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Our resident career doctor is here to study your problems and research
the best advice for you by consulting a vast army of experts.
Here, the career doctor offers advice to a couple of teachers who are
looking for a career move that would put their experience and talents
to good use.
Dear career doctor,
We are two teachers who are disillusioned with the teaching profession
and are looking for a career change. We would like to know of any other
job options which would be available to us, which make use of our B.Ed
qualifications in science and English.
Yours sincerely,
I.
Dear I,
Your problem is typical of those we have received from frazzled teachers
who are looking for a new direction.
Your query reflects a situation faced by many, and prompted me to discuss
the possibilities of career changes for teachers with specialist consultant
Helen Vandevelde. Helen has had a lot of experience in helping teachers to
find new directions and has run some very successful seminars on this
subject.
Assuming that you and your colleague have definitely decided to leave
teaching and feel there is no way back, Vandevelde says that you need to
make a start on finding a new career.
- Look at the skills required for jobs with similar salaries, and present
the skills you have developed through teaching as relevant. Use our
salary checker to see how
different professions are paid.
- Test the water, perhaps by getting work experience in a job area you
fancy during a time when the schools are closed.
- Put together a CV that shows the links between your skills and experience
and each job you apply for - don't expect to get anywhere if you don't
tailor the CV to the job. Get advice on
how to write a CV.
- Think about going solo: with developments in information and
communications technology (ICT), it's much easier to make a living by
using your 'thinking skills'. I know several ex-teachers who feel much
more secure because they have work contracts with several companies
running at the same time.
Vandevelde points to the importance of developing new skills that
are transferable. There are lots of these to work on, but communication
and interpersonal skills are at the heart of a wide range of work
and it's great if you start with those.
Other transferable skills to consider are:
- information and communications technology;
- team working;
- negotiating;
- networking;
- time management.
Many of these skills will already be familiar to you. Pacing a lesson,
for example, is an aspect of time management. But now the context will be
different, so you will have to transfer these skills to a different
environment.
Vandevelde adds that in any life change you will encounter setbacks
but you can overcome these.
- Plan your exit - the more you anticipate while you're still teaching,
the fewer difficulties you'll face when you've left.
- Believe in yourself - teachers can be modest when they describe
what they do, but they demonstrate an wide range of abilities in the
classroom.
- Perceive your skills as having a value when they are related to
different contexts.
- Find someone who's already made the break as part of your
networking, and ask if they will act as a mentor. It is really
helpful to share their experiences.
- Get those close to you on board before you leap - they
need to be ready to share the problems along with the triumphs.
Search for jobs with totaljobs.com.
Register for jobs by email.
Register your CV.
More on transferable skills.
Good luck!
Career doctor | 