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Changing jobs when residency starts

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  • #1

    Changing jobs when residency starts

    I'm curious how many of you changed (or are planning to change) jobs/careers when you spouse started (or starts) residency.

    My current job, while interesting enough, is really not what I want to do with the rest of my life. It's just paying the bills (barely!) while DH gets through med school. I've often dreamed of trying to become a full-time photographer (which right now I just do on the side) or maybe going back to school, but there's no way I would take that leap right now when I'm our only source of income. So -- did any of you take a big leap once your spouse finally started bringing in some moolah?? What did you leap into? And was it as fabulous as you thought it was going to be?
    Wife of a surgical fellow; Mom to a busy toddler girl and 5 furballs (2 cats, 3 dogs)
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  • #2
    I've changed jobs because we've moved with every change. I've kept the same career path- Social Services.

    No job is ever as great as I want it to be. I should be paid to do nothing. That would work really well.

    Jenn

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    • #3
      ahhhh, paid to do nothing -- now THERE'S my dream job!

      I guess I should have said "careers" instead of "jobs"... I suppose if you have to move, you more than likely have to change jobs, huh?! *doh!* blonde moment
      Wife of a surgical fellow; Mom to a busy toddler girl and 5 furballs (2 cats, 3 dogs)

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      • #4
        I changed careers while DH was in medical school so that I could back to school at night to get my MBA. I would have loved to try something new and fun when we moved for residency but we wanted to save as much money as possible in the first few years of residency so that I could stay home when we had kids. If I found a career I LOVED I would go back to work but right now I'm happy being a mom.
        Wife to NSG out of training, mom to 2, 10 & 8, and a beagle with wings.

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        • #5
          I changed jobs with each move but not career (higher ed admin) I suppose. I do not know about others but I felt like we had more money while he was a student (we had scholarships & housing was less) than when he was a resident.
          Finally - we are finished with training! Hello real world!!

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          • #6
            I went from being the breadwinner during med school to "making more as an admin asst than my husband as an intern" to "I don't care how poor we are, I can't work and raise three children" and so in a matter of months I went from breadwinner to SAHM. I did work part time for a time but that didn't work either. Now, I'm homeschooling our daughters for a year. Unless I get a part time retail job, my only jobs will be volunteer (Member Chair for Collin County Ballet Theatre is the most time consuming).
            Veronica
            Mother of two ballerinas and one wild boy

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            • #7
              I became a SAHM after residency started!! After supporting DH through med school. And it is absolutely as fabulous as I dreamed.

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              • #8
                Originally posted by niener View Post
                I'm curious how many of you changed (or are planning to change) jobs/careers when you spouse started (or starts) residency. . . . So -- did any of you take a big leap once your spouse finally started bringing in some moolah??
                Wait...that's really funny...did I change jobs when my DH started residency...when he finally started bringing in some moolah...

                ahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !

                Yep, I changed jobs. Not because he suddenly started making $45K a year. I changed jobs because I had to quit my old job when we moved across the country to a job where he was making only $45K year.
                Last edited by GrayMatterWife; 09-03-2009, 10:32 PM.

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                • #9
                  Question...What is this "Moolah" of which you speak?

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                  • #10
                    oh, I forgot that part.

                    There is no moolah. I HAVE to work because we have two houses, two cars, one kid, and we're still paying down debt. If the DC house had sold, life would be better but now even with renters we lose money every month.

                    He added four more years to the time owed to the Army so that he could get more bonus money now. That bonus this year is going to rebuild the falling off front porch and to knock down some piddling loans.

                    If I didn't work, we wouldn't eat.

                    jenn

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                    • #11
                      Originally posted by DCJenn View Post
                      If I didn't work, we wouldn't eat.
                      I an SOOO looking forward to the day that I work because I want to work (don't get me wrong I love my job) but I am terrified of the fact that I will HAVE to work full time for the next nine years. I guess I would just like the option of staying home maybe part time once we have kids...
                      Loving wife of neurosurgeon

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by MarissaNicole3 View Post
                        I an SOOO looking forward to the day that I work because I want to work (don't get me wrong I love my job) but I am terrified of the fact that I will HAVE to work full time for the next nine years. I guess I would just like the option of staying home maybe part time once we have kids...
                        It can be done - there are many on this board that have made sacrifices in order to make it possible. I worked for the first 3 1/2 years of residency and now stay home and that was a huge cut for us when we did b/c I was definitely making more then him. I would offer this one piece of advice if you think you might do this, live at the resident rate from the beginning and use the extra money to make house improvements, take trips, etc. That way when you do drop to one salary its not a huge shock.
                        Wife to NSG out of training, mom to 2, 10 & 8, and a beagle with wings.

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                        • #13
                          Originally posted by SuzySunshine View Post
                          It can be done - there are many on this board that have made sacrifices in order to make it possible. I worked for the first 3 1/2 years of residency and now stay home and that was a huge cut for us when we did b/c I was definitely making more then him. I would offer this one piece of advice if you think you might do this, live at the resident rate from the beginning and use the extra money to make house improvements, take trips, etc. That way when you do drop to one salary its not a huge shock.
                          I agree. A lot will depend on cost of living where you land and how much you're willing to do without, but a lot of people do find this possible. Building a savings cushion now while you're working full time will definitely be to your advantage.
                          Married to a hematopathologist seven years out of training.
                          Raising three girls, 11, 9, and 2.

                          “That was the thing about the world: it wasn't that things were harder than you thought they were going to be, it was that they were hard in ways that you didn't expect.”
                          ― Lev Grossman, The Magician King

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by Auspicious View Post
                            I agree. A lot will depend on cost of living where you land and how much you're willing to do without, but a lot of people do find this possible. Building a savings cushion now while you're working full time will definitely be to your advantage.
                            This is true - I guess I am hoping for the best and planning for the worst... depending on where we are matched we may be fine financially; but there are some locations that I cannot imagine raising kids living only on a resident's salary.

                            Right now we are saving a tiny tiny bit to try and put a down payment on a house... so it might come down to choosing between leaving my options open and becoming a home owners.
                            Loving wife of neurosurgeon

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                            • #15
                              Oh definitely, it can be done- even in expensive areas like DC- we downgraded to one car and at that point only owned one home. What killed us was when the asshat backed out of the contract to buy the DC house less than 24 hours before settlement.

                              Now though, there's no bon-bon eating as attendings, that's for sure.

                              Jenn

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