Need advice - older SAHM going back to work

[Anonymous]

OP, I know teaching can be stressful (adjuncting is actually my current "mommy track" job). But there are lots of ways to make it less stressful. #1 is just doing it more so that you find your own ways to make things like grading papers and planning classes efficient (use rubrics so that you can only add the comments that are specific to each paper/assignment, type your comments, and start to save comments you use frequently so that you can cut and paste them, for example). Also, if you put in the time the first time you teach the course to write out your lectures and assignments, and then save them all, each time you teach it subsequently, it's that much easier.

Also, I used to temp doing the kinds of jobs you say you want (admin jobs). I do think that you're romanticizing them quite a bit. While data entry, answering the phone, typing letters, and doing mail merges might be easy on the brain for a month or so, you're talking about doing this day-in-day-out for years. You will get bored. While the hours are regular, it's not flex time. You will have to be in the office 8-5 (or whatever) every day except two weeks vacation a year.

You will also start to find it difficult not to speak up when you think the people who work there are doing things stupidly or inefficiently, or when your background could improve the ways their program works. You will feel this way especially when you are bored to tears doing something that you think is pointless, or could be designed better. But, your role is just to do the things, not be part of the planning, and those kinds of interventions will not go over well. That kind of response is going to make you feel badly, too.

I think the people interviewing you probably are also not sure that THEY want to manage a 50-something PhD in a position that usually goes to someone with much less educational depth. They don't want to be questioned by the admin. And, if your inability here to figure out what admins need to know is any indication of how your responding in interviews, you're coming across as someone who does, in fact, think that these potential employers should feel that they're lucky to have you, that you're smart enough to make a difference without even knowing the basics of the job. People want to hire someone who acts like they would be lucky to have the job, not the other way around.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, I know teaching can be stressful (adjuncting is actually my current "mommy track" job). But there are lots of ways to make it less stressful. #1 is just doing it more so that you find your own ways to make things like grading papers and planning classes efficient (use rubrics so that you can only add the comments that are specific to each paper/assignment, type your comments, and start to save comments you use frequently so that you can cut and paste them, for example). Also, if you put in the time the first time you teach the course to write out your lectures and assignments, and then save them all, each time you teach it subsequently, it's that much easier.

Also, I used to temp doing the kinds of jobs you say you want (admin jobs). I do think that you're romanticizing them quite a bit. While data entry, answering the phone, typing letters, and doing mail merges might be easy on the brain for a month or so, you're talking about doing this day-in-day-out for years. You will get bored. While the hours are regular, it's not flex time. You will have to be in the office 8-5 (or whatever) every day except two weeks vacation a year.

You will also start to find it difficult not to speak up when you think the people who work there are doing things stupidly or inefficiently, or when your background could improve the ways their program works. You will feel this way especially when you are bored to tears doing something that you think is pointless, or could be designed better. But, your role is just to do the things, not be part of the planning, and those kinds of interventions will not go over well. That kind of response is going to make you feel badly, too.

I think the people interviewing you probably are also not sure that THEY want to manage a 50-something PhD in a position that usually goes to someone with much less educational depth. They don't want to be questioned by the admin. And, if your inability here to figure out what admins need to know is any indication of how your responding in interviews, you're coming across as someone who does, in fact, think that these potential employers should feel that they're lucky to have you, that you're smart enough to make a difference without even knowing the basics of the job. People want to hire someone who acts like they would be lucky to have the job, not the other way around.

This is the OP. I started this thread six months ago and found it tonight as I was searching for advice about re-entering the work force.

I had to stop looking due to a family emergency, but now I'm starting up again. I should probably start a new thread, but I wanted to respond to this poster, who really hit the nail on the head. I would like a low-stress job, but not a boring one. And I'd like to move up, eventually, as long as I don't have to work a zillion hours (BTDT).

What I'm gathering from many of these threads is that I need to upgrade my tech skills. I'm wondering if learning a language like Java or Python would be of any use to me? (My mathy DD knows both, which she learned in high school and in a summer internship.) I'm not a tech person (PhD in English!), but I mastered calculus in high school and took entry level programming, which I enjoyed.

Any suggestions for me? I'm feeling overwhelmed by having too many choices, and not knowing which direction to take.

[Anonymous]

Check out the library sometimes they have workshops on MS applications

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, I know teaching can be stressful (adjuncting is actually my current "mommy track" job). But there are lots of ways to make it less stressful. #1 is just doing it more so that you find your own ways to make things like grading papers and planning classes efficient (use rubrics so that you can only add the comments that are specific to each paper/assignment, type your comments, and start to save comments you use frequently so that you can cut and paste them, for example). Also, if you put in the time the first time you teach the course to write out your lectures and assignments, and then save them all, each time you teach it subsequently, it's that much easier.

Also, I used to temp doing the kinds of jobs you say you want (admin jobs). I do think that you're romanticizing them quite a bit. While data entry, answering the phone, typing letters, and doing mail merges might be easy on the brain for a month or so, you're talking about doing this day-in-day-out for years. You will get bored. While the hours are regular, it's not flex time. You will have to be in the office 8-5 (or whatever) every day except two weeks vacation a year.

You will also start to find it difficult not to speak up when you think the people who work there are doing things stupidly or inefficiently, or when your background could improve the ways their program works. You will feel this way especially when you are bored to tears doing something that you think is pointless, or could be designed better. But, your role is just to do the things, not be part of the planning, and those kinds of interventions will not go over well. That kind of response is going to make you feel badly, too.

I think the people interviewing you probably are also not sure that THEY want to manage a 50-something PhD in a position that usually goes to someone with much less educational depth. They don't want to be questioned by the admin. And, if your inability here to figure out what admins need to know is any indication of how your responding in interviews, you're coming across as someone who does, in fact, think that these potential employers should feel that they're lucky to have you, that you're smart enough to make a difference without even knowing the basics of the job. People want to hire someone who acts like they would be lucky to have the job, not the other way around.

This is the OP. I started this thread six months ago and found it tonight as I was searching for advice about re-entering the work force.

I had to stop looking due to a family emergency, but now I'm starting up again. I should probably start a new thread, but I wanted to respond to this poster, who really hit the nail on the head. I would like a low-stress job, but not a boring one. And I'd like to move up, eventually, as long as I don't have to work a zillion hours (BTDT).

What I'm gathering from many of these threads is that I need to upgrade my tech skills. I'm wondering if learning a language like Java or Python would be of any use to me? (My mathy DD knows both, which she learned in high school and in a summer internship.) I'm not a tech person (PhD in English!), but I mastered calculus in high school and took entry level programming, which I enjoyed.

Any suggestions for me? I'm feeling overwhelmed by having too many choices, and not knowing which direction to take.

Rhis is your issue. You are far from over qualified. You are under qualified. Yiu dont need to learn a language. You justbhave to keep hitting the pavement until someone wants to take a risk with you answering the phone. In the professional world, not working for decades does not show competence or motivation.

You want an EA position? What are your excel skills? Can you use outlook? Know how to negotiate with vendors? Can you operate a Cisco IP phone system? Set up a goto meeting? Trouble shoot a largy printer/copy machine?

[Anonymous]

Why don't you try teaching English as an adjunct?

[Anonymous]

Have you considered starting your own company?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you considered starting your own company?

What about doing freelance writing? Like for websites?

[Anonymous]

OP again. I've considered freelance writing, but I did some of that early in my career, and I really don't want to go back to it.

I taught grad students, which I enjoyed, but I hated teaching undergrads. And adjuncts are at the bottom of the totem pole, so that's stressful too, since you have little autonomy, at least I did the few times I taught.

Yes, I have considered starting my own business, but I need to have an income and health insurance, so I'd need a day job for a while at least.

I agree that I'm underqualified to be an admin, but as the earlier PP (from six months ago) pointed out, I may end up being bored, which could happen.

I liked the PPs suggestion about looking for an office manager job. I've seen some listings for jobs like that, but they all require previous experience.

I'm kind of back where I started: looking for an entry level job without the right skills. Aaaaaaaarrrrrrrgggggg.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm pondering them all.