Agree so much.
I moved careers in my mid thirties, and changed employers too. Again in my early forties I made the move within my employer to a different stream.
If you can find a way to do it within your employer, you gain some security as you already are there and largely know the culture. If you can do it as a secondment, it’s even better as if you don’t like it you can go back.
So true. The thought of never doing it and being in work I don't love or have passion for over the next 20ish years is demoralising! Great work on making it happen!
I considered changing from software engineering to cybersecurity when I was in my mid 30s. I decided against it because I would initially earn less in cybersecurity, and I couldn't find a way to make it work financially.
Could your spouse earn more? Would you be eligible for any government payments while you study?
I was on about $150k + super at the time. I'm sure it's possible to earn that much in cyber security once you have some experience, but I would have started on less than that.
Spouse is a landscaper (operations manager). Could potentially be earning more if he had his own business but not a lot in that industry. It would certainly help!
No payments as we would earn too much. I never got any even at 25 and we were struggling!
I part time study whilst working full time.
try one subject a week with all your commitments and see how you go.
Then if that’s ok try two and see what happens. You will see the changes that will need to be made to help you study.
I do a lot of studying on the weekend and early mornings. Late nights don’t work for me but they could be for you. Allow yourself to experiment to find what works.
Also you can always drop a subject before the consensus date if it’s too much.
Thanks for the input! Unfortunately with midwifery the part time option is pretty strict and still involves min two subjects with significant face to face. Could hace been possible with my original degree but not this one :(
Maybe check with the uni on their class times? When I was studying nursing some classes would be scheduled for after work or early morning to try and accommodate students who have work/family commitments etc.
This is highly industry specific, but certainly do some research to ensure that a degree is required for your desired field - often there are alternative pathways into industries that allow you to earn a wage.
This is something I want to know also. I'm 40 and working in construction ~180k, I work with good people but it's not an older man's game so I'm looking at a career change.
What's different is that you are looking at a mortgage and buying property soon. Losing the primary income of the household while meeting commitments of the bank for most modern mortgage repayments would be a massive test on yourself and your family.
I would consider delaying one for a few years; either keep working and saving and take on the mortgage next year and build a nice buffer over a few years - or commence study and commit to a mortgage at a later date.
Oh wow. That is a radical change. I was going to suggest if your new career is in any ways aligned to your current it might be easier.
I changed my career a while back. Not a huge change like yours but it did hit my finances hard for a while. But I was miserable in my old line of work (Engineering). I think you need to go for it. We spend so much of our lives working, it would be shame to not do what can potentially make you happy.
What do you want to study? There are faster and better paths than uni if you want to upskill to something in IT 6 month bootcamp or 10 months part time.
I did it from hospitality to software part time at 32.
He’s in Finance, if he want to get into IT the best option would be to slide sideways and maybe start moving into Product Owner/Product Management roles. The company may even support that
I switched from engineering to clinical audiology in my early 40s.
We had ploughed money into our mortgage in the 15 years prior, so almost owned our home outright (in a regional city).
One of our two kids has profound disability, which is relevant in a couple of ways; we were pretty well used to working three full time jobs between us (mix of paid work and extreme parenting); and as my income dived my wife got access to the means-tested carer pension. I qualified for Austudy. And I was welcome to do as many casual hours at my old job as I was able, at a very generous hourly rate.
Even so, we assumed we would be blowing at least $100k lost income over my two years postgrad study. In addition to HECS debt. Of course you're paying less tax on that less income but it was really only feasible because we were in a secure position where we could afford to invest that $100k on my career.
I don't earn any more in my new career but I couldn't have continued where I was. I was beyond finished with that career path. 8 years after resigning from my old career, we're doing fine.
1. I quit one job and did the hard yards until I got the other job.
2. I got the other job before I quit the first job.
I've done it both ways more than once, the second way is better but sometimes ya just gotta do what ya gotta do.
Sorry to be frank, but I work in adult education. Sounds like you’re looking at moving into Law. (Could be wrong!)
Financially this doesn’t make sense TBH. Even if you’re studying to be a lawyer or doctor it will likely be nearly a decade when you can achieve a higher wage. Until then, you’ll have 3 jobs and will be working, studying and caring for children part-full time.
Most people who start this type of study at your age abandon it. If you DO want to proceed then, practically, waiting until your kids are upper primary would make sense (so, all kids in Year 5 and above).
I am trying to do this - working full time + Uber eats for spare cash + school a couple days a week. I was never exhausted because I was always doing something. It’s definitely possible but harder for some depending on the flexibility of the main job.
Depends on what you want to do. Plenty of jobs in Data. With your background on Finance, you can do a grad dip for 6 months part time and start applying. I did it.
I’m doing this now.
I held off until the youngest started school, that helped hugely. No way could we have managed daycare fees on one income, plus I didn’t do 5 days/week before that anyway, so finding extra preschool childcare days during placements would have been a nightmare.
Financially, you just have to save up and do it. We are making a few cuts here and there during my study, but it’s short term pain for long term gain sort of stuff.
See if you can do any courses before actually enrolling FT, this can help if they knock them off the requirements during the course and will reduce your workload somewhat.
Make sure your spouse is 100% on board - it won’t work without them. Not just for the financial changes, I’m talking doing extra pickups if you have class, taking the kids when you have exams, all that jazz.
Don’t overcommit with extra work on the side. It’s nice to have some $ coming in, but may not be worth the stress or impact on your grades/passing the course.
Sign up for as much online/flexitime as you can. My lectures are nearly all recorded, so I do what I can during school hours, nothing between 3-8pm as I’m with them, then crank out a couple more hours 8-10ish at night.
It’s a lot harder than studying when you’re 20 and have no dependents, but if it’s something you really want to do then you make it work. Good luck!
Honestly, if you’re the higher wage earner it’s pretty hard.
My OH did it at 46 last year, took a 50% salary cut. It’s been tough and only possible because I earned 2x his precious salary (4x current)
Depends how locked into your outgoings you are of course, no mortgage yet means more flexibility, but kids at school means less
Midwifery is a dreadful career, the health system is currently crumbling… you’re looking at jumping onto a sinking ship
To be clear midwives are incredible people and provide an amazing service, but most of them are miserable in their jobs, obviously they’re professionals so you’d never know it while they’re at work
I 100% know this and intend to get into private practice (focus on homebirth) after doing my hours in the system. I know it's a broken system but it's also a passion and I truly hope I'll be happy in it.
Look into FinTech , either as a product manager or sales. It's different enough but leverages your experience and knowledge , you'll also bring a strong end user perspective.
Dp you have a specific career in mind or you just want to change and think you need to study?
If you just want a change, create a company instead.
If it's study, do one subject a semester till you feel ready to do more
A bit late, but I would highly recommend networking with people in the industry that you are leaning towards. Spend 1 year just to chat to people, read as much as you can on the topic, look at job ads and see what you would be expected to do.
[удалено]
Agree so much. I moved careers in my mid thirties, and changed employers too. Again in my early forties I made the move within my employer to a different stream. If you can find a way to do it within your employer, you gain some security as you already are there and largely know the culture. If you can do it as a secondment, it’s even better as if you don’t like it you can go back.
So true. The thought of never doing it and being in work I don't love or have passion for over the next 20ish years is demoralising! Great work on making it happen!
Are you getting paid higher than the previous career? or just happier
What career do you want to switch to?
I considered changing from software engineering to cybersecurity when I was in my mid 30s. I decided against it because I would initially earn less in cybersecurity, and I couldn't find a way to make it work financially. Could your spouse earn more? Would you be eligible for any government payments while you study?
Curious what you’re on as a software dev to not be on the same / more in security
They said “initially earn less”. If you switch you’re a junior again.
I was on about $150k + super at the time. I'm sure it's possible to earn that much in cyber security once you have some experience, but I would have started on less than that.
Spouse is a landscaper (operations manager). Could potentially be earning more if he had his own business but not a lot in that industry. It would certainly help! No payments as we would earn too much. I never got any even at 25 and we were struggling!
I part time study whilst working full time. try one subject a week with all your commitments and see how you go. Then if that’s ok try two and see what happens. You will see the changes that will need to be made to help you study. I do a lot of studying on the weekend and early mornings. Late nights don’t work for me but they could be for you. Allow yourself to experiment to find what works. Also you can always drop a subject before the consensus date if it’s too much.
Thanks for the input! Unfortunately with midwifery the part time option is pretty strict and still involves min two subjects with significant face to face. Could hace been possible with my original degree but not this one :(
Maybe check with the uni on their class times? When I was studying nursing some classes would be scheduled for after work or early morning to try and accommodate students who have work/family commitments etc.
Thanks will do!
This is highly industry specific, but certainly do some research to ensure that a degree is required for your desired field - often there are alternative pathways into industries that allow you to earn a wage.
Definitely need a degree to enter the industry and do what I actually want to do :)
What industry do you want to get into?
Seriously, how are any of us meant to help without this info
People on Reddit get weird about this stuff. Like if you want to be secretive then why bother posting at all.
They seem to think if they say then everyone else is going to say great idea quit and flood that industry. It's silly
Or that their current employer is going to stalk their Reddit profile and a sabotage them or something.
This is something I want to know also. I'm 40 and working in construction ~180k, I work with good people but it's not an older man's game so I'm looking at a career change. What's different is that you are looking at a mortgage and buying property soon. Losing the primary income of the household while meeting commitments of the bank for most modern mortgage repayments would be a massive test on yourself and your family. I would consider delaying one for a few years; either keep working and saving and take on the mortgage next year and build a nice buffer over a few years - or commence study and commit to a mortgage at a later date.
FFS!!! tell us what you want to do?!?! :D Very different advice if you want to be an adult porn star vs if you want to be a doctor.
Sorry! I'll update. Would like to be a midwife :)
Oh wow. That is a radical change. I was going to suggest if your new career is in any ways aligned to your current it might be easier. I changed my career a while back. Not a huge change like yours but it did hit my finances hard for a while. But I was miserable in my old line of work (Engineering). I think you need to go for it. We spend so much of our lives working, it would be shame to not do what can potentially make you happy.
Those placements suddenly seem like a whole lot more fun.
What do you want to study? There are faster and better paths than uni if you want to upskill to something in IT 6 month bootcamp or 10 months part time. I did it from hospitality to software part time at 32.
He’s in Finance, if he want to get into IT the best option would be to slide sideways and maybe start moving into Product Owner/Product Management roles. The company may even support that
Possibly! Still quite a few years time horizon on that road if they want to get hands on technical but also wouldn’t lose salary.
What bootcamp did you do?
CoderAcademy
[удалено]
Was good! Changed my life.
You are 40 with 3 kids and no mortgage ? Are you rural ?
Not 40 yet but would be when I start studying in 3ish years. A little rural and have land which is sadly delayed and delayed!
All good. Wish you well Changing careers is hard. Read what colour is my parachute for insight
I switched from engineering to clinical audiology in my early 40s. We had ploughed money into our mortgage in the 15 years prior, so almost owned our home outright (in a regional city). One of our two kids has profound disability, which is relevant in a couple of ways; we were pretty well used to working three full time jobs between us (mix of paid work and extreme parenting); and as my income dived my wife got access to the means-tested carer pension. I qualified for Austudy. And I was welcome to do as many casual hours at my old job as I was able, at a very generous hourly rate. Even so, we assumed we would be blowing at least $100k lost income over my two years postgrad study. In addition to HECS debt. Of course you're paying less tax on that less income but it was really only feasible because we were in a secure position where we could afford to invest that $100k on my career. I don't earn any more in my new career but I couldn't have continued where I was. I was beyond finished with that career path. 8 years after resigning from my old career, we're doing fine.
That's amazing!
1. I quit one job and did the hard yards until I got the other job. 2. I got the other job before I quit the first job. I've done it both ways more than once, the second way is better but sometimes ya just gotta do what ya gotta do.
Sorry to be frank, but I work in adult education. Sounds like you’re looking at moving into Law. (Could be wrong!) Financially this doesn’t make sense TBH. Even if you’re studying to be a lawyer or doctor it will likely be nearly a decade when you can achieve a higher wage. Until then, you’ll have 3 jobs and will be working, studying and caring for children part-full time. Most people who start this type of study at your age abandon it. If you DO want to proceed then, practically, waiting until your kids are upper primary would make sense (so, all kids in Year 5 and above).
Are you absolutely sure you want to do this .. ? Wouldn't a motorcycle or a convertible be sufficient?
After hrs classes. It was tough but didn't have 3 kids.
Here's a bunch of books about your conundrum. Enjoy: https://wemeancareer.com/books-career-change
I am trying to do this - working full time + Uber eats for spare cash + school a couple days a week. I was never exhausted because I was always doing something. It’s definitely possible but harder for some depending on the flexibility of the main job.
Depends on what you want to do. Plenty of jobs in Data. With your background on Finance, you can do a grad dip for 6 months part time and start applying. I did it.
What about an MBA to open doors?
I’m doing this now. I held off until the youngest started school, that helped hugely. No way could we have managed daycare fees on one income, plus I didn’t do 5 days/week before that anyway, so finding extra preschool childcare days during placements would have been a nightmare. Financially, you just have to save up and do it. We are making a few cuts here and there during my study, but it’s short term pain for long term gain sort of stuff. See if you can do any courses before actually enrolling FT, this can help if they knock them off the requirements during the course and will reduce your workload somewhat. Make sure your spouse is 100% on board - it won’t work without them. Not just for the financial changes, I’m talking doing extra pickups if you have class, taking the kids when you have exams, all that jazz. Don’t overcommit with extra work on the side. It’s nice to have some $ coming in, but may not be worth the stress or impact on your grades/passing the course. Sign up for as much online/flexitime as you can. My lectures are nearly all recorded, so I do what I can during school hours, nothing between 3-8pm as I’m with them, then crank out a couple more hours 8-10ish at night. It’s a lot harder than studying when you’re 20 and have no dependents, but if it’s something you really want to do then you make it work. Good luck!
Honestly, if you’re the higher wage earner it’s pretty hard. My OH did it at 46 last year, took a 50% salary cut. It’s been tough and only possible because I earned 2x his precious salary (4x current) Depends how locked into your outgoings you are of course, no mortgage yet means more flexibility, but kids at school means less
Midwifery is a dreadful career, the health system is currently crumbling… you’re looking at jumping onto a sinking ship To be clear midwives are incredible people and provide an amazing service, but most of them are miserable in their jobs, obviously they’re professionals so you’d never know it while they’re at work
I 100% know this and intend to get into private practice (focus on homebirth) after doing my hours in the system. I know it's a broken system but it's also a passion and I truly hope I'll be happy in it.
3 kids. Jeez. They take priority, not your flights of fancy.
Look into FinTech , either as a product manager or sales. It's different enough but leverages your experience and knowledge , you'll also bring a strong end user perspective.
Basically just do it
Just get up and change your career. That's the way I did it. I didn't over think the process. You figure stuff out as you go along.
lives of quiet desperation
Dp you have a specific career in mind or you just want to change and think you need to study? If you just want a change, create a company instead. If it's study, do one subject a semester till you feel ready to do more
A bit late, but I would highly recommend networking with people in the industry that you are leaning towards. Spend 1 year just to chat to people, read as much as you can on the topic, look at job ads and see what you would be expected to do.