Former lawyer Dan Ladd, now in his encore career as a veterinary technician, had trouble navigating the financial-aid process. Photo by Mike Morelli for CommonWealth.

After practicing law for many years, Dan Ladd, 59, of Lincoln, Massachusetts, craved a career that offered “a little more sense of adventure,” but his journey to his current job as a veterinary technician was bumpier than he’d bargained for.

CommonWealth, a journal published by the nonprofit think tank, MassInc, tells his story in the Fall 2009 issue to illustrate the unexpected pitfalls – and needed support systems – for people making significant career changes in later life. It’s a wake-up call that highlights the flaws in financial aid and workforce development programs that are designed to serve younger workers and penalize older ones.

Ladd, who graduated from Boston University and Suffolk Law School, wasn't clear about the career change he wanted. He'd always found the idea of being a vet interesting, so he volunteered at a local zoo, then later helped at an animal hospital at another zoo. He discovered that veterinary technicians need less training than traditional veterinarians.

He ran into problems when he applied for loans to help finance additional training. The financial-aid process is "really all structured around someone who is in their late teens or early 20s and getting loans based on parental income," he told Alison Lobron of CommonWealth. He wound up stating his own previous income as "family income" on the forms.

Another career switcher, Kerin Mayher, 33, of Medford, Massachusetts, told Lobron that she regretted having gone to law school - and racking up $100,000 in school loans - because working as an attorney was different than she'd expected and didn't pay nearly as much as she'd expected.

Lobron also interviewed Chris Leuchtenburg, of Acton, Massachusetts, who spent 25 years in the computer industry before he was laid off from a dot-com in 2001. His midlife career journey was less difficult, thanks to the advice of a private counselor. By doing extensive networking and expanding his comfort zone, he became interested in Geographic Information Systems and transitioned to a part-time job for the City of Cambridge, where he makes maps to guide river restoration.

According to CommonWealth, midlife career changers would benefit from:

• Different financial aid policies for people with 10 years or more of work experience
• More avenues for people to test-drive different careers before they make a significant investment in education
• Acknowledging that men and women may approach transition differently and require different resources
• Understanding that career change is common

Lobron writes, "We will ask kids what they want to be when they grow up. The question that would better reflect our reality - and the likely future - is, 'What do you want to try first?'"