I'm thinking of changing career paths and I wanted to hear your thoughts on the two options I'm currently considering: UX Researcher and Public Policy Analyst.
Disclaimer: I actually don't think I'll be in either area forever, but I think one thing I've learned so far is that I just have to try stuff out, and once I try it out, maybe I'll have come up with more options. I once read a pretty good phrase which goes:
"Go as far as you can see. When you get there, you'll be able to see further."
So that's what I'm doing.
My background is in math but my work experience has been more in data analysis. I'm sick of the numbers and technical stuff and data and having to turn off all my empathy/feelings to get the job done (because you're supposed to only base analysis on the data). It makes me feel like I have to turn off my personality and become a robot. I'm good at what I do but the work never really resonated with me. Here are the two options I'm considering:
Public Policy Analyst: The reason why I thought of Public Policy is because (like many of you) I can often see the pros and cons of any situation. It comes naturally to me to see patterns and connections. I like watching debates on controversial topics because I find that both sides often have valid points. I also like that you would be dealing with a variety of issues, so I get to exercise my far-reaching brain, instead of having to restrict my thoughts to focus on one tiny area/task. I also like using words more than numbers, although I'm not afraid of numbers (because I know this job entails some things like basic statistics). Also, this sounds a bit terrible but...I like the research part of it more than the implementation part of it. It's not that I don't want to help people, it's that I enjoy the debate and intellectual discussion more than (what I believe will be) the frustration of trying to get stuff done when there's so much red tape. I just don't have the persistence. I'm more of the "sudden bursts of energy/obsession/deep discussion" kind of person, not the "go to the ends of the Earth to maybe get a single policy put in place" kind of person.
UX Researcher: I think I see this one mentioned in this sub more than I see it in other subs when looking at career-related posts. I'll be honest, I don't think I'm in love with this career path, BUT I have also never tried it so it could just be that I can't imagine a job where empathy is an asset (compared to the current "forget your feelings and only look at the data!"). I also hope that pursuing this path will then let me "see further" and discover more things that will help me ultimately find the career that I want. Or maybe I'm still trying to cling to what's "safe" rather than what resonates with me. Who knows. Two positive things about this career path are that:
It seems to be a lucrative field because you can work for tech companies. Money isn't the most important thing in life to me, but the area I'm currently working in isn't paying quite enough for me to worry about finances. I'm hoping that I'll actually want to work my way up the ladder if I like the field (right now I'm in a field where you can definitely climb the ladder, but since I don't enjoy it I don't have the motivation to climb it), and I think the UX Research field has those opportunities for someone to move up and make more money if they want to. I'm also realistic in that I know I need enough money to pursue all my other hobbies in order to have a balanced life.
I might have an easier time switching over to it since I have work experience in data analysis specifically related to "making things better" (sure, I'd like to get away from the "data" part, but I'm hoping the "analysis" experience that I have will showcase that I can actually think and interpret things.)
What are your thoughts?