Could use some ideas/help! (bachelors, skills, masters degree, psychology)

[drumchick34]

Hey everyone! I feel like I am kind of at a dead end in life right now and I was hoping that people who might have been in the same situation could help me out. I apologize in advance for how long this is!

I am 24 years old with a bachelors degree in child psychology and I work full time at an autism center as a behavior therapist. I chose this undergraduate degree after a degree in communications disorders didn't work out for me. This was the only other major I felt I could do at the time. In my senior year I stumbled upon a masters degree program in Applied Behavior Analysis which really interested me. I had previous experience working with children who had autism/developmental disabilities so I thought this would be a good path for me. I got into the grad school program after applying to it and I currently have put 1.5 years into it.

Lately my interest in this whole field has waned. Due to this I am taking a break from the masters degree program for the upcoming semester (and most likely not going back to it at all). I am a very quiet person who does not really like being around a lot of people as it is very taxing for me. I have started to realize that even though I find the study of ABA and working with special needs children slightly interesting, I could live without it and probably be a lot happier too. It is to the point where I am getting desperate to find another job in a different area.

The whole process of doing school work is what I really like and not specifically the topics of the courses I have taken. I love to read, research, organize things, work on projects, type papers, take data and work with Excel. I would really to get on another career path but the problem is that I own a little foreclosure and need to be working full time to keep up with the bills that I have. I would have to take classes one at a time so any degree would take me a long time.

Does anyone have any ideas for me? I am feeling really down on myself these days.

Thanks for reading this!

[joe from dayton]

You don't put 1.5 years into a master's program and the drop out. Take a semester off, recharge your batteries, then go back and finish. That is my advice.

[ebbe]

I would also recommend you take a semester off and go back and finish your degree. Have you thought about perhaps getting into an administrative type of position in your field, perhaps less hands on and more office/administrative would appeal to you. You might just need to change your place of employment to have a new outlook. A lot of people get a bid bored with their chosen careers along the way. See how you can parlay your skills and interests into other types of employment. Good luck.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by ebbe

I would also recommend you take a semester off and go back and finish your degree. Have you thought about perhaps getting into an administrative type of position in your field, perhaps less hands on and more office/administrative would appeal to you. You might just need to change your place of employment to have a new outlook. A lot of people get a bid bored with their chosen careers along the way. See how you can parlay your skills and interests into other types of employment. Good luck.

I agree and would also suggest after finishing your program considering not-for-profits that are related to autism, child development or related fields. You might enjoy the administrative aspect, particularly the on-going grant-writing process which you might find challenging and rewarding.