Written by Andrew Shanahan, Editorial Team, Graduate Prospects..
Jobs can be like relationships; you start off with high hopes, fresh ideas and a passionate commitment to making it work but further down the line you find things haven’t turned out quite as you expected and up sticks and leave. Although the fear of the unknown often means putting up with what you know you don’t want, for some people the pull is strong enough to lift them out of their rut and set about making some real changes to their working lives. After Tim Alderton graduated from Edinburgh University he relocated to London to work for a prominent design historian as a personal assistant with the intention of pursuing a career in events management. However, after two years he has realised that this isn’t the path for him. ‘I felt too much of my time was spent on facilitating photo shoots and interviews and not enough on research or content-focused elements of the work.’ Tim has decided to change not only his job but his location as well: ‘It does seem foolish some mornings to be moving jobs and town but then some evenings it seems like the only way forward. As they say, it’s better to be on the bottom rung of a tall ladder, than on the top rung of a short ladder.’ Getting a few years into a career and then deciding to change course is a big decision to make and the inclination to stick with what you know can sometimes override any thoughts of freedom. If you find yourself in this situation the most important thing is to plan your next step. Even if it has been a few years since graduation, you might still be eligible to see your careers adviser; check on Your University Careers Service to find the contact details for your local careers service. If you find that you’re not eligible, there is a range of Interactive careers advice to help you find the right direction. Planning for the next step will involve looking at how your current skills are suited to your new career. The experience that you have already built up might mean that there are some transferable skills between one career and the next. Even if you’re transferring from seemingly unrelated fields, your CV can be bolstered by the fact that that you’ve displayed a commitment to an organisation for a consistent length of time, or that you can work well in a team: skills that most employers will be looking for. Retraining might be necessary to increase your employability in a new sector. On-the-job training might be preferable to taking on additional debt to fund further study yourself. Again, it is important to examine your options and plan your new career path. Whilst planning your career U-turn you may find unique problems. Moving from an established position, where you are experienced and maybe even have managerial clout, to a new starter position can require humility as you get used to taking orders rather than giving them. Approaching your current employer with your intention to change career can be problematic, as the likelihood is that your new plans will not involve them. In these situations it depends on the individual employer how much support they are prepared to give you to take time off for interviews or to look for accommodation, although, as they are likely to find out at some point, honesty might be your best policy. If you find your employer being uncooperative, then try using your holiday time. It might also be possible to mutually agree on a period of garden leave (where you do not work during your notice period) but this usually only comes about as a consequence of an employee’s potential to harm their employer’s business. Related topics
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