Impossible with a capital 'i' to advance in the HR profession?

You have the CIPD 7, Associate Membership of the body, an MSc in International HRM, are considering a PhD in HR / Occupational Psychology and have four years experience working as an HR Administrator.

However, despite of all of that, you basically still can’t get above HR Administrator level to the next level or get an HR Advisor’s level role.

Part of the issue is that they don’t take on Trainee / Junior HR Advisor’s (or indeed Trainee / Junior HRBP’s) and you can’t get the necessary experience in an HR Administrator’s role to get the HR Advisor’s job.

You volunteer outside hours as an HR Advisor and as a CIPD Mentor, and attend all the events in your branch, but it still does not count or is officially recognised as a formal paid 9-5 role to make the cut.

It’s also one of those scenarios that it just does not ever happen for / to you how many applications you ever make, so are any of the following viable options to take instead:

(1) Come to terms with it and make a life long career as an HR Administrator instead, or as a Senior HR Administrator, aiming to be the very best that you can be at that;

(2) Pull completely out of the HR profession as a whole and change career sectors, professions and pathways, starting out again  from zero;

(3) Emigrate and see if you can get the role instead in another country in or outside the EU;

(4) Look at going self employed as an HR Consultant on the Peninsula model?

How would you personally deal with it if you faced a total brick wall blockage that despite your very best efforts, you just could not vertically progress, get on or up in the HR profession as a whole past HR Administrator?

Parents
  • There does come a time when it is just going to continue to hurt your head banging against a brick wall. But, I was around 40 when i did my IPD Diploma and I too couldn't get a job in HR despite having lots of training and other relevant experience. I was even told at a recruitment fair that I was too old.
    That was red rag to a bull. So I just kept trying.
    Have you thought of getting employed in a larger company with more HR staff where you can progress internally until you've got the experience you need to move onwards and upwards?
Reply
  • There does come a time when it is just going to continue to hurt your head banging against a brick wall. But, I was around 40 when i did my IPD Diploma and I too couldn't get a job in HR despite having lots of training and other relevant experience. I was even told at a recruitment fair that I was too old.
    That was red rag to a bull. So I just kept trying.
    Have you thought of getting employed in a larger company with more HR staff where you can progress internally until you've got the experience you need to move onwards and upwards?
Children
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