Retrain as primary teacher or nurse

[Abbylikeswine]

Hi.
I have a very stressful low paid job. I grew up in quite a poor family.

I'm 40, I just got some inheritance money , which is the first time that I've ever had money to spend.

I really want to use it to go back to college and train to get a better career.

These (in my title) were the two careers that interested me. And I have the school grades to get into both as a mature student.

I'm just really trying to figure out which degree to do. I don't want to make a mistake and choose the wrong path for me, when I only have the money to do one choice.

I know both teaching and nursing are hard jobs. But the job I'm in at the moment is extremely hard and low paid. So even though nursing and teaching would be hard, it would be better pay and a better career.

Nursing appeals to me as - I'd have a job for life. There are mursing jobs anywhere. And i like caring for people. But I know it'll be hard.

I like primary teaching and I'd done a little bit of teaching English as a foreign language abroad before so I know what it's like. But it will be an intense degree and also getting a job in teachinf may be harder than nursing.

I wish I could see the future and see which way to go. I don't want to waste money in the wrong area

I just wanted to ask had anyone retrained as either of those careers at an older age. And how was it?

I request mainly nights and am full time so do 3 long days/nights a week and then once a month do 4. However I changed my job from an inpatient area to a community midwife this week, so now doing a mix of long days, 8-4:30n 8:6, on calls but they are fairly flexible. Few people I know doing term time only, just long days, just early shifts.

I tend to have my shifts around 2 months in advance.

Oh and I have rarely had a problem with annual leave. Get it approved 95% of the time. You get 5 requests a month for specific days off so I will regularly have a long weekend away using my requests. Can do shift swaps. Just be aware about working Christmas. Our trust we alternate Christmas and New Year.

Won't you have to do an access course first? Have you considered any of the AHP careers, SALT and OT may suit you? Don't do nursing until you have spent some time as a HCA, to get into the course you will probably need some relevant experience anyway.

Sorry, missed all the shadowing debates further down the thread. With nursing, OT, SALT etc they don't just allow you on the course because you have good enough grades (like most degrees), they want you to have some transferable skills, awareness of what the job entails etc. I suspect the same is true with teaching. So the pp was very sensiable in suggesting some shadow days (it is what unis recommend if you are not already working in the setting eg as a HCA). Or alternatively helping out at youth groups, sport courses, care homes etc can give you some good transferable skills and something to talk about at the interview. Do not presume that just because you have the grades you will be offered a place OP. And if your grades are over 5 years they will want some evidence of recent study.

Hi. I've already checked with Universities about entrance criteria

Im 40. Its not like ive no experience in anything. I have worked for a long time already. I've worked with young people in lots of different jobs

I've already worked as a youth worker for many years, and I've also worked as a language assistant in an international school with younger children.

I've contacted several Universities about B.Eds in primary teaching, about entrance requirements , and theyve told me that what I have done already (youth work and language assistant) is fine for the entrance requirements .

That's why I won't be doing any shadowing for primary teaching. I've already checked with the University what I need.

I just dont understand why posters, including yourself, talk to people like they have done nothing in their life.

I'm 40! I've been working for twenty years.

You said I should "help out at a youth group".

I don't need to.

I worked as a full time youth worker for three years.

I've twenty years experience in working with young people in different ways. I've worked as a youth worker. I've also worked as a language assistant with younger children.

That's why it was rude of the poster on this thread to tell me that "I need to do shadowing" and then she called me naive. She didn't ask me anything about what I had done in my life already. Its rude.

Why would I need to "help out at a youth group for a few days",

when I've already worked as a full time youth worker for three years! Ask people what they've done.

Working with young people before, has made me interested in becoming a primary teacher.

As I've said, I've already contacted several Universities about the B. ED in primary Education, and they've told me that what I have done so far in life, ( being a youth worker and a language assitant ) is absolutely fine for the entrance requirements.

You sound pleasant OP. I hope you manage to get that side of you across at the interview stage.

Your whole first post was negative and rude.

You said "that I should help out in a youth group". Which is kind of bizarre to say to a forty year old woman, without asking her at all what she has done in her life.

I pointed out that I've already worked for three years as a youth worker.

You then said negatively and rudely "you shouldnt presume that just because you have the grades, that you will be offered a place.

I responded that I've already checked with Universities, and they've told me that my experience and grades are adequate. I think the Universities know what their entrance criteria are.

In me telling you this,

You responded with a rude and negative post yet again.

How totally immature is it to say 'I hope you manage to get that side of you across at interview stages"

I've just started year 3 of an adult nursing degree. I'm 40. I'd say nursing tbh - it can be awful, but it can also be the best thing ever. Benefit is there is so much scope to do different things.
Job wise, my friends who have just graduated have mostly got jobs. A small % haven't. It is definitely far more competitive that it was a few years back, but there IS work. We're Lincs.

Thanks so much for the answer! And well done for getting to year 3! And for doing it at a later age.

I think people can be a bit scared of going to Uni at a later age, but it should be normalised. University is not just for 18 year olds, its for every age.

My friend's father actually just went and did his first degree in his sixties!

I, along with others, are actually trying to be helpful.
I had an interview for adult nursing, also when I was in my 40's. Every person there either met, or was expected to meet pending exam results, the grade criteria. Over 100 were being interviewed on the day I went, I believe they had 4/5 'interview days'. So 400-500 applicants who were 'shortlisted for interview'. They offer around 45 places per year. It's hard to get offered a place. Even harder if you want to go into children's nursing or midwifery.

The interview phase (including writing a timed essay - where we didn't know the question in advance) was done in the style of what I can only describe as 'speed dating'. We had 5 minutes with about 8 different interviewers. A lot of them were scenario based where they expected you to draw on past experiences (both life and work). They also wanted to know what drew you to nursing, why you think you would make a good nurse, what are the current difficulties being experienced in healthcare etc. They are very clearly looking at personality, morals, communication skills and resilience to see if it is keeping with their (and the hcpc) ethos.
The majority of those being interviewed were either working as HCA's, were carers in the community or had cared closely for loved ones with poor health.

Oh I love it. There are lots of mature students actually, loads of us! And the young students are lovely too. There isn't a divide at all.

🤣🤣🤣 I'm currently on stress leave straight after the holidays. A student threw a chair at me and the institution doesn't care.

That's great! Can I ask you a question if you don't mind, how many placements did you do in your first year, and how long are they?

Thanks!

THIS

My admission was heavily based on personal statement and a pretty rigorous interview! The vast majority of us have direct care experience - I did a couple of months in a care home. Nursing is a hard job and it can come as a shock if you aren't used to care. There were 250 places on the cohort and I think about 600 applied. Drop out rate is 51%.

Hi!
Thanks for the comment.

Do you mean that 51% of the 250 dropped out?

2 placements year one, of 9 weeks each. Then 3 year two, 1 x 9 week, 1 x 10 week and 1 x 4 week (elective, so you can pick where you go). This year we have 1 x 9 week placement and 1 x 12 week management one. Again with management, we can apply to where we want to be place - we have to apply to the wards anonymously with a personal statement. We can put 3 choices down.

It's been 51% drop out rate over an average of the last three years. I think we actually started with 280, now we're down to 190.

Hi Op, I’m an experienced nurse, I cant speak for teaching.

You’ve said you want to help people, and that having the security of a job for life is a draw for you. But what else draws you to nursing ? Are you interested in the field of medicine, pharmacology, surgery, the workings of the human body in general health and disease? You haven’t mentioned any interest in these things but its this curiosity that will get you through the training and the job. Nursing offers opportunities for a fantastic career but to be honest the training placements and early career opportunities will involve physical and mental challenging work environments, so think carefully about your motives for entering nursing.

Hi Yorkshire dolls! Thanks for the post.

The jobs that I've worked in over the years, youth work /and language assistant etc, are all more relevant to teaching.

The main thing that is drawing me to nursing, is that it was the one career that I had always wanted to do when I was younger.

When I was a little girl and a teenager, nursing was the job I always wanted to do.

I actually wanted to study nursing at 18 and I actually got talked out of studying nursing when I was 18, by my mother, who thought it would be too difficult of a career.

Everyone said nursing was difficult back then aswell, and I let myself get talked out of doing it. But I now look back and wish I'd stuck to doing what I wanted

I've already worked as a youth worker for many years,

Odd to not remember that until P5 of the thread.

I retrained as a teacher at 40, but only had to do a year as I already had a degree. I think doing a 3 year BEd is a much riskier strategy.

Aside from the stressful element of your current job, what bits do you like? Perhaps if we understood a bit more about your skills/likes/dislikes we could advise a bit better? There might be other careers you haven’t thought about.

An alternative career suggestion from me is a driving instructor. You can train relatively quickly. There is a shortage generally, so you can quickly build up a business. You would be working with mainly young people. It is much cheaper than a degree. You could probably train alongside your current job. It is fairly well paid, you would need an adapted car, but these can be leased. It is very flexible, although after school is the most popular time, so you could combine it with your own studies. I am not a driving instructor (despite my username) but I do sometimes consider it as I have enjoyed teaching my children to drive.

I always remembered it actually.

No poster asked me what I have worked at previously.

I'm 40.

Obviously I have 20 years of employment history.