lives in such a positive way.

Have a chat with student support or the course team about options (although in my experience the course team will not necessarily know the full rules and regs you'll need to abide by, student support will be better placed to help you with that side of things)

Go for it....there's no time like the present. You'll only know if it all works out if you do it, no point in waiting a year and thinking, "I could be studying right now".....

This is such a positive and encouraging thread. I hope you update OP.