How do you break into a specialized industry with no experience?
Switching to a specialized field like auditing or motorsports requires finding an entry point or apprenticeship, but it is difficult to know how to take that first step. Without guidance, people trying to make the jump struggle to connect with mentors who can provide insight and help them land a position.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Looking for mentorship or firms willing to hire and train individuals making the jump into specialized sectors.
- 2Attending a university for a mechanical engineering degree
- 3Considering for-profit or public trade schools like UTI or LATTC
- 4Reaching out to personal contacts or team owners for apprentice positions
- 5Accepting a corporate accounting role for higher compensation and broader industry exposure despite career trajectory concerns.
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I like fund accounting quite a bit, but got pip'd recently.”source ↗
“In particular, I am worried about not being able to return to fund accounting if I realize corporate accounting is not for me.”source ↗
“The negative is I may not be able to return to fund accounting. I also worry it might make my prior experience kind of useless.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 6Can I get an accounting job with an unrelated degree?
- 3How to become an emergency electrician or locksmith with no experience
- 3Accounts receivable vs bank teller for a finance degree?
- 4Is it too late to shift from NetSuite to Oracle Fusion or DevOps?
- 10How to handle HR and finance without any specialist support
- 13Switching from audit to tax in accounting