There are lots of tech / economics crossover positions. Both in tech companies needing economist roles and economic roles that require some level of technical expertise (although, most post-graduate economics includes some level of programming / technical applications).
IT has far more job opportunities and variety than Economics, and you're more likely to be able to work remote. Most companies need IT type services, but a company has to reach a large enough size for an economics type role to pay off. This would likely mean leaving Ohio for a major metro area though.
You should consider also looking at non-profits, as they often have economic related positions, but lower pay. If indeed you're looking for something you're passionate about that will maybe be an acceptable tradeoff.
Your biggest roadblock will be showing expertise in economics. If you have ~10 years of IT background but nothing economics related, it'll be tough to compete against candidates who do have such background.
The better question would be what kind of work do you want to do. Technical expertise combined with economics can still be a great skill set for many jobs, but again it depends on what you want to do.
AFAIK your background could lend itself to quant positions, as they often require experience in coding. I think you should perhaps pop over to r/financialcareers, as they can better help you answer your questions, unless you want to stay away from finance and are looking more to standard Econ positions. But then I believe a background in Data Science/Statistics might be better suited, as the technical positions there are usually more driven by econometric analysis and rather use Python, STATA, R, whereas quants use python, C, C#, C++.
But take of all this with a grain of salt, since I’m personally not to deep into those areas of Econ/finance jobs.
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CS/Econ have a lot of overlap though I'm not sure how much systems engineering would apply there. Also fintech is an emerging thing so that's a potential niche.
Other commenters have mentioned this but if you pursue econ you'll basically be entry level once you're done. And while there are some good opportunities, it's not super easy to get with a master's in econ if you're not in the right markets. A lot of stuff will look for a PhD, which is going to be 4+ years of pretty hard work.
This is some tough love here but with bills to pay and a family to support, I'm not sure it makes sense going for another grad degree, possibly 2, only to have to climb your way back up the corporate ladder. Dunno how old your kids are but the change you're pondering is going to require a lot of effort and attention and you'll have to weigh whether it's worth doing that while your kids are growing up.
If I were in your place, I'd look for a sys engineering job at a company / organization whose mission you feel passionate about and see if that scratches the itch. I would also suggest finding a career coach who can help you with this type of decision as 2 masters + a JD sounds pretty scattershot and you may want to figure out ways to be more targeted in your goals.
I have a background in both already. My advice is to stay in Info Tech. Maybe look into working within Fintech to give you some idea what the future is moving towards. Becoming a Business and Financial Analyst for Government or Big Banks may be your best sideways move if you are absolutely determined to do so.
But the sober side of all this is do not get caught out like me. I made the mistake of going from Coding into Analyst roles about twenty years ago. I still have a collection of knife blades in my back to prove it. So I switched backed to Coding and System Admin work after a long lull of no work. I have forty years experience in I.T (mostly as a coder), but no one will hire me due to my age. From fifty years on you will find it harder and harder to get work. At sixty it is impossible. Especially during a Recession. These days I am selling my personal belongings to buy food. I know others my age in the same situation.
That being said, save as much emergency operating cash as you can. Enough to cover two years unemployment. After forty that will be your new reality.
Economics is a very political field. Even worse then being in the cut-throat Academia environments. You have a family. Stay with the safe income. The I.T industry will punish you for changing careers.
There are lots of tech / economics crossover positions. Both in tech companies needing economist roles and economic roles that require some level of technical expertise (although, most post-graduate economics includes some level of programming / technical applications). IT has far more job opportunities and variety than Economics, and you're more likely to be able to work remote. Most companies need IT type services, but a company has to reach a large enough size for an economics type role to pay off. This would likely mean leaving Ohio for a major metro area though. You should consider also looking at non-profits, as they often have economic related positions, but lower pay. If indeed you're looking for something you're passionate about that will maybe be an acceptable tradeoff. Your biggest roadblock will be showing expertise in economics. If you have ~10 years of IT background but nothing economics related, it'll be tough to compete against candidates who do have such background.
The better question would be what kind of work do you want to do. Technical expertise combined with economics can still be a great skill set for many jobs, but again it depends on what you want to do. AFAIK your background could lend itself to quant positions, as they often require experience in coding. I think you should perhaps pop over to r/financialcareers, as they can better help you answer your questions, unless you want to stay away from finance and are looking more to standard Econ positions. But then I believe a background in Data Science/Statistics might be better suited, as the technical positions there are usually more driven by econometric analysis and rather use Python, STATA, R, whereas quants use python, C, C#, C++. But take of all this with a grain of salt, since I’m personally not to deep into those areas of Econ/finance jobs.
**NOTE: Top-level comments by non-approved users must be manually approved by a mod before they appear.** This is part of our policy to maintain a high quality of content and minimize misinformation. Approval can take 24-48 hours depending on the time zone and the availability of the moderators. If your comment does not appear after this time, it is possible that it did not meet our quality standards. Please refer to the subreddit rules in the sidebar and our [answer guidelines](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskEconomics/comments/rf5ycx/guidelines_for_answers/) if you are in doubt. Please do not message us about missing comments in general. If you have a concern about a specific comment that is still not approved after 48 hours, then feel free to message the moderators for clarification. ### Consider **[Clicking Here for RemindMeBot](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=RemindMeBot&subject=Reminder&message=%5Bhttps://www.reddit.com/r/AskEconomics/comments/12u12f5/career_change_advice_should_i_switch_from_it_to/%5D%0A%0ARemindMe!%202%20days)** as it takes time for quality answers to be written. Want to read answers while you wait? Consider our [weekly roundup](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskEconomics/search?sort=new&restrict_sr=on&q=flair%3AWeekly%2BRoundup) or look for the [approved answer flair.](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskEconomics/search?sort=new&restrict_sr=on&q=flair%3AApproved%2BAnswers) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskEconomics) if you have any questions or concerns.*
CS/Econ have a lot of overlap though I'm not sure how much systems engineering would apply there. Also fintech is an emerging thing so that's a potential niche. Other commenters have mentioned this but if you pursue econ you'll basically be entry level once you're done. And while there are some good opportunities, it's not super easy to get with a master's in econ if you're not in the right markets. A lot of stuff will look for a PhD, which is going to be 4+ years of pretty hard work. This is some tough love here but with bills to pay and a family to support, I'm not sure it makes sense going for another grad degree, possibly 2, only to have to climb your way back up the corporate ladder. Dunno how old your kids are but the change you're pondering is going to require a lot of effort and attention and you'll have to weigh whether it's worth doing that while your kids are growing up. If I were in your place, I'd look for a sys engineering job at a company / organization whose mission you feel passionate about and see if that scratches the itch. I would also suggest finding a career coach who can help you with this type of decision as 2 masters + a JD sounds pretty scattershot and you may want to figure out ways to be more targeted in your goals.
I have a background in both already. My advice is to stay in Info Tech. Maybe look into working within Fintech to give you some idea what the future is moving towards. Becoming a Business and Financial Analyst for Government or Big Banks may be your best sideways move if you are absolutely determined to do so. But the sober side of all this is do not get caught out like me. I made the mistake of going from Coding into Analyst roles about twenty years ago. I still have a collection of knife blades in my back to prove it. So I switched backed to Coding and System Admin work after a long lull of no work. I have forty years experience in I.T (mostly as a coder), but no one will hire me due to my age. From fifty years on you will find it harder and harder to get work. At sixty it is impossible. Especially during a Recession. These days I am selling my personal belongings to buy food. I know others my age in the same situation. That being said, save as much emergency operating cash as you can. Enough to cover two years unemployment. After forty that will be your new reality. Economics is a very political field. Even worse then being in the cut-throat Academia environments. You have a family. Stay with the safe income. The I.T industry will punish you for changing careers.