You’ve decided it’s time to change careers. Perhaps each day is monotonous and you no longer feel like you’re making a meaningful impact. Or maybe you’re daydreaming about a new role and scouring job boards instead of responding to your colleagues’ emails. Either way, you’re ready to transition.
You wouldn’t be alone: The average person changes jobs 12 times over the course of his or her career—and for a variety of reasons. It could be a higher salary that’s inspiring the move or the desire for a better work-life balance. Whatever your motivation, you deserve to be in a role that leaves you feeling fulfilled.
If you’re contemplating your next career move, here are six tips to help you make the change.
How to change careers
1. List the pros and cons of your current job.
Before making a career change, it’s important to pinpoint why you’re deciding to transition. Are your daily responsibilities starting to feel routine, or is the industry beginning to bore you? Perhaps your current company’s culture is testing your stress levels, or your boss has become an overbearing micromanager.
Some of your cons could be negotiable. For example, if your commute is the biggest drawback, would working from home a day or two a week help? If it’s feasible to check your to-dos off remotely, consider asking your manager for more flexibility. It’s likely your boss will oblige—particularly if he or she runs the risk of losing a valuable employee.
What this exercise helps determine is whether it’s actually time to change careers. If the pros outweigh the cons, or the cons could be solved with a couple of conversations, then you should probably rethink your decision to leave. If the cons list is long, however, then this activity could inform your next career move. If you’re passionate about the industry and like your role, you might be experiencing the wrong cultural fit. The more insights you can glean, the easier the overall job search will be.
Read more: 6 Signs It’s Time to Change Careers
2. Start making other lists.
If the conclusion of your pros and cons list is that it’s time to change careers, then you need to start drafting additional lists. Questions you should focus on answering include:
- What are my values?
- What skills do I want to develop?
- How do I want my career to evolve?
- What are my nonnegotiables?
With each response you jot down, your vision will become more concrete. And the more aware you are of what you do and don’t want in your next role, the sooner you can identify companies and positions that might be the right fit as you’re browsing the job boards.
For example, if you know you want to work for a mission-driven organization, then read companies’ “About Us” pages to see if your core values align before applying. Or if you’re ready to pursue a managerial role, dissect the job description. Does it say anything about having the opportunity to lead a team? With approximately 8.1 million job openings in the U.S. alone as of May 2024, you need a way to filter through all the postings.
3. Research potential careers.
When changing careers, it’s important that you conduct thorough research to determine the types of careers that best match your personal and professional interests. Leverage resources like the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Indeed to examine different industries, find job descriptions, research salary and career outlook data, and determine the training necessary for your career of choice.
To ensure that your career change is worthwhile, make sure that you can see yourself performing the duties and responsibilities as outlined in the job description, and that the average salary aligns with your expectations. The last thing that you want to do is put in the work to prepare for your new career only to feel disappointed with your choice after working in the field. Remind yourself why you’re making a change, and determine if the career you’re considering aligns with your vision.
4. Test-drive the job.
Informational interviews are just the start. If you want to know what a job or industry is really like, volunteer or take a class.
If you’ve been looking to flex your creative muscles, perhaps there’s a nonprofit that needs volunteers with some marketing skills. Or if you’re interested in learning the basics of coding, explore online platforms like Codecademy, Udemy, and freeCodeCamp that offer free introductory lessons in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
By test-driving the job first, you can better determine whether you’re making the right career move.
5. Evaluate your transferable skills.
Although making a career change might seem daunting, it’s likely you’re more prepared for a transition than you think, thanks to your transferable skills—such as leadership, conflict resolution, and teamwork—that can be applied that can be applied to a variety of different jobs and industries.
As you prepare to change careers, evaluate the transferable skills you have, and try connecting them to the responsibilities listed in the jobs you’re applying for. It might help weed out positions that aren’t the right fit or encourage you to revisit roles you initially thought didn’t align with your qualifications. Plus, if you have any gaps on your resumé, transferable skills can help fill in the holes.
6. Research whether you need a graduate degree or certificate.
Depending on your next career move, earning a master’s degree, graduate certificate, or certification might be necessary to make the switch. If it’s not required for licensure in your career of choice, a degree or certificate can still help you stand out.
Perhaps becoming a certified project manager will help you break into a new industry, or maybe a Master of Legal Studies will give you a competitive edge when applying for jobs in healthcare, human resources, or business. Research your desired industry or position, using tools like the Bureau of Labor Statistic’s Occupational Handbook, to learn more about the entry-level education required.
Some graduate programs are even designed specifically for career changers, helping those without a related undergraduate degree to ease the transition to a new career. Northeastern’s Align programs, like Align Master of Science in Computer Science and Align Master of Science in Data Science, are meant for students with diverse academic and professional backgrounds who are seeking a career in either computer science or data science. Programs like these allow you to learn the fundamentals of your new field while taking advantage of valuable experiential learning and networking opportunities.
Making a career change
Although the process can feel time-consuming and a bit daunting, you deserve to feel engaged in your work and happy with your career. You never know how one change could affect your professional trajectory. Taking a chance could come with a bigger payoff than you realize.
Looking for more?
Explore our career advice archives for tips and strategies to help you advance professionally.
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in August 2020. It has since been updated for relevance and accuracy.
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