How the fuck do I get a job?

[CaptainCarrotsBigSword]

Just had another rejection, after a second interview that went really well. Crying now so please be a bit gentle (am not on AIBU for that reason). Also this might be long, sorry.

I am trying to get back into full time work. I used to be a teacher, got up to head of department but lost the love for it / got fed up with all the shit behaviour and long hours, so didn't go back after my second mat leave.

Had a couple of years off completely then started working for a further ed company; job title was quality manager but essentially I was there to try to get them through Ofsted. I understood that I was meant to be helping them to improve their practice so they would be compliant, came to realise they wanted me to find ways to trick them through Ofsted without really changing anything. Despite being on nearly double what I'd earned as a teacher, I wasn't happy with the level of dishonesty & deceit I was being asked to take part in and I decided to leave after 18months ish.

Was without work for around 8 months and then managed to get a very part time job (under 8hrs a week) with a branch of the local council.

I desperately need to get back to full time work. NOT TEACHING. We are on debt and struggling and it's not fair on my DH to have to shoulder all financial responsibility. But I have been applying and interviewing for months and I'm getting nowhere.

Essentially it's breaking down in one of three ways:

1. Applying for jobs at the top end of the salary/ responsibility / seniority that I've held in the past = not getting them as not enough experience. Fair enough tbh.

1. Applying for midling level jobs in terms of salary and responsibilities. Getting though to final stage interviews, but losing out to someone with more direct experience or just not scoring quite as highly as another candidate.

1. Applying for jobs at the bottom end of salary and responsibilities. £25k jobs. Not getting because they think I will get bored or want more money or want to move on too quickly. This was the case for the one I got rejected for today, even though I'd said very clearly in the interview that I was happy with the offered salary as I was moving into a sector I haven't worked in before and I was really enthusiastic about the role and the company (genuinely so).

What the hell do I do? It feels like a can't get a job no matter what I do. I have too much experience or not enough. I don't have enough qualifications or I have too many. I'm forty years old and I'm shitting myself that I am never going to be able to get another career. I can't go back to teaching, it fucked my mental health and left me suicidal, I'm still on and off antidepressants now, years later.

I just don't know what to do from here.

I didn't walk straight into the role though. I had to take another crappy and relatively low paid job at the uni for 12 months to get my foot in the door. It was pretty soul destroying but a means to an end.

I've tried this - I get told I'm over qualified and they don't want to take me on because I'll get bored and leave. Literally happened yesterday.

This is what I mean - I'm quite happy to take a job in the low 20s and learn on the job, but I can't get one!

I know how you feel-it’s hard to know what to do after teaching. I wish I’d never started!

What subject did you teach? Does that subject area still interest you or do you want to do something totally different?

what are your professional skill set and experiences?

I agree with a pp, have a look at NHS admin on their website.
Once you are in, it's easier to apply for internal jobs with higher pay bands.

Good Luck.

English literature. Abso-fucking-lutely useless. Another thing I regret.

I have a really good degree, twenty years of professional experience, and it's all useless, it seems. If not actively working against me!

I wouldn't recommend NHS admin. You'll be stuck on band 4 for ages. I've never done more work for the least amount of money. The NHS feeds on overly qualified people with brains working for nothing.

Where are you based? Contact local hospitals and get on their Bank for high level administration work, they will snap you up. once you are in you are in. I am an NHS HR Director and am struggling for band 5/6 administration staff at the moment.

I'm in North Yorkshire, both Leeds and York are in reach.

How would I go about contacting hospitals? Who am I looking to get in touch with? Generic HR?

Yes go through to HR and ask who to speak to about registering on the bank for general admin but at a higher level. Unfortunately I am South so I don't have any contacts up that way, but feel free to PM me if you want some direct advice. NHS are having a huge clamp down on agency that is not clinical, so people are crying out for bank staff. Be clear and aim at band 5 and above.

Since Covid finished the only people who I know who have applied and got a job are the people who know people already working for the same company

Ok, so if you’ve done a ‘Quality manager’ role have a look to see what’s available - literally every sector has quality managers (I’m in the pet feed industry), or look at quality assurance roles as these are basically admin type jobs keeping all manufacturing and testing paperwork up to date and in order. You could also look into auditing roles as there would be training for these.

I think it's really hard for teachers to get a job that isn't teaching. Especially for older people whom have been in teaching a long time. All you can do is keep applying for suitable jobs and brush up on your interview technique and make sure you are giving the answers they wat to hear which may not necessarily be the right ones.

Have you tried within the Council for 25k-30k jobs?

You’re in reach of Leeds Teaching Hospitals and Mid Yorks Hospitals Trusts, via NHS professionals I’d be looking to register for band 5 or 6 admin roles.

Often education charities are looking for people of your skills as assessors for apprenticeships and other regulated accreditations, these can lead to more interesting roles too. Perhaps look at City and Guilds or CMI.

the important thing is not to lose heart, I know lots of women who went through similar ruts at our sort of age, don’t lose confidence, you’ll find your place.

Please try Civil service again. Honestly theres a knack to the interviews and I applied for several before I got offered a job. I moved 2 years ago at the age of 45, having spent 20 years working retail, you will have a ton of transferrable skills.

I tried to leave education after 22 years as a primary teacher. I couldn't get anything, not even a supermarket or cinema customer service job.

I now work as a supply TA via an agency. Shit money and working conditions, but it's apparently all I'm good for.

I'm very bitter about what's happened to my (former) profession.

What about the NHS - organisational development, training and development, health improvement, that kind of role? I have colleagues in all of those departments and know there are people with education backgrounds working in roles there.

I'm a bit surprised at this advice. I work in the sector and I'm yet to meet anyone or hear of anyone in a band 5+ admin role who didn't first work in NHS admin on a lower banding. In fact even band 4. And not many even band 3s tbh as they're usually backfilled by band 2s. Totally anecdotal though and I suppose bank is different as less applicants due to the insecurity? I know a few people who spent years applying for NHS admin and struggled to even get the odd interview because they always wanted people with experience of using the systems that the hospital or GP practice use etc and easy to backfill the entry level jobs.

I haven't read all the responses but if youbwork in local government is there any opportunity to move internally. I work for a local authority and there is normally opportunity for progression if you already work there, there is more chance that they won't want to lose a good member of staff and any reputation you have built up there should help.

In my experience, I saw a need for op’s skills in those roles, especially as not all NHS admin roles are clinical. They definitely have the skills for learning and development type roles, and those Trusts in particular have big improvement programmes ongoing. My first NHS role was at 8a and I went in from the private sector, and so it’s not unheard of. Leeds also has a regional hub where NHS England and other related organisations are based, they are often recruiting contractors.

@WeightoftheWorld same. The NHS is very hierarchical and it's difficult to go in at a high band. Even though you can learn the systems in days, they still expect you to have the experience of using the systems when you apply. It's maddening and we don't always end up with the best people in the jobs, just those who have been around the block a bit.

What about a school receptionist?

Dead in the water unless you have technical skills
Recruitment freeze in many depts and facing mass redundancies (yet again) in some