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Old 03-05-2014, 03:41 PM
 
874 posts, read 1,643,359 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigCityDreamer View Post
I find it rather strange that a person can go to school for 12 years, having the guidance of their teachers, counselors and parents during that whole time, and yet cannot decide on a career path by the time they reach college age.

What in the world is going on here?
Maybe they do well in every subject, yet can't find which one to choose to study further.

It's one of the biggest decisions a person will make, so I understand if a person is contemplating what to do, whether go to college or find a job.
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Old 03-05-2014, 04:26 PM
 
Location: Maryland's 6th District.
8,358 posts, read 25,171,479 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigCityDreamer View Post
I find it rather strange that a person can go to school for 12 years, having the guidance of their teachers, counselors and parents during that whole time, and yet cannot decide on a career path by the time they reach college age.

What in the world is going on here?
My plan was the Military ever since the 9th grade, but even with that I wasn't sure about "career". I didn't go to college until I was 23, and am glad. It gave me time to "find myself" and figure out what I wanted.
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Old 03-05-2014, 04:40 PM
 
Location: State of Transition
102,086 posts, read 107,127,293 times
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What is your friend good at? In HS, did she do well in her foreign language class? Biology/science? English/writing? (People say journalism is a dying profession, but journalists say it's only going through changes, and journalists are still needed.) History/Geography? Which classes did she like best? Reflecting on that can help point her in the right direction.

--The US gov't needs language experts, especially in certain languages.
--Some university Geography departments offer a degree in Economic Development, that can be used to work for non-profits or gov't foreign aid agencies doing development projects abroad

She could consider teaching as a career, once she finds a field she likes.
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Old 03-06-2014, 06:41 AM
 
Location: New York
606 posts, read 1,076,320 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth View Post
What is your friend good at? In HS, did she do well in her foreign language class? Biology/science? English/writing? (People say journalism is a dying profession, but journalists say it's only going through changes, and journalists are still needed.) History/Geography? Which classes did she like best? Reflecting on that can help point her in the right direction.

--The US gov't needs language experts, especially in certain languages.
--Some university Geography departments offer a degree in Economic Development, that can be used to work for non-profits or gov't foreign aid agencies doing development projects abroad

She could consider teaching as a career, once she finds a field she likes.
She did well in all of them; she's actually a straight A student. She did exceptionally well in the Humanities, which worries her because she thinks if she gets a degree in a Humanity (English, History, Communications, etc.), that she will not be employable and will just come out of college with a "useless" degree.

Quote:
Originally Posted by schmidty223 View Post
Maybe they do well in every subject, yet can't find which one to choose to study further.

It's one of the biggest decisions a person will make, so I understand if a person is contemplating what to do, whether go to college or find a job.
That's it. She can't find a practical one to study further.
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Old 03-06-2014, 12:36 PM
 
Location: East Coast of the United States
27,329 posts, read 28,403,686 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by schmidty223 View Post
Maybe they do well in every subject, yet can't find which one to choose to study further.
If a student is a genius in everything, then that makes the decision all the more simple.

Narrow down the career paths to doctor, engineer (rocket scientist) or possibly investment banker.
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Old 03-06-2014, 12:58 PM
 
Location: The New England part of Ohio
23,899 posts, read 32,210,946 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by musicislife.glee View Post
I have a friend who is going through this crisis.

She is about to graduate high school, and has absolutely know idea what to do with her life. She doesn't have anything she's really passionate about and wants to study, and she doesn't want to spend time in college if she doesn't have a focus.

I don't want to tell her to go or not to go, because I know that college can help you find interests, but I know that she does not want to get a "useless" degree in English or Liberal Arts though that is what she is interested in. She is worried about the economy, and how difficult it is to find jobs even for college grads. She doesn't want to come out with debt if she can't get a job to pay it off. I guess she's really questioning the worth of college, and I can't say that I blame her considering how many new grads are without jobs and in debt.

Should a person go to college if they don't know what they want to do, or does not have a clear career path for themselves?


1. Today everyone needs college. Think of it as a high school diploma in your parents generation.

2. Many people enter college as "undecided" or "undeclared" and find out soon where there passion lies.

3. Your daughter is not unusual. How many 16-18 year olds know what they want to do for the rest of their lives?

4. English and Liberal arts give your daughter a great deal of latitude when she is looking for a job, where as a career oriented program boxes one into a field that they may later regret.

5. Most people today graduate from college with some debt.

College is expected today. For most civil service jobs that pay around $25 -$30, a BA in anything is required to even sit for the test.
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Old 03-06-2014, 01:38 PM
 
Location: State of Transition
102,086 posts, read 107,127,293 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by musicislife.glee View Post
She did well in all of them; she's actually a straight A student. She did exceptionally well in the Humanities, which worries her because she thinks if she gets a degree in a Humanity (English, History, Communications, etc.), that she will not be employable and will just come out of college with a "useless" degree.

That's it. She can't find a practical one to study further.
Sheena's right; a BA is a minimum for decent employment. In a down economy like the current one, a BA often is required even for unskilled workers, like coffee barristas. It's an employer's market, and they can afford to be choosy.

I listed and explained a couple of options in my earlier post. I'm told there's still a need for Communications majors (editors, journalists, TV news writers & anchors, foreign correspondents). There's also Teaching English as a Foreign Language/Second Language, if she'd be interested in teaching in public schools or in schools overseas. With an MA in that field, she'd be qualified to teach in foreign universities.

When she takes her general education requirements the first 2 years of college, she'll have exposure to many more disciplines than are available in highschool. She may find something she really likes. She might try a law class. She should try as wide a variety of topics as possible, try new things. She'll find something; most people do.

Last edited by Ruth4Truth; 03-06-2014 at 02:04 PM..
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Old 03-06-2014, 01:59 PM
 
6,129 posts, read 6,781,255 times
Reputation: 10821
Quote:
Originally Posted by sheena12 View Post
1. Today everyone needs college. Think of it as a high school diploma in your parents generation.

College is expected today. For most civil service jobs that pay around $25 -$30, a BA in anything is required to even sit for the test.

This. She should go, because odds are she'll be MUCH worse off without a degree. Tell her to choose the best college she can get into without racking up tons of debt. Then once she gets there, she should start exploring her options inmmediately. If they have a career office go and see a counselor pronto. Sign up for a variety of calsses and see what she likes. Joins clubs that sounds interesting. Get to work.

As an aside, communications is actually a pretty employable degree with a lot of potential career paths if she's worried about that sort of thing.
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Old 03-06-2014, 03:32 PM
 
20,793 posts, read 61,127,944 times
Reputation: 10691
Quote:
Originally Posted by musicislife.glee View Post
She did well in all of them; she's actually a straight A student. She did exceptionally well in the Humanities, which worries her because she thinks if she gets a degree in a Humanity (English, History, Communications, etc.), that she will not be employable and will just come out of college with a "useless" degree.



That's it. She can't find a practical one to study further.
She should go to college given this information. She doesn't NEED to know today what she wants to do. Don't let the doom and gloomers get you down about Humanities degrees. They are very useful and there are jobs out there in those fields. IT's all what she ends up doing in college that will matter.
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Old 03-06-2014, 05:50 PM
 
Location: Queens, New York
18 posts, read 59,174 times
Reputation: 35
Quote:
Originally Posted by BigCityDreamer View Post
I find it rather strange that a person can go to school for 12 years, having the guidance of their teachers, counselors and parents during that whole time, and yet cannot decide on a career path by the time they reach college age.

What in the world is going on here?
No, most people do have career path ideas, it's just that we're afraid to commit to them due to public disapproval, or failing if it's something shared by others. If people have interests that aren't in the high-paying bracket, or are extremely niche, or particularly competitive, those people are condemned and forced to do something else by their peers/ parents/ teachers etc.

It becomes an inner dilemma, of passion vs. reason. And it sucks if your interests are NOT in engineering or the like. (I envy those lucky, lucky people ... my interest in novel writing will almost never bring $50,000 a year ...) Only those with goals of med school/ law school/ engineering school/ business school seem to get support in this world.

Of course, a degree is better than just a high school diploma. It becomes a question, then, if it is something to approve of, college graduates doing menial work. I do believe that, unfortunately, too many people go to college to "get ahead." The surplus of graduates means highly education beings need to settle for low-payed work/ work that undermines their intelligence.

My older brother has a BA in psychology and currently works as a post office worker. He has union privileges and benefits, and apparently is subject to yearly raises. But then he has to work on national holidays and occasionally needs to work 12-hour shifts. Also I hear the neighborhoods he works in are dangerous, and he is asked to go solo. I ask him if he's happy that he went to college to do something irrelevant; he says the pay is good. He also says grad school isn't worth it because he makes more money now than if he spent tuition on more school to MAYBE become a psychologist. Make of that what you will.

I was pressured to enter engineering even though the subject looked droll. (Hint: I was right.) Now my GPA is in the tank. It'll go up in the next 3.5 (or more...) years. Maybe. If there is a switch of majors involved. Unless someone can convince me engineering is fun or creative, I am not getting that engineering degree.

Animation aficionado, amateur artist, and whimsical writer, represent.
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