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General => The Common Room => Topic started by: Tom Langley on Saturday 06 August 16 12:33 BST (UK)
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I am currently a dairy farmer and have decided this is not the career for me. I have been a keen researcher of my family history for nearly 10 years now, and its suddenly dawned on me that ive remained passionate about the subject the whole time (unlike farming), and that perhaps this could be the career for me.
I planned my life out to be a farmer, so all my qualifications have built up to that. I have read in many places that it is not a necessity to have qualifications to be a genealogist but it does help.
Id rather not go back to school, but dont know if its realistic to think of a career in genealogy with out a degree relating to the topic.
Im hoping someone on here may have been through a similar issue, or may be able to offer me some advice?
Hope someone can help me here!!
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One way to get into it would be volunteering. This could be at a museum, library, archives, historic building or landmark, to name but a few.
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Hi
Yes Geneology is fascinating. I agree that offering to do this as a volunteer may lead to a paid offer in this work. You are in the right place at the right time to get an offer.
All the best in your new career.
I've got a degree, not in geneology but I doubt you need a degree to do this.
janjones
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This site from The Society of Genealogists is worth looking at http://www.sog.org.uk/learn/education-sub-page-for-testing-navigation/guide-eleven/
This part is worth considering as well "there are still relatively few people making a full time living solely as genealogists tracing the family history of other people for a fee. "
I think the problem that you may face is that there are a lot of people in your situation who have developed a love of genealogy and want to do it professionally, so there could be a lot of competition for jobs. I would think that you would need to prove that you have a wide experience of using lots of different resources. You say that you have been a researcher of your family tree for years, have you also done trees for friends or acquaintances? That is much harder in a way as you start with no background knowledge. If not, that could be an opening, offering for a small fee to do trees for others, so building up more skills.
Good luck with whatever you decide to do.
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Not quite the same but have you considered working for a probate research company (eg. Fraser & Fraser)?
Good luck!
Nanny Jan
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Not quite the same but have you considered working for a probate research company (eg. Fraser & Fraser)?
Good luck!
Nanny Jan
Fraser & Fraser only take on graduates!
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Thanks, was only using the name as an example.......... "other companies are available".
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Yes I think volunteering is a good idea!
I have done family trees for other people with yes. I had been thinking I would set up a business looking into people's families for them, but after reading up on it, it seems to be frowned upon my SOG etc.
I know I quite capable of doing it and would never take on a task I was unsure of.
Probate research would be good too I think. I quite like heir hunters on BBC 1.
Thanks for the tips!
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Tom ... You might want to look at this from the other way round ... why have professional researchers stopped being professional researchers ?
I spent about 10 years doing this work. I offered research in a single English county and got to know the RO very well. I advertised and a steady stream of work came in but whilst there was a profit to be made, it rarely amounted to much.
Apart from overheads like advertising, materials, photography permits and travel, time is the biggest problem. No doubt you enjoy ferreting out all sorts of info for yourself, but consider the time it takes you, and then consider the time it would take you to write it all up in a professional report, and then consider the time it would take to draw up a tree whether by hand or by computer.
It might be worth going through an exercise like that; work out a quote for it first, then do the work and see how accurate your quote was ... and then consider whether a client would pay that amount for your work.
The hardest thing I found was charging a client for three hours work with no results whatsoever.
I stopped working for none of the reasons above. I stopped because I found that more and more folk were doing there own research online (consider the 23,000 & 11,000 learners for the two FutureLearn Genealogy courses). I eventually worked out that I was being asked to do all the 'brick wall' work, and that meant a lot of disappointed clients, no follow-up work and no word-of-mouth work.
Please don't think I'm just a grumpy old man ... try it for yourself, enjoy it, but don't expect it to pay the household bills. ;D
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No thank you for your honesty! Helps to know every side!
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I wouldn't want to put anyone off from a career change but it's difficult to see how you can make a living at it straight from the off.
10 years makes you a relative newcomer I'm afraid & you're going to need a lot of additional training in various aspects of research & social/political/ecclesiastical history.
I suspect most of your research has been done online & you haven't travelled to too many archives around the UK which is what a professional has to do.
One of their core skills is knowing where to look & what to look for based on decades of experience.
Starting small & running it alongside a full time job that pays the rent would be my advice.
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I stopped because I found that more and more folk were doing there own research online (consider the 23,000 & 11,000 learners for the two FutureLearn Genealogy courses). I eventually worked out that I was being asked to do all the 'brick wall' work, and that meant a lot of disappointed clients, no follow-up work and no word-of-mouth work.
I was just thinking about it from that aspect as well, Sugarbakers. There are so many resources on line today and courses for those who are interested in starting. Also, I would think that majority of people who want their tree done, prefer to do it themselves, as it is far more interesting that way, rather than having everything handed to you on a plate. So as you say, they only ask for professional help once they get back into parish records or even beyond that. That is then getting into specialist areas.
Have you considered doing an online course to get qualifications if you are really serious about changing careers? That way you could continue with your present job while you explore possibilities.
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Well I'm leaving my job in October! Original plan was to look for work relating to my experience and qualifications, so more in the sales and marketing side of agriculture. Genealogy was going to be a side project just to bring a bit of extra money in. It was only today I considered going purely for a genealogy related job.
I'm considering toping up my foundation degree in agriculture to a full degree. This is only 9months and does make me more desirable to employers. This would leave me with a year to fill, which is where the genealogy was going to come in, as well as trying to get more experience and go on some courses.
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That sounds a better idea, Tom. A degree, no matter what in, shows that you are serious about studying. It would then leave your options open, either doing genealogy as a side line, or if it really took off, doing it as a career. As others have said, you wouldn't make much money, at least at first, so it would be good to have something to fall back on.
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Tom
Another option to consider is to offer training in looking up what is now available online. Many people do not have the computer skills, logical thinking, information on names - places and people etc and need guidance rather than their tree completed for them.
Many libraries offer access to resources but not guidance in how best to research.
Best of everything in your new pursuits
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Another option to consider is to offer training in looking up what is now available online. Many people do not have the computer skills, logical thinking, information on names - places and people etc and need guidance rather than their tree completed for them.
My instinct is similar to Sugarbakers'. I certainly don't think there is a goldmine awaiting, but there may be a line in offering training in the basics, especially in sorting grain from chaff. You don't say whether you have easy access to a record office, which could add travel expense to your plans. Maybe you could join a going concern, and then turn freelance if things look promising.
But then there are several people on here offering advice and help for free .... :(
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I like that idea myluck thanks!
I'm actually in a good place. 30minutes from Chester and Wrexham records offices, 45 from Shropshire and Manchester and Liverpool are about 1hour away
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Hi Tom
If you're thinking about probate genealogy, you need to look at the area you live in and then look for solicitors in your area who specialise in probate work. See if any of them need people in their wills and probate department. Do any of them need someone to get their certs for example?
If you haven't got easy access to any of the 7 sites who host the complete GRO indexes for recent events, then you may find that this line of work isn't a cost effective option for you.
Do your homework online and see what other companies in your area are offering in the way of family history research and what they charge. See if you can come up with a price list for yourself and see if you can compete with their offerings.
You need to make sure you can offer a package that includes printed reports and family trees. Will your home printer cope? have you got easy access to decent paper stock and presentation folders? or can you find a supplier to print family trees
Maybe offer to do a 'getting started in genealogy' talk at your local library and see if you get any feedback from that.
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Great advice thank you! My printer is rather dodgy to be honest. Good start :D
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I've wondered for a while about making a career out of genealogy, so it's very interesting to read everyone's comments.
I think the problem is that researching your family is a) easier now more records are online, and b) fun. It takes a long time to research someone's family thoroughly, and to make enough money from this, you'll have to find people who are willing to pay that much, rather than research themselves.
Researching whole families may be a dead-end, but if you become a specialist in a niche area, records which aren't available online, you might find people willing to pay for your research.
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I have had similar thoughts ;D
So, I have my name down with the Isle of Man Museum Library as a researcher.
I have been listed for nearly 18 months.
Total leads/enquiries so far - nil! :(
Some 2 years ago, I needed a Professional researcher - Guinness World Records insist on a qualified professional - and their costs were £22 per hour.
And that's even though I had done all the work myself!
(It was for an entry in "Most consecutive generations of twins", for which my family are now joint holders)
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You may want to take a look at joining AGRA, as an associate to start with (http://www.agra.org.uk/join) - that will give you some idea of what is involved, and put you in touch with like minded people. You are in a part of the country that doesn't have too many qualified researchers, so that will help.
There are very few researchers out there who make a living solely from genealogical research, although there are a few. In those cases they tend to be quite specialist and also tend to write/teach/lecture quite a bit. Most people offering research services come to it as a second career after retirement or redundancy, and have another source of income, or a very supportive partner.
You will need to be very comfortable researching with original documents in your local archives, not just on-line sources, which also means having some knowledge of paleography.
There are a lot of researchers who start out, having done their own trees and a few for friends, and think that translates into a business model - most don't last very long - it is a very different way of working.
The SoG run some courses aimed at aspiring professionals - there is one on the 22nd October
http://www.sog.org.uk/books-courses/events-courses/careers-in-genealogy-the-road-to-agra-running-a-genealogical-practi-3
There is also a good introductory course offered by Pharos -
http://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=941
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I live in Australia and have used researchers on and off over the last 8 years. I have generally used them to search at records offices for various documents or particular information as I am not able to go there myself and conduct searches. If say for example I require information from a Sussex records office I do a general internet search for researchers in that area and read their profile and background in genealogy. I make enquiries and ask about charges and go from there. Most have been fantastic and charges are not over the top. There are a couple that I keep going back to and they fit my work in the next time they are visiting the relevant records office. Coming up with a website, showcasing what you have done might be a good start and then building on this to do paid work for others.
Regards Kaybron
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The SoG run some courses aimed at aspiring professionals - there is one on the 22nd October
I'm not quite sure what defines a 'professional' genealogist - other than someone who aims to make a living at it. I can't help feeling that one may be a bit like a 'professional' economist. Those all seem to have divergent opinions (I have two in the family). The difference may be that many seem to do all right at it - smoke and mirrors perhaps.
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Adding 2 hours travelling time for work at an RO would bump up the bill drastically, but you would need to charge for 2 hours out of your working day. :o
Some years ago I answered an advert from an agency to undertake sporadic work at the RO in walking distance from my home. I did get a few commissions while I lived there, but that certainly would not have paid the rent.
But, I imagine as a sideline, it would definitely be worth advertising your services for research at your nearest RO, (for starters,) to see how that works out. Good luck. :)
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I have had similar thoughts ;D
So, I have my name down with the Isle of Man Museum Library as a researcher.
I have been listed for nearly 18 months.
Total leads/enquiries so far - nil! :( [/i]
KGarrad: If you are offering, I have made repeated enquiries to Isle of Man regarding information about internees during WWll.
Never had a reply to any overtures.
:'(
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Have you thought about branching out to more historical career paths as opposed to just genealogical? For example working in an archive, being a museum curator, writing local history books etc. I'm not sure what level of qualification you need to get into these areas but if you are going back to university can you take up a historical subject? I all depends whether your foundation degree will only gain you entrance to a full degree in a related subject field.
Offering look ups at specific archives as opposed to researching other people's trees would be more likely to generate custom I would have thought.
As an aside, I once thought of seriously quitting teaching to become a genealogist but realised it would never pay the bills or be a fulltime job however changing schools has given me a whole new lease of life for my career.
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I have had similar thoughts ;D
So, I have my name down with the Isle of Man Museum Library as a researcher.
I have been listed for nearly 18 months.
Total leads/enquiries so far - nil! :( [/i]
KGarrad: If you are offering, I have made repeated enquiries to Isle of Man regarding information about internees during WWll.
Never had a reply to any overtures.
:'(
For anyone else with a similar request - all Internee records are held at TNA; no records are held on the Isle of Man ::)
(I did PM the details)