I am an Accounting graduate in 2003. After working for 2 years in the administration field, I feel exhausted and know this is not a long-term job for me. After that I began to take up piano again and aim to be a piano teacher in few years' time. Is this possible? Anyone having similar experience? BTW I'm 25 this year.

Katyjay had a similar career swap, she had been an accountant for a number of years and gave it up recently to concentrate on singing, she now teaches also.

Yes, but not quite as drastic. A couple of years ago, there was a major reorganisation where I work, as a result of which I now work part-time, which has freed up time in which I can idle around on the forums teach. I feel I've got the best of both worlds - known income, paid holiday and sick leave, pension, and time in which to play clarinet.

Yes, as Nicki says, I made a similar decision, albeit a bit later in life than you.

I'd been a Chartered Accountant for 15 years, including times as a Group FC and Divisional FD, and I never really enjoyed it. However it paid the bills rather well.

For the majority of that period since I started my articles I'd put my music on hold, as climbing up the career ladder didn't leave much time to practise. Until 2002 I didn't even belong to a choir as I kept claiming I "didn't have time". But my mother-in-law persuaded me to go back to choir singing as it was something I'd enjoyed and she thought I needed the relaxation. She was right.

This continued until January 2003 when I decided to have singing lessons. Music came back into my life, and I found I was getting a lot more out of it than I had as a youngster. Gradually it took over from accounting as the first priority, and I finally took the decision last September not to look for another accountancy contract, but to focus on my singing instead. I re-started piano lessons and recorder lessons, and started the violin too. And I now teach a few pupils as well.

I surrendered my ACA at Christmas.

I don't regret having been an accountant - I've earned enough to be able to afford to change careers now. And it's given me some useful knowledge and experience, as anything one does in life will.

Cheers

Katyjay

Why not try to get some part time accounting work? The difference in salary between an accountant and a piano teacher is very considerable, especially at first while you are building up your student base, and it's unpredictable as well. I started teaching just before retiring from my regular job - I couldn't have afforded to do it otherwise. I must say, though, that it is the most rewarding occupation I have had in my life! Good luck!

I definitely agree with this. Why not consider part-time, if you can do it? It might work out better. Teaching is great, but the money is not always guaranteed, which is one of the drawbacks, but it is rewarding, so, for me, especially, it is more for doing a job I love, rather than the money. But you have to do what is right for you.

I worked in Marketing Management for fifteen years (which helped fund the completion of my instrumental training!) before taking the plunge. Yes I earn half what I was earning before, I have virtually no pension and certainly no sick/holiday pay. But I am doing something I believe in passionately and would never, ever go back to the whole corporate thing. Vile existence! Feel free to PM me if you want to discuss this further. I say go for it! If you believe in your music you will never regret it. All the best, Bag x

There are many people change careers - afterall what we think we would like to do in our teens or 20s often turns out not be what we WANT to do in our 30s or 40s.

I always wanted to be a nurse, became one and then went into teaching but like you i am finding it exhausting. I am trying to retrain and hope eventually to take on some music students and go part time in my main job. I also want to have something that I will be established in before I retire so I can hopefully supplement my pension. I am 41 tomorrow so that gives me around 20 years to go from grade 5 to 8 or so...... should think that is achievable - ideally though I would like to achieve this and have some pupils within the next 5 years!!!

Good luck with whatever you do. You will never regret having those extra qualifications.

Elizabeth

I did a career change later on in life but not to the one I was planning to do!
Having stayed at home full time to raise my 3 children , I decided , now they were all at school ,to go back to work. I decided to become a Primary school teacher as my career change and did the PGCE.
This is when I realised the long hours and paperwork and admin, admin, admin were gobbling up any time I wanted to spend with my family.
Hence, career change was as a Piano teacher instead!

To be honest, it is quite slow building up a student base, but this is a blessing in disguise as it has given me more time to research and get my skills back up to scratch.

This forum has been incredibly helpful. I often 'dip in' and find useful info which I had never even thought of!

I intend to do peri work in schools and who knows what else I'll find there , having a PGCE.

This decision is like a huge weight taken off my shoulders.

I say go for it...it's a great job...you're in charge. But just watch the income side...expect it to be slow at first. Maybe do what Suepea says and supplement your income at the beginning with some part time.

Good luck!

I'm leaving the Armed Forces in 18 months at the age of 38 having been in for 16 years. I read music at Uni 15 years ago, and am intending (if I can get in!) to go to Music College and do a PGDip, with the aim of having some kind of career in music. Just started up serious piano lessons again - first time since 1991! Don't know if financially it will be achieveable, but I've got to give it a go! (Very apprehensive about pay/lack of pension/paid holidays/job security...but heh...a girls gotta do....!)

Hi

Just thought you might be interested in a career change but the other way round

I studied music in a combined degree whilst at uni started to collect a core base of pupils. After i graduated, private teaching was the way forward and I spent 10 years pursuing a generally rewarding career. However, i always felt I wanted a "real" 9-5 as opposed to 4-8 job. So, i took another degree in Radiotherapy and Oncology - it was the worst time of my life, being at the hospital every day, teaching in the evenings and studying at night and weekends. I knew from the beginning the 9-5 was not me and in some ways i Should have stopped, but i didn't want to give up. In the end I received a First and spent a year working full-time in Radiotherapy.

Throughout the 3 years studying and 1 year working I came to realise that despite all the drawbacks, no pension, no holiday pay, no sick leave, teaching piano in your own home is the most fantastic job in the world. You are in absolute control of your life and can control your income. In addition, there are all the little bonuses, like being asked to play for a pupils brother or sister in a flute/violin exam, teaching theory, or Aurals.

I had to give up teaching last year as my partner and I decided to spend a couple of years living in the Sierra Nevada mountains of Spain - something I could never have considered if I were working in the NHS. But, I get to play the piano all the time and will return one day, hopefully with a nice FRSM certificate to put on the wall in my teaching studio

Finally, if teaching becomes slow or during the summer I will always have the option of doing some Locum work for the odd week here and there.

I think, writing this, that when we have finished out here, i will actually be looking forward to coming back and restarting my teaching practice

Thank you Liz

Thanks for all the advices.
I'd like to study more to be a proper qualified teacher to give the best to students.
Hence I'd prefer to go full-time teaching so I can be full-hearted in it.
But the income issue is a concern too. My plan is to work for another 1 year to save enough for studies. Then I'll start serious studying & teaching.
Will this be good?

Part-time does not mean nor imply half-hearted!