Career Change: Dare to make a change!

In a constantly changing world of work, professional retraining is becoming an essential way to reinvent one's career.

Whether you want to explore forgotten passions, acquire new skills, or adapt to market demands, this approach can open unexpected doors and be a real source of fulfillment.

However, embarking on a career change can feel like taking a leap into the unknown, giving rise to legitimate concerns: fear of failure, managing work-life balance, acquiring new skills, financial difficulties, etc.

As part of National Career Change Day on November 14, 2024, we would like to share three testimonials from trainees Continuing Education in Career Change atthe University of Montpellier.

The goal? To introduce you to profiles driven by different objectives and career plans. They all had doubts and apprehensions, but managed to overcome them and turn them into motivational drivers.

Summary

1. Emmanuelle: From midwife to occupational risk prevention advisor
2. Charles: From optician to rugby video analyst
3. Virginie: From schoolteacher to ecologist

The testimony of Emmanuelle Delrue, 35 years old

In 2022, after working as a midwife for 10 years in hospitals and maternal and child health centers, she decided, following an injury that left her unable to work, to embark on a career change by enrolling in the Master's program in Risk and Environment at ESEQ (School of Safety, Environment, and Quality) in Montpellier.

Educational background

After obtaining her bachelor's degree, Emmanuelle began studying medicine. She quickly realized that she didn't enjoy it and was more attracted to prevention, so she gradually turned to midwifery, which she practiced for 10 years.

Emergence of new desires

Little by little, I realized that as a healthcare professional, we have little time to devote to prevention, even though that is my main area of interest. Even when I was in midwifery school, I felt that I hadn't really found my calling and that I certainly wouldn't be doing this job for the rest of my life.

I gradually became interested in everything related to quality, safety of care, and the impact of worker health on the quality and safety of care.

The trigger

In 2022, following an injury that left her unable to work, Emmanuelle attended the Open House at ESEQ (Ecole Sécurité Environnement Qualité) in Montpellier to learn more about their degrees and talk with Claire Chaffard, the director of studies.

As a result, Emmanuelle found a work-study program at SNCF and joined the 2022 class of the Master's in Risk and Environment in Continuing Education at ESEQ (School of Safety, Environment and Quality) in Montpellier.

Work-study programs, an "absolute necessity"

"Without the work-study program, I wouldn't have been able to complete the training; it was an absolute necessity for me. When I started at ESEQ (School of Safety, Environment, and Quality) in September 2022, I was five months pregnant with my little boy and already had a little girl. It's particularly difficult to think that you are putting your family situation in a state of instability in order to pursue your professional career."

The emergence of a new professional project

"During my master's degree, I wanted to give myself complete freedom to discover all the different facets of the profession so that I could gradually build my career plan. However, it was a deliberate choice to change sectors and not go into healthcare because I wanted to open myself up to something else, and in practical terms, the rail industry helped to open up new horizons.

Nevertheless, the healthcare field remained very important to me. Gradually, my career plan took shape around quality and occupational health and safety rather than the environment, which ultimately seemed very technical to me.

Career change as a revelation

"This career change was a challenge. It was both stressful and energizing. I felt that I was aligned with what I was doing, so it was a great source of motivation, but there were inevitably some apprehensions.

You don't approach your first studies and a career change in the same way. When you go back to school, you have other issues to deal with, particularly financial ones, and it's true that I put a kind of pressure on myself in that regard, but at the same time, this experience was a kind of revelation for me.

Professional integration after retraining

After two years of study, Emmanuelle obtained her Master's degree in June 2024.

"I am currently an occupational risk prevention advisor in Nîmes. I plan to move closer to Montpellier next January to take up a position in quality prevention, the two areas that interest me most. 

In my day-to-day professional practice, I feel comfortable and I feel that there are many things from my previous professional life that have helped me in this position.

I feel that it's much easier and that you're much more quickly operational when you come out of a retraining program. People have a lot of apprehensions about this. I had a bit of imposter syndrome, wondering if I would measure up to those who have been in the field for a long time and have studied it extensively. Ultimately, I realize that it offers new perspectives, a different view of issues, and therefore a wider range of solutions."

Emmanuelle's advice

"If you feel the need to change careers, I advise you to talk to people who have already done so, if possible in the field you are interested in, contact continuing education institutions, and discuss your plans with those around you to help them mature, evolve, and become your own."

The last word

"I would like to thank the ESEQ (School of Safety, Environment, and Quality) team, my work-study mentor, and my family: the three pillars that enabled me to complete this project."

An optician turned rugby video analyst

The testimony of Charles Heiderscheid, 37 years old

After completing a BTS Optician degree in Lyon through a work-study program, Charles practiced for two years in France and eight years in Canada. Upon his return from Canada in the summer of 2020, he decided to resume his studies and change careers.

The trigger

"At that point, I didn't really want to work in optics in France. I wanted to work in the environmental field, and while doing some research from Canada, I came across a work-study bachelor's degree in QSE (Quality, Safety, Environment) at ESEQ in Montpellier."

For me, going back to school was a necessary step in order to change careers, beyond just being a challenge. In France, having degrees is important for finding work, unlike in Canada.

Alternation as a criterion

"Finding a work-study program when you're over 30 is complicated. That aspect was mentally difficult, but I was prepared for it.

I discussed it with the other adults in continuing education in my class, and we all felt this difficulty related to our age, but going back to school without the possibility of doing a work-study program would have been financially impossible for me.

The reappearance of a forgotten passion: rugby

"After three years in QSE, I started looking for work, mainly in the environmental sector, but all the job offers were in Paris.

I had just completed a work-study program working entirely remotely for a Paris-based company, and during that program, I realized that working remotely was very complicated. Since I was unable to relocate due to my family situation, I continued my search for several months...

In mid-May, Charles came across an advertisement that caught his attention.

"In Canada, I was an amateur rugby coach, and by pure chance, I came across an advertisement at MHR (Montpellier Hérault Rugby) for a one-year contract."

Charles then enrolled in the University Diploma (DU) in Sports Performance Video Analysis , specializing in rugby, at the UFR Staps in Montpellier, alongside his contract with the Montpellier rugby club: MHR (Montpellier Hérault Rugby).

Training as a means of building a professional network

"The University Diploma in Video Analysis taught me how to master the software used by professionals in the world of rugby.

During this training program, we had numerous presentations from professionals in basketball, soccer, rugby, and other sports. This university diploma program allows you to build your professional network and meet people you would probably never have had the opportunity to meet otherwise.

I met the video analysts for the French rugby sevens team, the video analyst for UBB (Union Bordeaux Bègles), and the video analyst for Montpellier football club. That's really the advantage of this kind of training: being able to develop your network.

Building a new freelance project

After getting his university diploma in Sports Performance Video Analysis, Charles decided to work freelance in rugby video analysis.

"At that point, my contract with MHR (Montpellier Hérault Rugby) was coming to an end and I couldn't move, so I had three options: go back to working in optics, look for a job in the environment sector, or start my own business in video analysis.

I decided to start my own business and devote myself 100% to this project. The idea was to seek out amateur clubs that needed qualified people to process and analyze video footage. I didn't want to be tied to a single club, but rather to work with several clubs on specific assignments, depending on their requests and needs.

The last word

"Returning to school means expanding your network and discovering a different way of thinking compared to your previous job... It's beneficial."

I'm glad I went back to school because I learned a lot. Even though I loved my job as an optician, I learned a new trade, a new way of working.

From schoolteacher to ecologist

Virginie Zajdel's testimony

Always passionate about the environment and environmental education, Virginie enrolled in the IEGB (Ecological Engineering and Biodiversity Management) Master's program at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Montpellier in 2022, as part of a professional training leave, while continuing to work as a school teacher.

An interest in the environment since childhood

"I have been a naturalist since early childhood. I have always been connected to the aquatic environment and, from a very young age, I have had an affinity for observing animals, caterpillars, cocoons, butterflies..."

A scientific academic background

"I studied science and have a high school diploma with a focus on math. After that, I wanted to become a nature guide, so I studied for a DEUST (Diplôme d’Études Universitaires Scientifiques et Techniques) in Multilingual Nature Guiding and did an internship at the Marquenterre Park with an ornithologist as part of my training. This internship opened my eyes to ornithology."

After completing her DEUST (Diplôme d’Études Universitaires Scientifiques et Techniques, or University Diploma in Science and Technology), Virginie became a guide in a regional nature park in Les Landes de Gascogne. This internship allowed her to perfect her botanical knowledge.

After this initial experience, Virginie continued her studies with a Master's degree in Planning and Environment in Metz, which she was forced to abandon for financial reasons. She then worked at a CPIE (Permanent Center for Environmental Education), where she learned to manage field trips and nature guides, and created numerous projects on ponds, rivers, and forests for all ages in elementary schools.

Shift towards teaching

After this experience, Virginie, who was potentially interested in pursuing a career in teaching, enrolled in a dual degree program in History, Law, and Modern Literature, which she combined with a degree in Modern Literature, followed by a Master's degree in Modern Literature, which she obtained with honors. At the same time, she worked as a student librarian at the university.

During her Master's degree, she took and passed exams to become a school teacher for students in cycle 3 (CM1, CM2). This gave her the opportunity to pass on her passion to her students:

"I developed numerous projects, strangely all related to the environment and environmental education. It was truly a passion of mine, with a cross-disciplinary approach that I really enjoyed, combining mathematics, science, and literature: we created gardens in schools, then, little by little, I did a bit of entomology with them: breeding stick insects, rose chafer beetles, earthworms..."

The birth of two new passions: diving and marine biology

At the same time, Virginie began scuba diving during school vacations.

"Little by little, I was able to learn technical diving with associations, and at the same time, I started studying marine biology."

Setting off on new adventures abroad

Always eager to learn and discover new things, Virginie enrolled in a new program and earned a Master's degree in French as a Foreign Language.

"At that point, I thought to myself: if I teach abroad, I'll be able to dive abroad. I worked at the university, taught French as a foreign language at the French Embassy in Qatar, and then taught at the Alliance Française in Hong Kong."

Return to France

Following a job offer at the University of Science in Lille, Virginie returned to France and juggled two jobs: school teacher on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, and university lecturer on Wednesdays and Fridays.

"It suited me quite well. It was interesting to be able to talk to students and work with children to teach them about the environment. The transition between the two was sometimes complicated, as I had to adapt my vocabulary."

After moving to Montpellier in the south of France, Virginie continued her work in marine biology and became a marine biology instructor with the FFESM (French Federation of Underwater Studies and Sports).

Obtaining professional training leave as a trigger

Wanting to work in science and environmental protection, she managed to obtain 10 months of professional training leave.

"I wanted to continue the science studies I had started, because I could see that as a teacher, I was always drawn to science, so I might as well see it through to the end."

This is how Virginie Zajdel joined the IEGB (Ecological Engineering and Biodiversity Management) Master's program in 2022, with a dual specialization in "Biodiv'In" as part of the Continuing Education program at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Montpellier.

"It was a moment of great joy. I was set to complete a five-year degree in one year with this master's program, and at the same time, I learned that I was going to have a baby boy. With the birth of my little boy in January, I had to split my year into two parts. I spent the^first trimester pregnant and had to take the January and February exams the following year."

As part of this training program, Virginie Zajdel will join the teams at the OFB (French Office for Biodiversity) for a six-month internship focusing on invasive alien marine species.

A unique experience

"I really enjoy learning, so I was delighted to return to university. What's more, the students were all very welcoming, and we formed a great team. What was a little unusual was that I was pregnant at the time, which was something I had never experienced before."

Virginie will officially graduate with a Master's degree in IEGB (Ecological Engineering and Biodiversity Management) on November 30. With her 10-month professional training leave now over, she is currently continuing her work as a school teacher.

The birth of a new project

As part of the 2024 edition of the Fête de la Science (Science Festival) on the theme of "Water in all its forms," Virginie Zajdel has designed a photo exhibition on marine biology in collaboration with the University Libraries of the University of Montpellier: "Beneath the surface: explore the depths of the Mediterranean."

In response to strong student interest in this project, Virginie is now heavily involved in developing practical workshops on marine biology alongside her work as a schoolteacher. 

The Virginia Council

"I think that when you start this kind of process, you need to have time to really invest in your retraining, a clear goal, and a well-defined career plan.
Going back to school is very important. I even think that if I could continue, I would."

Career change is much more than just a change of career; it is an enriching journey that can profoundly transform your life. Although it is fraught with doubts and challenges, career change offers the opportunity to redefine your path and explore new horizons.

Become a continuing education intern at the University of Montpellier and dare to reinvent your professional career.

Whatever your project, we are here to support you.

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