Career change / share your success stories

[rossk26]

I've been trying for about 5 years now to change my job. After every interview getting the same old "we picked someone else with more experience" response. I've decided I want to look at other career options. I work for a small GP practice with no scope of progression nor any chance to "gain more experience" than I already have done.

My job is comfortable, half decent pay, 10 minute drive, good hours (always home by 16:15 at the latest and no weekends).

What am I after:
- Anyone changed career at around 30 years old, not having to take a pay cut?
- Anyone have a career they got with no experience, but took a course or on job learning with a good starting salary?

 

[Martynt74]

When you say you work in a small GP practice. What exactly do you do?

Are you a GP?, receptionist?, Cleaner?, Nurse?


Also what have you tried to change your job to? I think you may struggle as generally the trainee jobs which come with training typically come with lower salaries.

 

[rossk26]

My title is IT & Strategy Manager, my role is very mixed. I did 10 months practice management covering maternity leave.

 

[TallPaul_S]

I did about 8 years in financial services, mostly in some form of customer facing role, then did a year as a delivery driver, then changed careers into IT with zero experience (bar being able to build a PC and messing around at home with them) and went straight in at the same amount I was on when I left financial services a year or 2 earlier. Started in IT in 2014, so age 32, nearly 33.

I was lucky in that I got recommended by a friend and the pay was excellent for the role, a grand or 2 above the normal maximum pay for a basic 1st line role. It has also meant that when moving employers I had to take more of a sideways move, with a small bump in pay. Should be much better for me in the long term though. However that also means my pay has only increased by £2500 in the last 6-odd years.

 

[Jonnybmac]

If you are making it to the interview stage then your CV is somewhat interesting, you are just failing at the interview stage?

Are you going for too high of a role to begin with, or are you not selling yourself as well?

 

[TacticalFish]

@rossk26 What career are you looking to go into, out of interest?

- Anyone have a career they got with no experience, but took a course or on job learning with a good starting salary?

I've not changed roles, more progressed within the one I was in. Started as Office Admin (Med. & Pharm Sci degree, but didn't want to work in a lab) in a start-up, and grew as the company did. My title is now Facilities and IT Manager. Only really have the experience to be called a Facilities Manager, however I have a far greater passion for the IT part, and am lucky to be supported in advancing that through training and providing more in-house support.

With hindsight, would have done a CS degree, but hey, at least I know where I want to go now.

 

[rossk26]

If you are making it to the interview stage then your CV is somewhat interesting, you are just failing at the interview stage?

Are you going for too high of a role to begin with, or are you not selling yourself as well?

I feel like I sell myself, but maybe I'm not. Ideally my goal is to earn as much as possible for the amount of time I work. But lately I've also been getting rather depressed with the job I do, and the thought of doing this job or any other job up this ladder til I'm 67.

@rossk26 What career are you looking to go into, out of interest?

Im genuinely open minded. I've looked at all sorts, would be keen to be self employed, but don't have the courage to do it, and also have a young family and the sole earner so can't be taking risks. I've also just looked at the Police again, and have read a bit about direct entry programme, so may give this a go. In the past I've even looked at train driving etc.

 

[flibbage0]

I have no personal success stories yet. I'm currently leaving my job, fed up of working in a retail environment. Do not want to fall into to the trap of doing this for the rest of my life.

 

[Brookert]

I'm 29, and made a career change about 3 months ago. I took a punt and started an online degree in the relevant subject. I got lucky and landed an interview at a company very close to home.

My pay has taken a minor hit, but should sort itself out in the long run. The main things are, I've got my life back and I'm left to get on with my own work.

 

[mid_gen]

I'm 38, and took a career change 5 years ago.

I was in banking IT, software development, data viz, databases and stuff. I was working in Hong Kong, a pretty work hard play hard type of environment and I just got burned out from the politics, stress and other BS. I was in Development Lead/Software Architect level at this point.

5 years later I've clawed my way back to Senior Programmer in the games industry, working on a big AAA title. I'm earning around 30% of my peak salary in banking, but the job is largely stress-free, the people are nice, the work is challenging and interesting. It took a little while to readjust to the income level sure, but I wouldn't go back, not a chance. It's not like I'm living on a pittance anyway, still a very decent wage and the working conditions in Germany are awesome.

The hardest part has been going from a Lead role, back to intermediate, where no-one cares about the experience you have because of your job title. I still find it frustrating not being in a lead position, but ultimately I don't have the X number of shipped titles under my belt that people at my level normally do, I'll get there eventually. It's kinda nice not having the responsibility that comes with being a lead

 

[tres]

took a career change 6 years ago
went from fairly entry level accounts/payroll to medical school.
Obviously enormous student debt now but instantly doubled wage on qualifying, probably triple in 2 years.

 

[mmcg1]

I'm 27. I spent four years as a brewer but in January I decided I wanted to get into IT so I taught myself to code and managed to get a job by July. Took a small pay cut but it should grow at a much faster rate than brewing.

 

[neodude]

I changed from Electronics Test Engineering to Air Traffic Control at the age of 32. Best move I ever made, tripled my salary and got more time off. Application for ATC is a bit hit and miss though with around 1% of applicants being successful.

 

[alexakasloth]

I'm 27. I spent four years as a brewer but in January I decided I wanted to get into IT so I taught myself to code and managed to get a job by July. Took a small pay cut but it should grow at a much faster rate than brewing.

When you say you taught yourself how to code which programming language did you find most useful to help getting a job in IT?

 

[Rroff]

I've had some successes from being told my application wasn't successful including a company that went under not long after and another one where almost the entire team that I'd been applying to join went to prison for fraud :s

I changed from Electronics Test Engineering to Air Traffic Control at the age of 32. Best move I ever made, tripled my salary and got more time off. Application for ATC is a bit hit and miss though with around 1% of applicants being successful.

Is it just rumour but doesn't that job also have a fairly high chance of being removed from it for even fairly minor mistakes?

 

[Repta]

I am nearly 29 and currently a police officer, making a career change into IT, small pay cut but my 60 mile commute turns to 8. Moving away from shift work and getting my weekends back was one of the main drivers. I have never worked in IT before and have no formal qualifications but offered quite a number of 1st line support roles. Helps that Police pay is quite low so starting at the bottom was never going to be much of a hit. My aim is in the next 3 years to be on a better wage than if I stayed in the police, more than do-able if I put the work in. Time will tell how successful the change it but sometimes have to take a chance.

 

[mmcg1]

When you say you taught yourself how to code which programming language did you find most useful to help getting a job in IT?

Have a look through my post history, I went into quite a bit of detail in another thread.

 

[alexakasloth]

Have a look through my post history, I went into quite a bit of detail in another thread.

Just seen the post you refer to - those courses look very interesting, I will look into the CS50 course.

 

[Stev]

33 Years old over here, been a chef since I was 21 and was becoming very worn out with the hours, moved from London to the coast for a change of lifestyle when I was 31 and started temping in the kitchen, it totally destroyed me, I felt lost and hopeless the change meant nothing if I was just in the kitchens doing 14+ hour days still.

So I took a plunge and applied around to lots of different roles and careers, from apprenticeship to team leader based roles (I was 2nd chef with lots of experience managing a small team), the apprenticeships were my best course but the pay cut would be prohibitive, after not so much time an emerging alarm company took me on as a field service tech for south coast and south west London, lots of driving involved but all handled by the company, and to be honest after 11 years in a dank kitchen being on the road was a nice feeling. My pay was higher than I have ever had in London and my lifestyle improved, after 6 months I got promoted to Field team leader for south England and after 12 months I'm being promoted again!

All in all the risk of moving without accommodation and without a stable job was a great success in my eyes, and I cant wait to see what I do by 35!

 

[Lopéz]

I have had two career changes.

At 32 I became a trainer and qualified HR employee and did that for a few years.
I have spent the last couple of years learning about Salesforce at both work and in my free time and at the age of 39 I am now a Functional Consultant for a Salesforce partner.

So it can definitely be done.