IT burnout, Physical Therapy possibility?

So as most of us know IT security has a high burnout rate in the government. Well I have reached that burn out threshold and am considering training for another career. I was talking with a friend who is on track to becoming a physical therapist and was wondering what you guys thought of such a transition. I have a BS and 2 AS's and I am 30 years old with 12 years military/10 years federal service. I would need to accomplish about a year of prerequisites and in order to become a PT I would need a master’s degree.

I love to work with people, remain fit and active, work in an active environment, be a subject matter expert and help people in need. Do you think this type of career choice would be a wise decision?

Any advice or comments are welcome!

BTW there is no prereq undergrad for any PT program. Just a bachelors.

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Comments

Phileeeeeeep651

I researched this idea before I got out of the service but decided to go a different route for now. If you do it make sure to check the prereqs for each school that you are applying to, I noticed that while most were the same there were a few that required different classes.

Nemowolf

Start your own business and be your own boss?

[Deleted User]

I almost reached this point in my life as well (burnout is not fun trust me!) Did you reach burnout because of setting high goals for yourself and not meeting your expectations or was this self-enduced(family, friends, social life etc.) Maybe you could consider helping out students in an academic setting? Making an entire career change from IT to physical therapy is like saying I'm a farmer but I'm going to be a lawyer (it may be weird but just hear me out). I would (if I were you) make such a drastic change. Maybe you could find something in the middle (still IT related but not in security or as such a high stress as working for the gov't). Maybe consulting is more up your alley?

DonDeal

5502george wrote: »

So as most of us know IT security has a high burnout rate in the government. Well I have reached that burn out threshold and am considering training for another career. I was talking with a friend who is on track to becoming a physical therapist and was wondering what you guys thought of such a transition. I have a BS and 2 AS's and I am 30 years old with 12 years military/10 years federal service. I would need to accomplish about a year of prerequisites and in order to become a PT I would need a master’s degree.

I love to work with people, remain fit and active, work in an active environment, be a subject matter expert and help people in need. Do you think this type of career choice would be a wise decision?

Any advice or comments are welcome!

BTW there is no prereq undergrad for any PT program. Just a bachelors.

Have you considered changing organizations or changing to a different IT role?

Starting your own business can create burnout, as well. It's not for everyone and it's not simple.

Most IT teaching positions require a Masters, and that's for the community college level.

Danielm7

PT is a great field if is something you are into, my wife was looking into it, from what I understand the current requirements are an MS into a Doctorate program. From what I understand you only needed a BS or an MS in the past, so the people who are PTs now are grandfathered in, but the new people need to go to the doctorate level. A lot of prereqs, could be hard to get accepted (think nursing school but harder in some areas) and the programs can be very expensive. I seem to remember talk of about 80-100K for school being thrown around. There is a PA Assistant program, I believe it's 2 years, still high'ish requirements to get in if you don't have any background in that area and the pay is roughly half of what a full PT makes.

If you think working for the government is stressful, working for yourself would likely be a lot worse.

Drethyl

George,

As don suggested have you tried applying outside of government organisations?

Gorby

Not to hijack your thread, but I've been hearing a lot about burn on in IT Security for the federal government. Could you tell me what about your job that's causing burn out?

I was looking towards moving in that direction and would like to know what to expect. .

Cisc0kidd

PT and OT are incredible fields. My wife works as a registered OT therapist and I am amazed at the opportunities in the field. As others have stated the competition and obstacles are pretty stiff. Not a choice to make lightly.

5ekurity

My wife is a DPT, so I can give you a good breakdown as to what you can expect.

First, there is a lot of competition with a heavy focus on your science classes and overall GPA from undergrad. Next, you'll likely have to prep / take the GRE and score around 1000, on the low end. Classes were good but very challenging; you will know the mechanics of the human body better than anyone outside of a surgeon (part of my wife's curriculum was dissecting a cadaver so you can see all the organs / connective tissue / etc - it's the best way to see exactly how everything fits together). Expect to go into the doctoral program, so roughly 3 years of schooling, including clinicals.

Entry level PT's will make between 60-80K / year depending upon location in the U.S., and the type of work they do (Women's Health is the top paying because so few people want to do it, followed by skilled nursing facilities, then outpatient / acute).

If you have other questions feel free to message me.

srj

I'm coming from the reverse direction. I was working in a rehabilitation hospital for roughly a year and a half. I was attempting to strengthen my application to a DPT program. A few things to think about:

- Can burnout just as easily in that sort of a profession (depending on your personality)
- Pay generally probably won't be as high as IT
- DPT is the standard these days. There are few Master's degree programs left.
- You have to consider cost of school (unless it would be covered) as well as opportunity cost. My opportunity cost would have been upwards of $250k due to lost salary and cost of school.
- You will likely end up working with geriatric patients (not always, but this is the largest demand)

I'd suggest that you do a lot of shadowing of different types of settings (especially inpatient and SNF). Most people only think about outpatient therapy.