P/T work or benefits

PlymouthMaid

I agree with the above advice - it sounds as if you are trying to break into a very specialised field where the chances of actually getting a degree related job is very slim.

I appreciate that you probably do not have much time and that not everybody feels they can be a teacher but, if he was willing, you could probably help your husband improve his reading abilities enormously and then perhaps even help him understand Maths concepts more clearly as I presume if you have been accepted onto a degree, that your own maths isn't to shabby. It would be good for both your futures as it sounds as if your husband is going to have to move away from manual work.

shegirl

I think you have very unrealistic expectations and seem to think it's simple and straightforward.

Most History graduates have to follow up with post graduate study to get a relevant job. You say you can do retrieval with a BA,but not only have you limited already limited options there, but you would still probably find yourself up against people with more experience,easier going life and travel requirements and likely some post grad too.

Anyway,if you were working your husband wouldn't get income support. You would financially be better off and you could study at the same time.You also wouldn't waste time on an access course and, instead, your husband could do something to make himself more employable. As for studying while he claims income support,it would just have to be JSA or ESA instead.

Cate1976 wrote: »

Thanks for all the comments. I'm not prepared to put on a public forum the name of the town I live in, if anyone guesses from the info in this post, i'm ok to disclose via pm.

He can't learn to drive as his back gives him sudden pains which go down his legs and cause him to collapse. He shouldn't really be going back to work but wants to at least try it.

The problem with OU is that even if my husband is carer for our daughter who's 5 (6 in December) & claims Income Support top up, there's a limit on how many hours a week I can study & OU module at 20 hours a week is over the 15/16 I'm allowed to do even though I'm the partner of the claimant. carer's Allowance which i'm currently getting, the limit is 21 hours a week including both class time & private study.

Also, the uni I want to go to has modules which'll give me experience in the area I want to get into. There are roles within them that I can get into with BA Hons. The areas I'm most interested in are social history based especially Historical research, working in Public Records Office or similar, the eventual goal is archivist, or I'm also very interested in the archeological/landscape area. I was at cadbury Research Library last month looking at some things and asked the lady who I was giving the requests for stuff to about qualifications & she said that to do the retrieval I can do that with BA Hons. The plan is to get my degree, if they're still available when I'm in the relevant years, here's the details of the modules I'd do to gain work experience:

HERITAGE AND PUBLIC HISTORY

Public history is history in the public sphere, whether in museums and galleries, heritage sites and historic houses, radio and television broadcasting, film, popular history books, or public policy within government. The central challenge and task of public history is making history relevant and accessible to its audience of people outside academia, whilst adhering to an academically credible historical method. This module explores the theory and practice of public history in the heritage sector. The module considers questions such as, how is the past used? What is authenticity? Who 'owns' historic sites? The module also offers the opportunity for undergraduates to work on a heritage project with a local heritage partner - the nature of this project varies each year depending on the availability of such partnership opportunities. PLEASE NOTE: The availability of places with partners this year means that the module will be limited to twelve undergraduate places. All students on the module will be required to engage in preparatory reading and writing over the course of the summer break.

FIELDWORK IN LANDSCAPE HISTORY

The field course builds on the landscape archaeology units to provide forty hours of practical instruction in the field. The field course runs for one week in June, concentrating on the recording and analysis of archaeological earthworks, buildings and historic landscapes. Assessment will take the form of a short report and an extended project.

WORKING IN THE HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT

This module will provide students with the opportunity to undertake a work placement with an employer working in the historic environment sector. A number of placements based on specific projects will be arranged with host organisations, and students will choose their placement from these options. Every student will be expected to attend an informal interview with their host organisation prior to starting their placement. Alternatively, a student may arrange their own work placement but this must be approved in advance by the module organisers. Past placements have been hosted by the National Trust, Norfolk Historic Environment Service, Suffolk County Council and the Peak District National Park Authority. Placements must be undertaken between June and December, and will be followed up by a series of practical seminars in the spring semester. Please note that enrolment on this module will only be confirmed after a short interview with the module organisers.

re my interview skills, I'll be getting help I need via the Asperger's organisation in my county & also the uni will be able to help as well.

For where I could actually work after graduating, where I live I've got the city 25 miles east from where I live, there's a very big town 22ish miles North West of where I live. The absolut furthest if the job was well eneough paid is Peterborough or possibly Cambridge but it'd depend on what times I'd be starting work. There's a town 17/18 miles south of where I live which has people living in it who commute to London by train each day but that would be too far for me.
For applying for jobs now, the furthest I'd consider mainly due to transport costs would be either the city or the town North west from us.

As to how to deal with the short term, the suggestion of my husband being our daughter's carer, claiming Income Support top up and me looking for at least part time work is something we'll talk about if he finds that his back isn't up for him working. The adjustments work have made are that he doesn't have to move furmiture but still has to fill the machine he uses for scrubbing floors, the tank holds 15 litres and a litre of water weighs 1kg, works physio has advised he doesn't lift anything heavier than 7-10kgs. If he lifts our 22 month old who weighs 12kg, he knows about it afterwards.

I'll ask at my interview for Access course about careers advice.

re my husband doing further study, he already has Entry 1 in English which is equivalent to Grade E GCSE. He wanted to do the next one up which is equivalent to grade C but was told his reading isnb't good enough and Adult Education can't give him 1-1 to help him. he applied to do the Entry Maths that's equivalent to GCSE grade C at the college in the city but when they assessed him, they said his reading wasn't good enough and they couldn't provide 1-1 either.

We're not scroungers so if it's come across that we are, then I apologise. The main reason for me going to uni is to gain the qualification which'll get me into the career that not only is what I'm passionate about but also matches the things I'm good at.

beecher2

I think you should access career advice before applying . This is the Scottish Careers link to the post of archivist
http://www.myworldofwork.co.uk/node/20076
Have a look at the website links, for example http://www.archives.org.uk/careers.html for information on jobs.

As you can see, you require a post grad qualification - it is a must. I have a degree in Economic and Social History and PG Diploma in Information and Library Studies and could not work in records retrieval - trust me, I've always looked at any jobs which come up. In addition, they're few and far between.

Have a look at this job
http://jobs.irms.org.uk/jobseeker/job/24361126/

You must have an honours degree and a post-graduate qualification in archive administration, records management or equivalent.

Experience:-
1. Working in records management;
2. Working as part of a team;
3. Providing a service to customers;
4. Supervising staff;
5. Working with and implementing business classification schemes and record retention schedules

The person you spoke to at the Cadbury Research Library was most likely not a qualified or chartered librarian, so wouldn't necessarily know a great deal about qualifications, especially at PG level.

It is a shame we're all being so negative but far better you know beforehand I think.

xylophone

Help your husband with reading - has he actually mastered the basics? Try "Step by Step" by Mona McNee - your children will benefit too?

There are some excellent and inexpensive books available to help with maths http://www.schofieldandsims.co.uk/key-stage-2/

You can help your husband and also play maths games with the children?