How did you pick your major/career?

Drewcifer · Post by **Drewcifer** » 2003-08-21 05:59am

Longstoryshort, I've kind of started my life over from scratch this year. This time around, I'd like to focus on a career, which most likely will include going back to school. So, I was curious: how did you pick your career, major at school/uni, or line-of-work?

And if you're well into your career, are you satisfied and/or happy with that choice? Any regrets, advice, etc.?

Post by **haas mark** » 2003-08-21 06:01am

Well, I was starting out with a Comp Sci major when I first started in school, but decided that I didn't want to do the classes. So I rebounded back to what I've wanted to do since 5th garde - be a music teacher. When I re-enroll in the spring, I'm going to change my major to Music Ed because that is something that I have wanted to do for nine years now. And if that falls through, I'll probably do psychiatry.

~ver

InnerBrat · Post by **InnerBrat** » 2003-08-21 06:28am

I blame Arthur Conan Doyle. Him and ladybird books.

Bloody The Lost World. My life has been fixed ever since.

No regrets with my chosen path. the temp jobs on the way have been little fun, but I'm happy with my long term goals.

Alex Moon · Post by **Alex Moon** » 2003-08-21 06:36am

I loved arguing politics with my mom. One day, she got fed up and said, "You can no longer debate economics with me until you take a class in it." I took the class during my freshman year and loved it.

Post by **The Yosemite Bear** » 2003-08-21 07:44am

Funny I intially went into journelism, computer science and law.

But dropped out because I had a stress related mental breakdown.

You ever hear the old advice never quit your day job

Well I was working as a busser and assisting bartenders/short order cooks to pay my way through college. It all sorta went from there.

Darth Fanboy · Post by **Darth Fanboy** » 2003-08-21 08:17am

because I was working at an aquarium one day, feeding our octopus some small little feeder crabs and I enjoyed it very much so. Late ron I was feeding our sharks and it was also entertaining.

I aspire one day to work with large captive sharks. nothing much larger than a sand tiger can be kept as of right now, one day I hope to change that. So if you hear about the worlds first captive great white eating one of its keepers, chances are its me digesting in its intestinal tract!

Id also like to work with octopus enrichment, those are smart bastards.

Post by **weemadando** » 2003-08-21 09:04am

Well...

I was originally going to do Maritime Engineering/Naval Architecture, but realised that living at home for another 5 years wasn't really my scene.

So I moved to Hobart and started an Arts/Science double degree, majoring in History, Ancient Civs, Geology and Computer Science.

Found that Geology was hella boring as a subject and that the Compski faculty had fucked me over in terms of pre-reqs and courses.

So I dropped the Science part of it and picked up Political Science and English under Arts.

After more fucking about with faculties, I ended up having to do a VERY partial load for another semester so restructured the past year and half to pick up a third major: Political Science.

Now I'm looking for work as a Policy Analyst/Consultant or something PR related.

Post by **Ghost Rider** » 2003-08-21 09:16am

Mostly because I like science....then againwhat I now do, has only one relation to what I majored in, and that's numbers.

At least Chemistry makes sense...Taxes do not.

zombie84 · Post by **zombie84** » 2003-08-21 09:21am

I've always wanted to go into the film business since i was 5 years old. I was a very creative artist as a kid, and considered animation or comic art--i loved the fact that i would be creating my own stories and worlds while using my ability to draw. Ultimately that is what directing is, but the notion of directing people instead of drawings didnt seem realistic at the time.

Chardok · Post by **Chardok** » 2003-08-21 10:26am

BAH! I got divocred, came to florida with nothing, bitch of a wife got everything. and cruised on my MP credentials to get a security guard job, got a post at a mortgage company, got a bug up my ass one day and applied for a job here. I got it, tripled my income. (By all rights i shouldn't be here, you have to have a 2 yr degree to get hired, and I'm a HS grad w/military out of HS.....not very flowery, but I'm well versed in the ways of the school of hard knocks.

To coin a phrase: "Barky is a cartoon, I'm a grown man whos mad a loooot of bad choices."

But, here I am, and I'm happier now than ever. I'm so happy, in fact, that I gained 30 pounds, bought a set of miracle blade 3's (THEY ROCK!!!) and am seriously debating getting a vietnamese pot bellied pig, just to pull the ambiance of my apartment together! HAPPYHAPPYHAPPY

SERENITY NOW!!!! SERENITY NOW!!!!!SERENITYNOWSERENITYNOWSERENITYNOW!!!!!

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2003-08-21 11:18am

How did you pick your major/career?

To answer the question, poorly / my dad hooked me up.

I have a History degree with a minor in the Humanities. I chose history because it was something I liked while I was in JC and I wanted something that I liked because I do so much better in school and life if it's something I'm enthused about. That choice worked well for my grades but I found I didn't like it enough to keep going and get my Masters. It's still probably something I should have done but writing more papers, doing more reading and getting a recomendation from a professor were all things I wasn't enthused about doing.

Job options with a BA are a bit limited. There's always insurance sales, which I wouldn't necessarilly mind except that I hate cold calling and other similar types of things. Teaching is an option except I didn't want to teach below the JC level because of the punk ass kids and parental problems.

I am currently working as a pharmacy tech which pays more than teaching with 5-6 years experience. I was trained on the job but there is some schooling for it. Basically I got this job because my dad already worked at the place and new they were looking for some sucker to work the graveyard shift. The shift is pretty much what got me in the door because no one else wanted it so I'm still there.

I wouldn't call being a pharmacy tech a career. It's a decent job and that's about it. Not much in the way of mobility at all. If you're going to go this route then I'd suggest going to pharmacy school. In the US pharmacist are paid pretty well and there's enough of a shortage that jobs in most places are easy to come by. In fact, a lot of places will pay to move you and give you a sign on bonus. I know Colorado and Nevada were even paying to have people come interview.

TrailerParkJawa · Post by **TrailerParkJawa** » 2003-08-21 11:21am

I got a BS in Environmental Studies at SJSU.

Orginally after drifting for 3 years at a Junior College, failing the physcial for the Marines, I got accepted into the Civil engineering dept at SJSU and
Humbolt State in their Environmental engineering program. I didnt think I could handle the engineering program, and moved to environmental studies. I thought I was going to save the world and stuff like that, but it turns out my degree was largely lacking in details and full on ideals.

Anyway, I worked in air quality control job for 3 years after school. During the last 2 years I tried to break out into something else. Finally got a career in IT for about 3-4 years before being caught up in lay offs. Have only worked off and on in both IT and non IT temp jobs since March.

I picked IT cause I like to help people and cause used to pay fairly well not so much because Im techno junkie. Usually on any IT team, I tend to have the best "people" skills and this can be a real valuable skill. I like working in IT, its fun but it can be frustsrating. Im not looking foward to going back to being attached to a pager/cell phone and being called at 5am that email is down.

Post by **Lagmonster** » 2003-08-21 11:26am

I did the following:

Will this career involve me walking through, moving, removing, sorting, or collecting dirt or rock in any of its natural states?

If Yes, move to next career choice.

After a while I realized that I really, really wanted to be invovled somehow in the process to make sure I don't die to an organism infinitely less intelligent and drastically less evolved than me.

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-08-21 11:37am

I have just always been enthralled with aviation, aircraft, spacecraft, space flight, and atmospheric flight. In short, I have been obsessed with airplanes since my dad first took me in a C-130 at the base he was stationed at. I also enjoy aircraft design and engineering, so, I figured the best way to combine my two loves was to go into Aerospace Engineering.

El Moose Monstero · Post by **El Moose Monstero** » 2003-08-21 12:34pm

Childhood dream met the harsh light of reality and fell to another, slightly more plausible childhood dream.

Roughly speaking, as a kid, I was big on space and natural hazard stuff, volcanoes, tornadoes etc. I wanted to be an astronaut as a kid, as do we all, but when it came to career planning, I still wanted to do something with space, and was going to do astrophysics. However, after a few weeks of A-level maths, I realised that I was crap at it, and that it was going to take a lot of effort to get even a C. So I let that dream go, carried on with History, Maths, English and Physics, hoping something would come to me - and eventually it did - I found the Environmental Science option, then found that Lancaster had the best course in the country and the option for a second year in the US.

And here I am, 2 years on from that UCAS decision, I leave for Oregon next month, I'm going to see volcanoes and the Pacific Ocean, and that, as they say, is that.

Xenophobe3691 · Post by **Xenophobe3691** » 2003-08-21 12:41pm

Mine is a combination of childhood dreams and practicality. I always wanted to be an Astronaut, but I learned in Space Academy that Engineering degrees are required. Combined with some urging from my dad (who told me, in no plain terms, that he wants me to get a useful degree instead of the PoS Bio degree he has), I chose Aerospace engineering. I might go to Med School or Law School afterwards, don't know yet

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2003-08-21 12:59pm

Vorlon1701 wrote:Mine is a combination of childhood dreams and practicality. I always wanted to be an Astronaut, but I learned in Space Academy that Engineering degrees are required. Combined with some urging from my dad (who told me, in no plain terms, that he wants me to get a useful degree instead of the PoS Bio degree he has), I chose Aerospace engineering. I might go to Med School or Law School afterwards, don't know yet

Aerospace Engineering ---- to Med School? What are you planning on doing becoming the 21st century version of Rudy Wells? Let's see who gets that reference.

HemlockGrey · Post by **HemlockGrey** » 2003-08-21 12:59pm

My ideal career would be one where I sat around and got paid for relaxing. Sorta like David Blaine. Anyone know anything like that?

Brother-Captain Gaius · Post by **Brother-Captain Gaius** » 2003-08-21 01:03pm

HemlockGrey wrote:My ideal career would be one where I sat around and got paid for relaxing. Sorta like David Blaine. Anyone know anything like that?

Programming is your friend.

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2003-08-21 01:17pm

HemlockGrey wrote:My ideal career would be one where I sat around and got paid for relaxing. Sorta like David Blaine. Anyone know anything like that?

I hear Hef is getting kind of old. Maybe you should send in you resume to see if they are ready to replace him yet.

Umm, forget that I suggested that. runs off to send in own resume first

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-08-21 01:25pm

Tsyroc wrote:
HemlockGrey wrote:My ideal career would be one where I sat around and got paid for relaxing. Sorta like David Blaine. Anyone know anything like that?
I hear Hef is getting kind of old. Maybe you should send in you resume to see if they are ready to replace him yet.

Umm, forget that I suggested that. runs off to send in own resume first

Don't worry, they have already approved mine. I am to be at the playboy mansion in 6 weeks for 'basic training', if ya know what I mean, heheh.

Xenophobe3691 · Post by **Xenophobe3691** » 2003-08-21 01:44pm

Tsyroc wrote: Aerospace Engineering ---- to Med School? What are you planning on doing becoming the 21st century version of Rudy Wells? Let's see who gets that reference.

No, I have no interest in the Six Million Dollar man

I just chose this (Remember, I also put Law School as an option) because Medicine as a field is being shit on by the devil-may-care attitudes toward suing doctors. I've seen cases where a guy tried to sue a doctor for doing his job and saving this lady's life, when she was dying from an embolism due to childbirth.

kojikun · Post by **kojikun** » 2003-08-21 02:16pm

I have a few major interests for majors/careers. I'm still in high school so I have time yet.

Aerospace Engineering -- Robert Zubrins books made me want to further the cause of space travel, as did an article in Wired magazine (i get very passionate about the stuff at times).

Nuclear Engineering -- Again, Zubrins books got me passionate on this. I want very much to work on fusion reactors.

Artificial Intelligence -- Orions Arm is good for inspiring a person to look into Artificial Intelligence.

I'm tempted to go for all three. Working on AIs would require programming skills, which are useful in ASE and NE. Nuclear fusion reactors would be useful in space propulsion (the ultimate goal of my would-be research) and thus part of ASE, and vice versa.

Faram · Post by **Faram** » 2003-08-21 02:23pm

Oldshool computer geek.

I am the one that stayed at home and programmed the Vic20, C64, Amiga whatever instead of plying football.

Well now I work with computers and generally muck around whenever there is a crisis on the network or with the backups or….

Good part is that I am the only one that knows Windows in the office of 10 other computer geeks.

The bad part is the same.

Don't have any formal education in computers but a different company payed for my MCSE way back in 97.

Post by **Dalton** » 2003-08-21 02:24pm

I did a lot of work with television and computers in high school. I decided to go to college for film, but eventually changed over to television because a reel of film is goddamn expensive and TV has more computer-related equipment to play with.

Now I'm floating out in the real world, jobless, with freelancing my only hope.

Trivia: when I was younger I aspired to be a doctor. But that was only because that's what smart people did and doctors make money hand over fist. I eventually decided it'd be cooler to make laser beams come out of my friend's eyes.