How to study - full time work, 2 small kids

[Bizjustgotreal]

I have a young family, a husband with a busy job, and I work full time.

Although I have a degree (art, not useful at all) I am woefully under qualified and have only worked customer service roles. I enjoy this work, but I want to earn more and have a more meaningful career.

I want to study for a career change, but I don't know.how I can dedicate time to studying with my current life work balance. Have you been in a similar situation to me and studied for a new career?

I'm scared of taking a job less than I earn now that would also mean less time with my young children. Although I definitely see the benefit for a higher pay ceiling later on, I would feel incredible guilt if it meant I couldn't be there for my children.

Please can you let me know your experience.

What sort of studying did you have in mind? What career direction do you want to go in?

Part time study, something like Open University, would take a bit longer to complete but would fit better around family. But not every career direction would suit part time OU study so it's hard to suggest without more info.

I decided to do a degree in my thirties. I chose therapeutic counselling. This was 1 day a week at uni. I was self employed so able to juggle work around my uni day. I gave my self another half day to do assignments, I had a half day work placement too and anything else was done at evenings and weekends. My kids were 7 and 9 when I started. It was manageable but it helped my job was flexible I worked 30 hours a week, uni was 10 hours a week, I allowed 6 hours for study and had a 4 hour placement so it was a 50 hour week plus kid/home life on top.

Hey @Toddler101
Distance learning, studying in free time.

@luckysonofagun wow! How many years did that take?

Thank you for the replies.

I did two years of level 2 and 3 qualifications. That was one evening a week and minimal homework. So I worked full time through that. The degree it’s self took 3 years .

I'm currently studying for a degree in health and social care with the OU, just started my 3rd module of 6, and I'm hoping to become a social worker one day! I'm also working full time as a housing officer. I have a 4 year old and 9 year old. I have to study in the Evenings. I've only just gone back to work full time, so I'm not actually sure how I'm going to cope, but I really enjoy the subject, so I'm hoping that will be enough to keep the motivation going.

Thanks @luckysonofagun and good luck @shivbo2014 !

How old are your kids? I studied a masters in tech mgt but started it before I had kids and finished it just before I had my 2nd child. It took me 5 years to get the qualification.
Im now working as a director in a tech dept. It’s hard work and to be honest if I had to do it now with two young kids and a full time job I’d really struggle as one thing would have to give.
Can you work part time with a view to going back full time once you have finished your qualification and that it’s got a guarantee that you’ll get a higher paid job in the end.
I would only do it if it’s an investment into a career that you’ll get paid more in the long run. My MBA helped me get into a more senior role so was well and truly worth it

I did my masters degree part time alongside working full time when my son was born. It took me twice as long as planned but is doable. Lots of coffee, lower your standards for cleaning, cooking and general life admin. Ask for an accept help when you can. Sideline any perfectionist parts of yourself - you should now be happy to be doing a just about good enough, half arsed job of pretty much everything. Good luck OP.

@Mememe9898 and @DarkWingDuck thanks both!

Leaving full time work isn't an option - 2 kids under 3. No local family to lean on for assistance.

I'm looking at studying for a completely new career. Potentially the AAT and the ACCA for accounting.

Something through the OU? I did a master's, very part time, wrapped around a super busy job and spanning 2 maternity leaves. Didn't do me much good career wise but I'm proud to have done it😆

Have you looked for training contract roles?

You have a degree so you could apply for any accountancy graduate scheme. Recruitment for autumn 2024 graduate schemes has already started so now would be a good time to look.

Then your employer funds the course costs and gives you paid study leave to attend. You'd still have to study in your own time too, but it's less heavy than trying to do the whole thing in your personal time.

Don't shell out for accountancy studies without a relevant job to meet the practical experience requirements. It rarely ends well.

Have you done any kind of internships / work experience / taster sessions? Why accountancy?

@folkjournals thank you. I'm not sure how relevant my degree would be to an accountant graduate role. My current job has some small relevance to accounting, I enjoy that part of my job, and would like to pursue it.

Do you have an example of how training outside of a role would have negative consequences?

I'm doing a masters as an apprenticeship, which means my employer is paying and must give me work time for it. I work FT and have two primary age DC. I put in a lot of evening and weekend time too.

was also going to suggest looking for degree apprenticeship roles. They are advertised through the employer, not the uni.

I’m the kindest way, if you need to stay full time can you afford to do a degree? How will it be funded?

I agree with others about looking for training roles, some other entry level jobs you can work your way up in and have training paid for E.g apprenticeships that you would complete in work time. Have you considered local government?

You just need a degree for an accounting graduate scheme, it doesn't matter what subject. Could be literally any subject as long as it is 2:2 or above.

You don't even necessarily need a degree for the qualifications if you meet the other educational entry requirements. A degree is just a passport to a training contract on a graduate scheme.

https://www.icaew.com/regulation/qualifications/aca-entry-routes

"If you have two A Levels and three GCSEs in five separate subjects including English and maths (or equivalent qualifications), you can start your studies at the ACCA Qualification"

https://www.accaglobal.com/gb/en/qualifications/accountancy-career.html#:~:text=If%20you%20have%20two%20A,ll%20become%20an%20ACCA%20member.

Negative consequences of studying without experience:

• you can't qualify without obtaining 3 years practical experience and meeting approx a dozen practical experience competencies. If you've only done the exams you're not an accountant and won't have the skills to practice as one.

• employers will be cautious/avoidant of someone who's only exam-qualified, people can struggle to find a job if they approach it this way - and if they do find one, they struggle with the job (Mumsnet is full of threads with this scenario where people have signed up for AAT courses and can't convert it into an actual job)

• the practical skills are in many ways completely different to the theory, so you're disadvantaging yourself.

https://train.icaew.com/jobs/

One easy place to start looking at some of the schemes on offer to get a sense of them. If you're going to pursue accountancy seriously as a career, do some research on the pathways to full qualification as well as employers and look up their schemes / vacancies directly.

What you want to be able to do post-qualification should guide the pathway you choose.

I'm not looking to do a degree; I have discussed possible career routes with friends and family who are already in the roles I wish to pursue. I have a study plan in place, and a good idea of what roles I can apply for at entry level, and am already pursuing this.

Thanks for your help all!

Sounds like you don't need advice on what career path but rather how to manage your time and the pressures of studying while juggling your day job and family:

• is your DH on-board and supportive of you? What is he actually doing in real terms to lean in and free up time for you to have some child-free hours in the week and at the weekend? Having some scheduled clear headspace will depend in his support. You need that to be able to do your studies justice. It sounds quite unbalanced based on what you've posted so far.
• release yourself from unhelpful "guilt" about time you have to take away from the children. It's misplaced and won't help you reach your goals. Depending on their ages you need them to know you are studying, as that's what being a great parental role model is all about, showing them that studying is a positive thing and leads to a better life.
• Create yourself a weekly study plan with achievable goals so you can stay on track and give yourself motivation.
• can you negotiate any study release with your employer? If they have a policy for time off, can you schedule those release days for intense periods eg prior to submissions or exam study time.
• you may need to make tough but realistic decisions about your free time outside work and what you need to drop temporarily to complete your studies.

@daisychain01 golden advice thank you!