Too late to make in in Nashville

January 16, 2023 3:49 PM

I'm 43 and (re)starting my career after a decade as a stay-at-home parent. Located in the Bay Area.

Due to divorce, I need to become financially independent in the mid-term. I have a doctorate degree in Philosophy from a German university and a couple years experience as a copy editor, translator and proofreader -- most of my work was focused on popular non-fiction with a German publisher. I'm fluent in German and English and also did some translation work. I've never applied for a job in the U.S.

I would prefer part time/ home office for now to have flexibility for childcare, but looking to transition to full time in a couple years. I will be able to move to a more affordable area in a couple of years so a job/skill that isn't location dependent would be a plus.

Not opposed to retraining or investing in a certification, but of course at this point, while I don't need to jump on the first best gig, I can't afford a lengthy exploration phase.

I'm good with language. Numbers, not so much. I'm good at research, reading, deep thinking. I have no problem with self-directed work. I'm a conscientious, productive worker but struggle with office politics. Somewhat of a loner, although I do genuinely enjoy helping people. No need to make lots of money, but I'll have to eventually pay my bills.

Would love to hear your advice, even if you work in a completely unrelated field. I am seeing a career counselor to help me reorient but every outside perspective is valuable to me at this point.

posted by The Toad to Work & Money (8 answers total)

I don’t know about the possibility of being able to do this job from home but I’d look into jobs in the fundraising, development and advancement area. Any nonprofit or education institution has fundraisers so it’s not location dependent. You don’t need retraining. I think a range of personality types can be successful in fundraising though you definitely need to be a good listener. Having good research and writing skills will definitely help.
posted by kat518 at 4:35 PM on January 16, 2023

Where I work, we have technical and marketing editors with backgrounds like yours (often a humanities grad degree, plus a work history with job titles like copy editor). It's a lot of copy editing and proofreading, sometimes helping put together text, and a lot of document formatting in Word and PDF. It's certainly compatible with remote and flex work. (A business that operated both in the US and Germany would look very favorably on your translation history, too, but that might be a harder situation to find.)

More generally, for recent hires where I have seen their resumes, quite a few have had gaps or non-linear progressions in their work histories, and in this hiring environment (where qualified candidates are scarce) that hasn't appeared to be a barrier.
posted by Dip Flash at 4:47 PM on January 16, 2023

At work, I use a company based in San Francisco (although I think their translators all work from home) for translation (including into German) of instructional materials for medical devices. That stuff is a lot more demanding than typical translation work, since it's more technical and jargon-filled, and seems like it would match with your skill set. Everything sold into the EU with a CE mark needs to be translated into the various languages where the product is sold, so there's a lot of that kind of work. If you're interested n doing translation, then you might want to focus on places that do more technical stuff.
posted by jonathanhughes at 4:47 PM on January 16, 2023

I work in the video game industry and localization companies are always looking for translators to work from home. I would imagine that if you started there, a move into localization project or product management when you feel ready would be very possible.
posted by pazazygeek at 5:41 PM on January 16, 2023

As someone who has been immersed in US and German culture throughout my life both professionally and personally, I can say that the German connection is a real plus in the US -- especially in a place like the Bay Area. And a PhD in Philosophy from a German university, too, extra wow!! Americans, especially those with STEM connections, have a great respect and affinity for the German language, culture, and people. While I can't give you any specific suggestions, unfortunately, I can say that this aspect will definitely be a huge benefit in your job search. I don't know what your immigration status is but I'd guess green card and/or US citizenship, both which makes things easier for employers and should be made clear too. Also, while it's not a full-time gig, you could easily charge $100 or more per hour for tutoring; with your doctorate, I would not accept any less.
posted by smorgasbord at 6:04 PM on January 16, 2023

I always plug the insurance industry, but insurance has a lot of reasonably remunerative jobs with few credentialing requirements. You could probably find a job as a underwriting assistant or claims adjuster that would let you work part time from home.
posted by kevinbelt at 6:05 PM on January 16, 2023

Look at every single tech/medtech company you can get your hands on -- in the Bay Area, that's dozens and dozens of companies, and they all need one of two things: translators, or people that can oversee their subcontracted translation companies (that latter one is the better move; most contract out translation, but many still want someone in-house to keep an eye on everything. The ones that don't, well, give it enough time and suddenly they'll also realize they need someone to keep an eye on things).

Also, don't be shy. If you don't meet a listed requirement for some reason, you can work around that. Go for it anyway.

"Why? Because I'm fucking amazing, that's why!" should be your mindset (I mention this because, um, tbf, post-divorce stay-at-home parents VERY frequently undersell themselves).

I am aware of a compensation consultancy (yes, that's a thing that exists) which specializes in helping "academics" and under-represented groups get high-paying positions in tech. If you get offered positions in tech, and feel like optimizing your pay, send me a note and I'll give you their info (I don't want to just spam the data because I haven't used them myself, but I have acquaintances who did use them).
posted by aramaic at 6:20 PM on January 16, 2023

A good friend of mine does freelance translation services (mostly for nonprofit organizations that can't afford to hire in-house translators). She got started through one of the companies on this list that has an entirely remote workforce, with compensation made by word count and some other features like technical complexity of jargon. I lived in the Bay until a couple years ago and I think German translation/interpreting is a skill that is potentially quite valuable if you're comfortable with it in the context of finance, tech, engineering, etc. (even wine, which—think about it—a lot of the engineering and machinery for the Napa/SOnoma megaindustries comes from German manufacturers). Your career counselor should be able to help you find recruiters who are knowledgable about these opportunities.
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 1:40 AM on January 17, 2023