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So You Want a New Job? Here’s How to Retrain
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Anna Helhoski is a senior writer covering economic news and trends in consumer finance at NerdWallet. She is also an authority on student loans. She joined NerdWallet in 2014. Her work has appeared in The Associated Press, The New York Times, The Washington Post and USA Today. She previously covered local news in the New York metro area for the Daily Voice and New York state politics for The Legislative Gazette. She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from Purchase College, State University of New York.
Karen Gaudette Brewer Lead Assigning Editor | Core Personal Finance
Karen Gaudette Brewer leads the Core Personal Finance team at NerdWallet. Previously, she guided students and their families through the ins and outs of paying for college and managing student debt on the Higher Education team. Helping people navigate complex money decisions and feel more confident brings her great joy: as the daughter of an immigrant, from an early age she was the translator of financial documents and the person who called the credit card company to fix fraud.
She joined NerdWallet with 20 years of experience working in newsrooms and leading editorial teams, most recently as executive editor of HealthCentral. She launched her journalism career with The Associated Press and later worked for The (Riverside) Press-Enterprise, The Seattle Times, PCC Community Markets and Allrecipes.com.
She is a graduate of the 2022 Poynter Institute Leadership Academy for Women in Media. Her writing has been honored by the Society for Features Journalism and the Society of Professional Journalists. In addition, she’s the author of two books about the Pacific Northwest.
The tens of millions of workers who have left their jobs in the “Great Resignation” — 4.4 million in September alone, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics — won’t necessarily need to retrain before they land their next job. But those who want a new career entirely may find little financial help and social support to acquire the skills they need for the future, labor experts say.
Erin Hatton, associate professor of sociology at the University at Buffalo in New York, says the pandemic caused especially difficult conditions for consumer-facing workers, including risk of COVID-19 exposure and the responsibility to enforce mask compliance on customers, which created an “undue burden on workers they’re just not willing to deal with.”
Pandemic-weary workers are questioning the value of their jobs, Hatton says, and this self-reflection may stir workers to switch fields — or at least attempt to.
“That can be easier said than done,” she says. “Figuring out how to get the training required to do that can be tricky.”
But will the “Great Resignation” lead to a “great retraining” for workers who want to access jobs with better pay, benefits and working conditions?
It’s doubtful, say experts like Anthony Carnevale, director of the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. He chalks it up to this: The U.S. isn’t very good at retraining workers.
NerdWallet ratingNerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formula for student loan products takes into account more than 50 data points across multiple categories, including repayment options, customer service, lender transparency, loan eligibility and underwriting criteria.
Fixed APR
3.69-17.99%
College Ave Student Loans products are made available through Firstrust Bank, member FDIC, First Citizens Community Bank, member FDIC, or M.Y. Safra Bank, FSB, member FDIC. All loans are subject to individual approval and adherence to underwriting guidelines. Program restrictions, other terms, and conditions apply. (1)All rates include the auto-pay discount. The 0.25% auto-pay interest rate reduction applies as long as a valid bank account is designated for required monthly payments. If a payment is returned, you will lose this benefit. Variable rates may increase after consummation. (2)As certified by your school and less any other financial aid you might receive. Minimum $1,000. (3)This informational repayment example uses typical loan terms for a freshman borrower who selects the Flat Repayment Option with an 8-year repayment term, has a $10,000 loan that is disbursed in one disbursement and a 7.78% fixed Annual Percentage Rate (“APR”): 54 monthly payments of $25 while in school, followed by 96 monthly payments of $176.21 while in the repayment period, for a total amount of payments of $18,266.38. Loans will never have a full principal and interest monthly payment of less than $50. Your actual rates and repayment terms may vary. Information advertised valid as of 09/03/2024. Variable interest rates may increase after consummation. Approved interest rate will depend on creditworthiness of the applicant(s), lowest advertised rates only available to the most creditworthy applicants and require selection of the Flat Repayment Option with the shortest available loan term.
Variable APR
5.59-17.99%
College Ave Student Loans products are made available through Firstrust Bank, member FDIC, First Citizens Community Bank, member FDIC, or M.Y. Safra Bank, FSB, member FDIC. All loans are subject to individual approval and adherence to underwriting guidelines. Program restrictions, other terms, and conditions apply. (1)All rates include the auto-pay discount. The 0.25% auto-pay interest rate reduction applies as long as a valid bank account is designated for required monthly payments. If a payment is returned, you will lose this benefit. Variable rates may increase after consummation. (2)As certified by your school and less any other financial aid you might receive. Minimum $1,000. (3)This informational repayment example uses typical loan terms for a freshman borrower who selects the Flat Repayment Option with an 8-year repayment term, has a $10,000 loan that is disbursed in one disbursement and a 7.78% fixed Annual Percentage Rate (“APR”): 54 monthly payments of $25 while in school, followed by 96 monthly payments of $176.21 while in the repayment period, for a total amount of payments of $18,266.38. Loans will never have a full principal and interest monthly payment of less than $50. Your actual rates and repayment terms may vary. Information advertised valid as of 09/03/2024. Variable interest rates may increase after consummation. Approved interest rate will depend on creditworthiness of the applicant(s), lowest advertised rates only available to the most creditworthy applicants and require selection of the Flat Repayment Option with the shortest available loan term.
NerdWallet ratingNerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formula for student loan products takes into account more than 50 data points across multiple categories, including repayment options, customer service, lender transparency, loan eligibility and underwriting criteria.
Fixed APR
3.59-15.49%
Lowest rates shown include the auto debit. Advertised APRs for undergraduate students assume a $10,000 loan to a student who attends school for 4 years and has no prior Sallie Mae-serviced loans. Interest rates for variable rate loans may increase or decrease over the life of the loan based on changes to the 30-day Average Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) rounded up to the nearest one-eighth of one percent. Advertised variable rates are the starting range of rates and may vary outside of that range over the life of the loan. Interest is charged starting when funds are sent to the school. With the Fixed and Deferred Repayment Options, the interest rate is higher than with the Interest Repayment Option and Unpaid Interest is added to the loan’s Current Principal at the end of the grace/separation period. To receive a 0.25 percentage point interest rate discount, the borrower or cosigner must enroll in auto debit through Sallie Mae. The discount applies only during active repayment for as long as the Current Amount Due or Designated Amount is successfully withdrawn from the authorized bank account each month. It may be suspended during forbearance or deferment. Advertised APRs are valid as of 9/24/2024. Loan amounts: For applications submitted directly to Sallie Mae, loan amount cannot exceed the cost of attendance less financial aid received, as certified by the school. Applications submitted to Sallie Mae through a partner website will be subject to a lower maximum loan request amount. Miscellaneous personal expenses (such as a laptop) may be included in the cost of attendance for students enrolled at least half-time. Examples of typical costs for a $10,000 Smart Option Student Loan with the most common fixed rate, fixed repayment option, 6-month separation period, and two disbursements: For a borrower with no prior loans and a 4-year in-school period, it works out to a 10.28% fixed APR, 51 payments of $25.00, 119 payments of $182.67 and one payment of $121.71, for a Total Loan Cost of $23,134.44. For a borrower with $20,000 in prior loans and a 2-year in-school period, it works out to a 10.78% fixed APR, 27 payments of $25.00, 179 payments of $132.53 and one payment of $40.35 for a total loan cost of $24,438.22. Loans that are subject to a $50 minimum principal and interest payment amount may receive a loan term that is less than 10 years. A variable APR may increase over the life of the loan. A fixed APR will not.
Variable APR
5.54-15.70%
Lowest rates shown include the auto debit. Advertised APRs for undergraduate students assume a $10,000 loan to a student who attends school for 4 years and has no prior Sallie Mae-serviced loans. Interest rates for variable rate loans may increase or decrease over the life of the loan based on changes to the 30-day Average Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) rounded up to the nearest one-eighth of one percent. Advertised variable rates are the starting range of rates and may vary outside of that range over the life of the loan. Interest is charged starting when funds are sent to the school. With the Fixed and Deferred Repayment Options, the interest rate is higher than with the Interest Repayment Option and Unpaid Interest is added to the loan’s Current Principal at the end of the grace/separation period. To receive a 0.25 percentage point interest rate discount, the borrower or cosigner must enroll in auto debit through Sallie Mae. The discount applies only during active repayment for as long as the Current Amount Due or Designated Amount is successfully withdrawn from the authorized bank account each month. It may be suspended during forbearance or deferment. Advertised APRs are valid as of 9/24/2024. Loan amounts: For applications submitted directly to Sallie Mae, loan amount cannot exceed the cost of attendance less financial aid received, as certified by the school. Applications submitted to Sallie Mae through a partner website will be subject to a lower maximum loan request amount. Miscellaneous personal expenses (such as a laptop) may be included in the cost of attendance for students enrolled at least half-time. Examples of typical costs for a $10,000 Smart Option Student Loan with the most common fixed rate, fixed repayment option, 6-month separation period, and two disbursements: For a borrower with no prior loans and a 4-year in-school period, it works out to a 10.28% fixed APR, 51 payments of $25.00, 119 payments of $182.67 and one payment of $121.71, for a Total Loan Cost of $23,134.44. For a borrower with $20,000 in prior loans and a 2-year in-school period, it works out to a 10.78% fixed APR, 27 payments of $25.00, 179 payments of $132.53 and one payment of $40.35 for a total loan cost of $24,438.22. Loans that are subject to a $50 minimum principal and interest payment amount may receive a loan term that is less than 10 years. A variable APR may increase over the life of the loan. A fixed APR will not.
Credible lets you check with multiple student loan lenders to get rates with no impact to your credit score. Visit their website to take the next steps.
Why you may need to reskill to get a new career
Changing careers often requires a new credential (a degree or certificate), meaning you'll need some type of higher education. Employers across labor sectors require workers to have certain credentials, even in fields that used to be accessible without one.
Consider, for example, auto mechanics. Carnevale says this profession now requires a greater need for skilling, or training, in both mechanics and electronics.
“It used to be you flip open the hood on your car and you could get out a wrench and fiddle with this and that, but you can't do that anymore,” Carnevale says. “There really is an increase in skill requirements because of many reasons, but largely it’s tech-based.”
Hatton says “changing careers in a significant way” is particularly challenging for those who lack the time and money to train in a new field while balancing obligations like paying rent or a mortgage. Elder care and child care can also increase the burden.
Retraining challenges are largely due to a lack of social support, and the onus is on the individual to figure it out on their own, says Katie Spiker, managing director of government affairs for the National Skills Coalition, a nonprofit organization that aims to raise skills of American workers across industries.
She and other experts say federal investments and policies are crucial to solving unemployment, which has yet to reach pre-pandemic lows, and get workers reskilled.
“We have a history of seeing really strong outcomes for workers when they can access skills retraining to meet demands in their local area,” Spiker says. She adds that additional support helps, as well, including access to child care and help with basic needs.
Don’t give up hope for a better job, but know that the road ahead is not necessarily easy.
When considering your options, you’ll want to ask yourself whether the job exists in the area where you need to be, want to be or can be, says Pamela Egan, director of the Labor Management-Partnerships Program for the University of California, Berkeley Labor Center.
Start with your state’s workforce development investment board, which provides information about training opportunities, Egan suggests. She says the system has its flaws, but it’s accessible to all since it’s funded with public money. Your state might also have “high-road training partnerships” between high-quality employers in a particular job market and workforce education and training programs, Egan says.
Your ability to successfully enter a new field will depend on what programs of study are available — and whether you can pay for them. Additional options for retraining include:
Employers that provide training. Yvette Lee, an HR knowledge advisor with the Society for Human Resource Management, says employers are using many approaches to train workers to fill spots, including on-the-job training and providing tuition assistance.
Traditional college or graduate school. The College Scorecard, a data tool from the U.S. Department of Education, allows users to evaluate college programs and includes information on graduation rates, costs, debt and student outcomes.
Community college programs.Public two-year schools are typically eligible for student aid and provide career training programs and associate’s degrees. The programs are inexpensive and eligible for federal aid.
Trade schools and short-term certificate programs. Trade schools may be the fastest and most-streamlined option to get reskilled and go from credential to licensing to job. But schools vary in quality and outcomes and can also be pricey or ineligible for financial aid. College Scorecard includes training programs that accept Pell Grants and participate in federal workforce development programs.
This article was written by NerdWallet and was originally published by The Associated Press.