If you are considering changing career, choosing the best field to move to is particularly important when the economy is at a low point.
Should you stay where you are and hope that things will get better or should you risk a career change now?
It’s important to think of both the long term and the short term when considering a career move.
Your Long Term Plans
What do you hope to do when you change careers? Do you have a definite plan in mind or just some vague ideas about what you would like to do?
Does your long term strategy involve training or going back into higher education? If so, are you in a position to fund this?
Have you researched the career prospects in the area you wish to move to? You need to be sure that you are likely to be able to get a job and either keep it or move up the career ladder, whether that is achieved in the same company or by moving to a different one.
You should also check out the need for ongoing education. No profession stands still these days, but some move faster than others and you need to be sure that you will be able to keep up with developments, through continued professional development. This is particularly important if there is expense involved. Some employers will pay for your ongoing education and others will not. It is particularly important to be aware of the details in advance if you have dependents.
Your Short Term Plans
Short term plans include your weekly and monthly expenses – the bills which have to be paid irrespective of what is happening. So for most people, this means having a job. If you are able to move to a job in your chosen new career immediately and that job pays enough to cover your expenses, then you can go ahead.
But for many people, a career move means either going back to college or taking a drop in salary to begin with. So you need to establish the position you would be in if you were to move right away.
Developing a Strategy to Deal With The Long and Short Term
As with all major career decisions, the first step in forming a strategy is to do your background research. Find out as much as possible about the career, the type of training you will need, how much it costs, how many vacancies there are each year and your long term prospects.
Once you are sure that this is the right move, take whatever steps you can. For some, this will mean applying for an entry level job in a new field and for others it will mean going back to school. But for the majority of people, it will be more complex, for example, it cold involve staying put and beginning a part-time training course so that they can enter their new career at a slightly higher level in a year or two.
If you can’t make the move immediately because you can’t afford to, you will need to be creative. Find out the skills most in demand and develop some of these to a high level. The more attractive you make your résumé, the more likely you are to get a job.
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Waller Jamison is a careers advisor and university lecturer, who understands the difficulties involved in changing career and returning to study.
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