Career Change: What does it really cost?

Our “What does it really cost” series sheds light on how much different people across the country spend on the big life events: having a baby, taking a sabbatical year, moving, getting a master’s degree, buying a house, etc. This week’s feature is highlighting the true costs for switching careers.

Location: Los Angeles, CA

Age: 31

What was your total cost for your career change?

I decided to quit my job with nothing lined up because I wanted to do a major career pivot. Not only was I unhappy at my previous job , but I didn’t feel like I had the bandwidth or mental energy to do both at the same time. I was unemployed/without a paycheck for 13 weeks, and had to use my emergency fund to cover my bills.

It cost me just under $9,000. I used my entire emergency savings account to fund this decision and career change. About $3,500 of that went to getting my credit card balances down to $0 going into unemployment (not ideal), and the remaining $5,500 covered my portion of the bills (I’m married and own a home). My bills included mortgage, car insurance, car payment, cell phone, utilities, groceries, therapy (I was going weekly and cut back to about every 3 weeks while unemployed), and my LA Fitness gym membership (relatively cheap at $45 a month).

Final Costs: About $9,000.

Was this more or less than you were expecting?

I was really impressed with my timing! I accepted a job offer with a company and position I was extremely happy with and excited about right as I ran out of money. My husband was willing to cover my bills if it went longer, and I expected worst case scenario that it would take me 6 months to get a new job.

I was able to negotiate a signing bonus for $6,850, replacing 82% of what I spent while unemployed. The salary is a 32% increase to what I was previously making with a much better growth path and overall career trajectory. My goal for 2022 was to get my savings up to $13,500 (before I decided to quit and take a leap of faith), and I’m disappointed I won’t hit that. I’m projecting I can get to $10,500 by upping my savings now that I’m employed again, which I think is pretty good given I’m starting at $0.

Free Woman Sitting in Front of Macbook Stock Photo

Were there other options that you considered? What are the pros and cons of this compared to other options?

I considered continuing to work while job searching, but did this for awhile but it just didn’t work for me. I couldn’t focus and needed more time to be able to network and take LinkedIn learning courses. Also considered staying in my current career path for a few more years until I started my own business.

What do you wish you would have known?

Not entirely related, but this whole switching careers thing made me relook at my retirement savings. I realize I’m not where I want to be and should be saving more. I’m getting my contributions back on track now, but I can’t get back lost time. I should’ve been doing annual evaluations, despite feeling unhappy and somewhat hopeless in my career. This might have contributed to not having motivation to assess my retirement position/stay on track.

In conclusion, this woman’s total cost for her career change about $9K.

We hope this gives you insights into how someone else navigated the costs of switching careers. Do these costs surprise you?

This post was created as part of the “What does it really cost series?” Her Personal Finance’s mission is to help high-earning women take charge of their finances. As an MBA, our founder has a particular passion for supporting this community. Here is a link to a Q&A with Harvard Business School students about finances in school. You can also learn more about our founder and our classes on our website.

Did you enjoy this post and want to contribute your own story? Send us an email to eryn@herpersonalfinance.com.

Career Change: What does it really cost?

Career Change: What does it really cost?

What was your total cost for your career change?

Was this more or less than you were expecting?

Were there other options that you considered? What are the pros and cons of this compared to other options?

What do you wish you would have known?

In conclusion, this woman’s total cost for her career change about $9K.

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