What do you all do for a job that pays 40k plus?

[CDTC]

I'm after some advice on what jobs I can train to do and earn around the 40k mark (or more but realistically 40k).

I'm knocking 40, I lost my job after mat leave in March and I have the opportunity to train in something. I have seriously considered accounting but looking at my area ish that is only paying 30k, I would still do it ofc but it's by no means a passion. I have also considered dog grooming but again, financially, unless I was self employed I'd be earning around £13 an hour. SIL is a dog boarder and she rakes it is but it's just not possible in this house.

I want to be able to stand on my own two feet financially with 2 kids and a mortgage should things go awry in my relationship, I have no pension, no real prospects and I'm completely at a loss as to what to do. My only experience is shop work and cleaning bar my last job where I had some real experience in an office (very basic accounting, customer service, complaints etc etc).

What do you all do?

Secondary ASL English teacher.

That's incorrect. 2nd year ECTs still move up to next pay scale.

Yes but it still means longer at the lower levels, they delay the point where they actually start to get paid properly.

I work in talent acquisition (headhunter) and although I earn over £40k that is because I’ve been doing it for years

there are few entry level posts that pay that sort of salary, which isn’t very good anyway tbh

Sales - I’m director level and earn six figures. Our account managers start on £40k

communications - £56500. Reality - I do email and go to meetings. It used to be more fun when I was earning less but now I’m management I just guide others to have fun filming and editing etc.

There is a desperate shortage of electricians and women can do that job because it doesn’t require a great deal of heavy lifting and manoeuvering large objects unlike plumbing with baths
I’m not saying you couldn’t manoeuvre a bath, but you might not want to
Wires are quite fiddly and small fingers can be very useful in that job
You need an 18th edition which is easy and then a 2391 city in Guilds cost you about £500 to qualify

I'm a B7 nurse, earning around £52k. I wouldnt go in to nursing, but there are other roles within the NHS. My friend works for public health and went from a B6 to B8A really quickly, so earns good money. Project management courses seem to be a good idea for theses sorts of roles.

I’m an environmental consultant specialising in waste management. Current salary is 55k. I work for a global charity and could earn considerably higher in the private sector but l love where I am and the projects I’m working on are driven by environmental and social concerns rather than private profit.

I have 2 jobs so that I can earn enough. My full time job is working in comms in a university (29k) and then I also do gardening on the side which earns me about 10k pa plus some trading on the stock market which usually makes me around 3k a year.

I’m an Executive Assistant in real estate, I earn around 60k plus an annual bonus averaging 10k. Central London.

Thank you for all of your replies. There's some fantastic avenues to investigate there.

I have come across a job as a lab assistant in the NHS, oddly it has excited me more than anything else I have come across and it's not even something that's registered with me previously. It's entry level so the pay is low but there is scope for training and working up the bands eventually. I probably won't get this but I am applying non the less! Though I have no idea what to write on the final section that has a total of 3000 words 😅 they do also have an on site nursery which is a massive bonus as I have a 13 month old.

I will keep looking at all of the ideas youve all posted. Thanks for your help!

This is interesting if I do go down the accountancy route. I hadn't thought of NHS needing accountants...

AAT is a lower level of accounting exam and after sitting 12 exams, you would need to go onto something such as ACCA to get the big money (£50-80k, more in big cities). You only get 3 exams exempt for ACCA in exchange. I’d recommend starting with ACCA and only needing to study once. They offer free learning for 4 lower level exams to give you the basics. They take 5 weeks each. The overall qualification takes about 3 years but financially worth it

Yes, primary colleagues seem to have it harder with progression and being paid for responsibilities.

Nurse in private sector, earn around £55k but often much more as I pick up extra shifts.

Civil service, local councils, schools, universities, NHS, police - they all need accountants. Get AAT and a few years experience you could be looking at the pay you are after, plus a very good defined benefit pension. These organisations often pay for study and there may be opportunities to progress to ACCA or other higher level accounting qualifications which would lead to further promotion and very decent salaries.

Maybe £30k for AAT but if you progress to CIMA/ACCA etc it will be significantly more so depends whether you want to continue to progress.

@Apprentice26thats incorrect - You need a trade qualification to be an electrician. 18th edition is only understanding BS7671 - anyone can do that. 2391 is inspection and teating. In theory you could do EICR testing but that would be very difficult without electrical knowledge and qualification.

Work on the railway in control made 90k this year gone. Started as a signaller on about 50k but I work shifts and the training Is long to get into signalling

Local government officer, pay band for my role with career progression is approx 30k - 55k and the employer will fund degree study if necessary. Look for roles that are career graded to allow progression within the same job.

Oh, you’re right you do you need Level 3 Electrotechnical Qualification: This is the industry-recognized standard (e.g., NVQ Level 3 Diploma in Electrotechnical Services - 5357 or 2357.
We did the old city in Guilds absolute piece of piss for anybody with any logical ability to follow a recipe for example or following instructions to build something.
It’s the one that people are most scared of in terms of the Trades, but actually it’s one of the easiest in my opinion

I earn 52k as a primary SEN teacher but it’s taken me 12 years to get to that

HR Manager £45k (but with opportunities to earn more if I went to a bigger company). I retrained in my mid-thirties (CIPD Level 5), and started in an HR Coordinator role, working my way up to manager within 4 years. Lots of part-time and flexible opportunities for those of us with kids as well. Good luck OP.

Railway, signaller, made 83k this year.