The Major Debacle

Parentberries
1

I wasn’t quite sure where to put this, so forgive me if this is the wrong board for such a topic.

I’ve always had a difficult time figuring out what I want to do for a career. Throughout my youth, I never really had a particular career path in mind-- though I went through many different options. Currently I’m a sophomore in college, closing in on officially becoming a junior, and I feel burned out and completely at a lost.

My current major is in nursing, though I’ve mainly worked on mostly pre-reqs for the degree. While I certainly wouldn’t mind being a nurse, I don’t feel 100% confident that it’s the right career choice for me. If I continue with my degree as a nurse my end goal would be to become a midwife or nurse practitioner specializing in pediatrics or women’s health. It’s getting to my end goal that concerns me. If I’m already feeling burned out now, how am I going to stay motivated enough to obtain a master’s degree?

So my questions are:

[name]How[/name] did you decide the career you have or trying to obtain was the right one for you? Is it something you always wanted? Did you ever switch your major in college or ended up going back to college to obtain a new degree? [name]Do[/name] you feel satisfied with your job?

Or for those of you who are younger or in college currently have you questioned your degree choice? What’s influenced your major of choice?

Basically how has your degree influenced your life? [name]Do[/name] you regret your choice or are you satisfied with your career?

I would love to hear everyone’s experiences. Maybe it will inspire my own in some way. Or if you have any advice I would be glad to hear it.

I have spoken with my academic advisor but, to be frank, she hasn’t ever been helpful. My friend just recommended me to her academic advisor, which I’ll be seeing sometime soon before fall semester. Here’s hoping this one will be better.

2

Our stories are both nursing-related! This will probably be long and I’ll ramble, but bear with me!

I too never really knew what I wanted to do, but I’ve entertained thoughts of being a paramedic, A&E doctor, paediatrician, GP, pharmacist and midwife over the last few years, never with much conviction. I finished sixth form last year and didn’t get the grades I needed to do the course I’d applied for (pharmacy), which I loved and hated at the same time. Loved because I wasn’t convinced pharmacy was the course I wanted to do anymore but hated because I had to do something and felt I was a total failure. I don’t know how the US system works, but in [name]England[/name] you basically have to decide/confirm what you’re doing on one day in [name]August[/name] when there’s a lot of pressure and emotion (well, there was for me). I could ‘reapply’ on that day to any uni that had spaces left. By that time I was quite interested in midwifery, but the only similar course was Adult Nursing so I went for that hoping I might later do a midwifery top-up course. Biggest regret of my life :frowning:

The nursing course had a weird start date -[name]January[/name]- so I had to wait around for a few months doing nothing. [name]January[/name] came, and I went off to uni. I came back a week later :stuck_out_tongue: I hated it. It was too far too soon for me. Didn’t like the people, the place, the course. I was crying on the phone to my parents every 5 minutes! So I now have major commitment issues when it comes to picking courses. And due to the weird start date, I missed the application deadline for this year, so if I do reapply, I won’t be starting until Sep 2014. Which is kind of a good thing, because I still don’t really know what I want to do. Current ideas are child nursing or midwifery but, like you, I’m not convinced it’s the right career path and I really don’t want to drop out again. So I’m interested in other replies to this thread!

I know this isn’t exactly motivation, but it’s my experience so far! [name]Just[/name] don’t force yourself to do something you really hate. A lot of people have a go at me, saying I shouldn’t have made my mind up after only being at uni for a week. But there’s a difference between having a wobble & forcing yourself through a spell of homesickness/doubt, and knowing when it’s really not your thing. I’m glad I decided after a week, not 3 years. It means I lost a couple of hundred pounds at most, not £9,000.

Good luck with whatever you go on to do :slight_smile:

3

You’re in a pre-professional degree program which is quite different from most college sophomores. Have you had and clinical /practical experience yet? Especially on L&D as you think you want to be a midwife? That will be the deciding factor if your current aspirations are right for you.

I know this runs counter to everything people are told in graduation speeches about finding ones path in life, but I think it’s perfectly ok not to be defined by your job or find your deepest meaning in life in your job. For most people, their job is something that leaves them reasonably satisfied about how they spent their day, allows them to make friendships and exercise their brains, but mainly just pays the bills and lets them enjoy what they truly care about in life (family, friends, volunteering, traveling, sports, exercise, reading, writing, etc). Nursing is extremely flexible, pays well, and it might just tick all those boxes for you without being an all-consuming passion.

Personally, I boomeranged a bit. I wanted at first to be a neuroscientist and I was especially interested in psycholinguistics and language processing. Then I became fascinated with geography, infectious diseases and their intersection in global public health. I went to graduate school in infectious diseases and worked as a malariologist, even starting a DPhil in the same. I realized I would never really get anywhere important in pubc health unless I became a clinical doctor, so very very reluctantly went to medical school. I went to earn the credential, never expecting to practice medicine. Much to my surprise I loved it and especially liked surgery, and despite its relentless demanding nature am still quite happy. Now medicine, particular surgery, is so demanding that I would never advocate anyone just drifting into without really loving it and deriving a lot of meaning and satisfaction from it, but I definitely think those sorts of careers are in the minority.

4

My American friend went through something similar to you. She started college as a theology student, changed to medicine, then politics and finally emerged with a masters degree in special education. I have no idea how she managed it (your system confuses me) but it just shows that it is possibly to change your mind - even loads of times - and come out right in the end :slight_smile: Talking to people about it is definitely the right way to go about sorting out how you really feel about your course and ambitions etc.

My Welsh friend also changed her mind. She completed an entire animal science degree and then decided at the end she’d rather do medicine so she went back to university and did a nursing degree instead. She now works in a hospital A&E and loves it :slight_smile:

I… well… My school was rubbish in terms of sitting us down during our A levels and really making us think about where we wanted to go to university and what courses we wanted to take. I was afraid about leaving home to the point where I was going along with the idea of going to university because it was the next academic step that I was ‘supposed’ to take. That’s how my mind works. I think rigidly like that. Anyway. I was a good student. I had the mental capacity to go to university and do something academic like english language or sociology or geography or history or languages, anything I wanted but - ultimately - I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that my heart was in creative writing.

I decided to take it as a degree and I loved it.

However, turns out that just because I loved it didn’t mean it was the right choice.

I graduated from university in 2008 and promptly had a breakdown. I was put on medication and a course of counselling (not helpful) and it took me a whole year to recover. The solid reliable structure of academics - the steps from one school to the next to the next - had disappeared and I was left in this weird adult world with no idea, and no one to tell me, what to do next.

It’s now 2013 and only last year I worked out that the course I should have taken was publishing. The degree I have has left me with pretty much no employable skills and my sole talent - writing - is utterly useless. I’m still floundering. Employers want experience. I can’t get experience unless someone employs me. I arranged to work as an intern in two publishing houses and completed those placements but apparently that experience isn’t good enough.

Basically, don’t be me. Be glad you’ve realised now that you want to change your mind and that you’re thinking ahead about your career, it means you’ve still got the power to change your future :slight_smile:

5

I waited eight years after high school to go to college. When I finally went back, I waffled a bit withe majors, but I finally decided on art history. It’s a serious academic course of study and to get anywhere in the art history field, you need a PhD. And that was the plan, but I couldn’t make myself apply to grad schools when the time came. I just fell out of love with it. And a BA in art history gets you absolutely nowhere.

Sometime in my senior year, an acquaintance went to library school. I thought it was such a weird choice! But after talking with him about it and doing some research, I realized that being a librarian would be the perfect career choice for me. It still took me 5 years to pay off the last of my tuition from undergrad and work up the nerve to apply, but I’m in my second year of a three year MLIS program. I’m also working as a librarian at my local public library. I started out wanting to focus on archives, but I fell in love with public librarianship. I’m never, ever bored. I get to do story times with toddlers, buy books and movies, come up with fun programs for kids and talk to people about books- and that’s just the first hour! The degree part is just something I have to do. I’m really tired if it, honestly. I’m just gritting my teeth and getting through it as best I can.
Anyway,
So, I went from dealing cards in a casino, to planning on a PhD in art history, to singing silly songs with toddlers. I glad that the choices I made got me here, but if I had it to do over again I would apply for grad school right away.

6

I don’t know how helpful I can be as I decided well before I left high school that I was going to be a teacher, but I will echo what [name]Blade[/name] said. It is perfectly ok not to be defined by your job. I find fulfillment in my job, am challenged by it like nothing I have ever done before, and have made some wonderful friends. But it’s just one part of who I am.

I think how you’re feeling is natural. School overload happens to everyone. Hang in there!!!

7

I’m in a murky spot as well. In college (last two years of highschool in the USA I think) I hardly thought of what I wanted to do and in the end picked an university course that I do not enjoy at all. I’m halfway through the (international studies degree) and I’m still unsure how I’m going to proceed after I have finished it. Heck, I’m just going to be happy if I get into any graduate work program afterwards so I can work towards other personal goals like travelling…

8

I wonder if what you’re feeling is anxiety at making what feels to be a lifelong commitment at 19 or 20? As [name]Blade[/name] pointed out, you’re in a pre-professional major, ideal for people who are certain of their profession, but very narrow if you’re not. And right, it can be hard to commit to a profession if you haven’t had practical experience in it to know whether you’re going to be happy in it.

Yes, jobs can be a means to the end of a life that’s satisfying in a larger way, but perhaps that’s a bit cynical an approach for a college junior?

My experience is different because I was a liberal arts major and have a more freeform career. I wanted to be a writer but I majored in journalism because that was a defined job. Problem was I never liked newspapers, which was where journalism majors got hired at the time. So instead I moved to [name]New[/name] [name]York[/name], worked as a waitress, and wrote short stories. Then I started working at small magazines and after a few years got hired at Glamour – but for a job I had no training for, as a fashion editor! I eventually created a job that incorporated more of my talents and interests, and worked there for six years until I left when [name]Linda[/name] and I sold our first name book, Beyond [name]Jennifer[/name] & [name]Jason[/name].

I’m obviously someone who needs and wants my job to be very satisfying. Names were a passion of mine when I was 11 years old, and who ever would have guessed that they could become a career? But I think my interest in names and my energy for working on Nameberry a zillion hours a day comes from doing something I loved to do as a kid – I feel that pleasure I felt as a kid making my nerdy lists of names.

And the internet hadn’t even been invented when I was in college so I couldn’t have prepared for this job. I guess the disadvantage as well as the advantage of a liberal arts degree is that it doesn’t prepare you for a specific job. So school and work are separate things…and you end up doing jobs you never knew existed.

9

I double majored in political science and writing at a small liberal arts college…I didn’t exactly know what I wanted to do during college. I suppose I wanted to be a writer but was too practical to think I could make a decent living that way.

So I moved to DC after college and worked in public relations. Life intervened a few years later and I moved to [name]New[/name] [name]England[/name] for my husbands career. I started taking on freelance writing work to have some income while I looked for something permanent, over three years later, I’m happily self employed and writing is my “something permanent.”

So I guess my main advice is that in some cases its ok not to know for sure and to wander a little. Sometimes it helps if you don’t think “what do I want to do?” but rather “what do I want to do next?”

10

I’m graduating Friday so I don’t know if I’m the exact person you want to hear from but I’ll share.

I was always told to go the military. The structure and command was good for me. I liked giving orders but didn’t mind taking them either. So at 7 I decided I was going to the military. At 8 I moved all the bones in my leg up an inch of so during a playground accident. I forwent my rehab thinking it wouldn’t affect me in the long run. By 12 my leg, my knee specifically, was in constant pain. My knee cap slid around when I ran and my meniscus was starting to tear. It took military out of the question for me from an adult stand point. I refused to believe it and my ortho told me he’d start me on a training program to try to stabilize my knee so I could attempt enlisting. By 17 my knee was better but not by much. It still slid but it slid less and it didn’t shirt as much. But I stupidly injured it again while at a tournament which resulted in pulling every muscle in my leg and tearing a ligament at the back of my knee cap. I was told running could pull my meniscus out through the back of my knee and it ended my military dreams once and for all.
From there I was lost; there was nothing else I wanted to do. So I threw myself into my school work and went on with it figuring I’d get some crappy job working 9-5 in an office that I’d hate like most.my family did. Instead I rediscovered science. Everything had a rule, it was organized and it was structured. I loved it. By my senior year I decided I would major in chemistry and a minor in criminal justice with the hope of working in a county crime lab. Then even if I was doing similar things every day there was a little bit of variation and I wouldn’t be too bored. I start college in [name]August[/name] so even if I don’t love it its something I can do to provide for myself if anything happiness to my OH and I need to rely solely on myself.

11

I want to be a pathologist or a surgeon. Here, both require going to medical school. I’m only in high school {I start college in [name]September[/name] so I still have about a year to decide if that’s what I want to do at university}, but sometimes I do question if I’ll be able to cope with the stress of medical school and the stress of the job - which to be honest, is one of the most high stress jobs out there. I’ve always wanted to do something science related, and when I discovered pathology as a career about two years ago, it’s the only thing I can imagine doing. Surgery is another that I’d love, and luckily I won’t have to decide between the two until after college, university, and my foundation years as a doctor.

12

Here’s my 2 cents:

I went into college as an English [name]Major[/name]. I wanted to teach and the English degree was going to help my writing and give credit to my work (in my own mind). After 2 semesters of this, I hated it. I was working with children already and was hating that too. It got so exhausting following the same routine every day, listening to the kids complain all the time, trying to pull them apart… [name]One[/name] day I was sitting in English Renaissance [name]Drama[/name] and thought, “This is it. This will be my life. These are the same plays I read in high school, the same ones I’ll teach every year, the same way, over and over again for the rest of my life.” And I changed my major. I love English, I love literature, but I couldn’t bear the thought of being boxed in like that. Besides that, all the papers I was writing, all the style rules and the reading, it was really effecting my writing. I had virtually stopped working on my novel and since being an author is my primary goal in life, that wasn’t going to cut it.

I changed my major to Criminal [name]Justice[/name]. It’s always something I’ve been interested in and allowed myself to be talked out of. I want to work my way up to investigator and then to Crime Scene Technician. As a back up, my other major was Criminal Psychology because being a criminal psychologist would be amazing to me. I had a lot more fun with my education, I never had the feeling that I was boxing myself in, and though I know it will get repetitive, it will never be boring. Besides that, working with criminals and dead bodies is going to help with my writing too. As a matter of fact, I detailed a 3 day old dead body in my first finished novel and because I had professional knowledge, it was much more real and gruesome.

Basically, it just took a little thinking and soul searching for me to come to terms with these simple things:

  1. I shouldn’t care what my parents or grandparents say. It’s my life and I’m going to do something I love and enjoy.
  2. [name]Plenty[/name] of professional writers dropped out of college and high school so no one’s going to care if I have a degree.
  3. It’s more important to love what you’re doing than to settle. I love English, but I was settling into a career path that other people saw as acceptable rather than doing something I truly wanted to spend my life doing.

So, you should take some time and soul search and ask “Can I see myself doing this for the rest of my life?” If it’s a no, maybe re-think your choice. But you know what, if it turns out down the line that you want to change careers, people go back to college all the time, and you will have options. [name]Don[/name]'t stress.

13

It was so interesting to read [name]Pam[/name]'s story and what I heard coming through loud and clear was that she loved names basically all her life and is still deriving pleasure from this side of life.

It reminds me of my brother who was still at home long after I married and during his high school years made up speaker boxes for local bands. I imagine they were covered in orange hessian but apparently he had a market for them at the early age of 16. He went on to become a clinical psychologist and during the early years took on a part time position so that he could develop his passion da dah making speaker boxes for sound systemes in homes!

He achieved his purpose after much hard work and got many awards in the industry and he was in opposition to the big names like Sony. He was innovative and passionate about his job and his product became known as one of the best in the business.

He is a true example of someone who followed their heart, found success and fulfilment in what he did but which was very different to what he had trained for.

14

Thank you all for taking time out of your day to respond! I really enjoyed reading all of your experiences.

@charlieandperry1: Oh wow! It’s kind of cool knowing someone else is having a similar experience. I would love to hear how things go for you in the future and what you choose to do, if you would want to share of course. Good luck to you!

@blade: I’m beginning clinicals this upcoming semester. I was a PSEO student my senior year and took mostly electives for technically my first two years of college-- which kind of worked out as I finished all my math, basic sciences, business and psychology courses. This past year is when I delved into the major sciences required for nursing. I know that however clinicals go will make or break whether I continue on with nursing or not. The reason I was wanting to pursue becoming a midwife is because I was a part of an interning program (I don’t feel comfortable disclosing the name as it’s local to the state where I live) that explored different medical careers and midwife stood out to me above the rest. You made some great points, all of which I’ll keep in mind as I figure out what I want to do. Thanks!

@renrose: That’s what I was always worried about if I went through with a history or international relations degree. I would most likely love the courses but what happens after I graduate if I wouldn’t be able to find employment? Oh companies are funny that way. There’s an irony in wanting an employee with experience yet the employee can’t recieve said experience without being employed. I’m sure those things will work themselves out in the end. Good luck to you and I’ll have to take a gander at your novel soon since I have some free time now!

@roseymaam: Oh that is so cool! My best friend is working on an art history degree but is wavering on it a bit. I could definitely see her loving to work as a librarian. Might have to mention your story to her. Thanks for sharing!

@dindlee: Thanks for the input! [name]Both[/name] you and blade make valid points. You’re probably right, I’m most likely just feeling school overload. Hopefully taking summer semester off will help with that!

@sunshine kid: [name]How[/name] are you liking the courses for international studies? I was always curious about that degree but my father met it with a resounding no :frowning:

@pam: A part of it is definitely worrying about if I make the wrong choice and end up regretting it later on down the road. I know I can always go back and I see other women who do every day, but I also see the challenges they face in doing so. Perhaps my youth betrays me, but I really want to feel a sense of accomplishment with whatever I choose to do. I believe having a meaningful life is giving a purpose to it. Why not have a career that’s going to fulfill you? Especially when it will take up a good portion of time. Maybe that’s unrealistic. Thank you for sharing your story, it was wonderful to hear the journey you had to get to Nameberry!

@lineska: That’s a good way of looking at it! A good reminder that the journey can lead you to exactly where you need to be in the end. Thanks!

@thefuturemrsb: I’m sorry to hear that and hope everything works out for the best! Good luck and congratulations on graduating!

@sapphires: Congratulations! I wish you good luck with whichever you choose to do!

@dantea: I can identify with you when it comes to caring about what your parents think. My father has been kind enough to pay for my classes that I didn’t take for free, so I definitely let him have a say and think- in part - that he deserves it. He is saving me from accumulating a lot of debt and for that I’m extremely grateful. Thank you for the advice and good luck with the little one coming soon! The name you chose for her is just darling.

@rollo: [name]How[/name] awesome! I hope to have and retain that kind of passion for whatever career path I choose. Thanks for sharing!

15

I started a ‘What I did with my Chemistry degree’ evening at my university when I was senior and president of the chemistry club (and I think it has since spread to other departments). Basically I contacted the alumni association and asked for a list of chemistry alums. I contacted those who were in the area and asked them if they would consider coming to an evening event and talking about their career path post graduation. I tried to specifically find people who were currently working in atypical chemistry professions. The chemistry club had a (small) budget so I lured people in with free food and there was actually quite a turnout. If you have any possibility to host a similar event I think it could prove very interesting/ inspiring.
Good luck!!
(And as an aside, my career path has taken a few turns. My senior year in college I was planning to become a synthetic organic chemist. I was admitted to a masters program and everything was going just as planned. During my spring break I went on a service trip to paint houses but we ended up working in a high school as well. During that trip I decided to scrap my plans and apply to teaching school (this is late march my senior year!). I ended up getting a masters in teaching at a 1 year super intense program and teaching chemistry for 6 years. At that point my husband wanted to go back to school and we both wanted to live abroad again so we moved overseas and both went back to school. I am now getting a masters in sustainable development and figure it will be a good test to see if teaching is what I really want to do. As I am finishing up my second masters I am fairly sure I want to teach but it is looking like we won’t be moving back to the States for ideally 4 more years ([name]Sweden[/name] is fantastic for kids!) so I am planning to find work here that relates to my sustainable development degree and test out this kind of work for real before making a final decision. Not the straightest career path, but I didn’t want to wake up at 50 and regret not trying anything other than teaching!)

16

First of all- I hope you realize that this is totally normal! At 19 or 20 it is very hard to envision the next 40+ years of working life and impossible to know with any certainty whether you are making a career choice that you will be happy with in the long term. All you can do is make an educated guess.

My experience is similar to lots of others- I am 30 and I have had 3 major careers (I graduated college at 20, working in social work and was promoted several times till I was co-managing a residential foster home, then I taught special education for a few years, now I have a clinical master’s degree and work as speech and language pathologist). While I have been successful in every career (success defined as doing a good job, promotions, happy bosses etc.), I haven’t ever had a job that I loved being at, and at this point in my life I am very happy with that being the case.

Nursing is super flexible, high demand and fairly well paying. I wouldn’t scrap it unless you have done some clinical work and are sure it isn’t for you. I have a liberal arts degree (BA in sociology) and while it is very flexible I would consider the job market you are going to have to enter in a few years. The market is flooded with English majors and the like and while I definitely agree that a well-rounded liberal arts education is valuable, so is a job. Your earning potential is limited significantly without a specific skill set and while the economy is rebounding, competition is fierce. I found a job shortly after graduating from college in 2004, in my chosen career field (social services) and had my own apartment and car and insurance and whatnot. I worked 40-50 hours a week and I basically just made enough to live and pay my student loan payments, I had no savings, and had to use my credit card to do things like repair flat tires and pay co-pays. I think that is pretty typical for liberal arts new graduates. Some people are okay with that, and don’t mind having 4 roommates or having to call their parents when they need a new pair of jeans but other people have higher financial goals and/or significant student debt that needs paying down.

If you are burned out on school I would strongly consider staying the course to finish a pre-professional degree now (nursing, teaching, computer science etc) so that you know you will be able to pay your bills, buy a decent car, live in the city you want to live in and begin to build financial security without having to go to grad school. Grad school is a great option but in the mean time you can support yourself and avoid the monstrous debt load that SO MANY people in their early 20s have these days. And in a few years you will know what is working and what isn’t and you will have a lot of options about the kind of changes you want and can afford to make (go back to school, taking a pay-cut, have babies and stay home with your kids etc.).

17

I suffer(ed) sort of the same thing. I started out in college on the path to a zoology major because I wanted to work with animals. Turns out I am really bad at math and chemistry so I nearly failed out and switched my major to history, which I am much better at. I pulled my GPA up to above a 3.0 and I do love learning about history, but doing some sort of career with it? I struggled with wondering if I made the right choice after making the switch because I don’t want a career in history, and while it is a flexible degree that you can use in a wide range of jobs, nothing that I have thought of or had suggested to me career-wise really appeals to me. I am in my final two weeks of college now, and I have a part time job and am possibly going to get a second part time job, but I really only want to work until we can buy a house and start having kids, and then I want to be a SAHM. I don’t think I am the career type, y’know? But since I have a degree I have already felt the “you need to get a real job!” stuff from family. My dad has been a big help in paying for my schooling so I feel bad not wanting to do something big and long-term with it. My mom was a SAHM who went back into a career after we were older, and I think that once I have more life experience I may be able to do that, but right now all I want to do is work when I have to and as soon as I can, be a SAHM.