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not knowing what to go to school for but ready to go

Jean-Paul

Jean-Paul

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is it true you should not go to school if you don't know exactly what for, or have a major in mind that is unlikely to guarantee you a job (ie creative fields. i love fashion...)? did you know what you wanted to do before you started school, or did you just kind of pick something out you thought you could deal with?

i don't have any strong desire for any normal career or career i am aware of at least. i have no "oh that's the job i want to get eventually for sure" in my head. i never have. i am jealous of those who do. advice for chronically undeclared types?

all i have is i definitely don't want to work with people or animals medically and i am pretty sure i don't want to know anything about the inner workings of computers beyond navigating chrome. there goes two trades you don't have to spend much time on.

are there some general vague type degrees that can land you a decent job in a variety of fields? that aren't going to land me as a manager of some business i don't give a shit about? that will at least make me a decent amount of cash as long as i don't have a specific field in mind?
 
Jean-Paul said:
is it true you should not go to school if you don't know exactly what for, or have a major in mind that is unlikely to guarantee you a job
Click to expand...

No, it is not true.

Much like you, I went to college with only a vague idea of what I wanted to be when I grew up. As I went deeper into my general ed classes my interests slowly became more and more focused. Despite that, I changed majors three or four times. Luckily, I ended up with a degree and GPA that allowed me to get accepted into grad school.

The mindset that school should = job is 1950's industrial-type thinking.....and it is alive and well today. The university is NOT an employment service. You go there to get educated in and outside of the classroom. My junior year I met a prof and told him my level in school and that I still did not know what major was for me. He opened my eyes when he told me to major in something that I enjoy doing and that I am good at. If I enjoy doing it and am good at it, the job would come to me. I made that my education philosophy and it has worked so far.

Don't get me wrong, you do eventually have to focus your energy on one or a few subjects that hopefully work together. But there is nothing wrong with going in a little unsure. If you are good at fashion and enjoy it, then pursue it. People may ask you questions and give you shit but you aren't doing it for them....you're doing this for you.
 
The beauty of undergraduate education is exposure--to subjects, ideas, people and perspectives that are new to you. If I were rich I would be a lifelong student for this alone. It took me 8 years to explore and get out with my degree but if funds hadn't run out I would have happily stretched that a lot longer if I could have. (Just don't fall into the student loan trap. Stop and work if you have to.)

And as far as the arts go, and how hard it is to make a successful living at them, I will always defend passion over pure practicality. One of my best friends followed his passion for jazz, making a meager living all his life until his mid forties when he was appointed artistic director of one of the most prestigious jazz festivals in the world. He could never have gotten there had he listened. Many people envy his life now that scoffed at it before. Follow your interests as they develop and stay light on your feet; that works for your education and your life overall.<3
 
study something that interests you. nobody starts college knowing exactly what they want to be when they grow up. BUT, make sure you kick ass at whatever you choose to study. take advantages of opportunities to work closely with professors, pursue independent projects/research, and GET GOOD GRADES. not only will that have the obvious benefit of learning a ton and making you more employable in your chosen field, but if you ever want to change direction, admissions offices/employers in other fields will be a lot more willing to take a chance on you. a lackluster GPA isn't the end of the world, but a strong one can make finding opportunities after college a lot easier.
 
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Like others have said, follow something that interests you. It isn't all about the money. You have to be happy in the profession/career that you choose. No one can tell you which career path to pursue. In my opinion, someone can never have too much education. Perhaps start going to school for general studies and then see what interests you from there.

When I started school I had no idea what I wanted to do. I changed my major several times. Now, I'm studying something I love and look forward to having a career in it once I graduate. Happiness is key.
 
Go take mathematics. It might sound all like "oh noes! it's going to be dry, not creative, rigid and practical" But it's not... it's the most overly abstract, navel gazing, disconnected from reality subject you can imagine. It's hard to even get a job with it unless you focus on statistics in which case it's pretty easy to find a job, but otherwise you can look forward to a life of being a barista right along side philosophy and fine arts grads. Except your studies will be even more abstract and wanky then theirs.
 
It's fine that you don't know what you want to go to school for. For many jobs its important that you have a degree, but it doesnt matter what the degree is in. The exceptions are professions like nursing/healthcare, engineers, etc. Just go ahead and start the basic classes now and figure out what you want to do later.
 
All during high school, I could have sworn I'd be a computer programmer. I was a computer geek. First year of university, I hated it. I did terribly, it was such a disaster. I knew I couldn't drop out of school completely so I just went to college for two years in this office program. I aced it, top of my class, it was so easy. But I didn't like it either, but I just wanted to get a diploma and then get done with school. After my diploma, I worked "part time" for a year and a half - I got really lucky to get this part time job - and now I've landed this completely awesome full time, salaried job at age 22. I love my job... I know I got it because I had a college diploma but it wouldn't have mattered what it was in.

If you don't know what you want to do, do something you're kinda interested in. Get a one or two year diploma or certificate. You can move on from there. I'm currently taking payroll courses to get a payroll certification as well. Don't waste a ton of money on some university program if you're not completely sure, but why not start off with a college program, work while you're in school, and see what you like from there!!
 
I find the title of this thread, "not knowing what to go to school for but ready to go" thought-provoking in that there are and always have been
many people who go to school, but with learning low on their list of priorities. I think if you go to school keeping in mind the widely applicable
observation that, "You get out of it what you put into it." from the start, you won't find yourself telling yourself, "You had better get out of
this what you put into it!". Personally, I left a doctoral program in sociology without writing my dissertation. In retrospect, I have to ask, "How
on earth did I end-up in a doctoral program in sociology?". I didn't bring my A-game. Make a commitment to yourself to do your best whatever it
is you find yourself doing. Here you can wonder along with me, "Do people who always do their best typically end up doing what they are best at?"
And, "Are people who do what they are best at happier?"
 
It's a good place to explore opportunities that you would never have without attending school. It's also a great place to meet new people and make connections that will only help your future.
 
thread has died but i'm gonna add my 2 cents in case someone else reads this:

DON'T go to post-secondary if you don't know exactly what you want to do.

All through high school I just wanted to get into university, and I thought I'd figure it out once I got there
Once I did get there, I took a bunch of courses that fell under the "general graduating requirements" umbrella. I ended up hating all those courses, and after 1 year I stopped going. Totally wrecked my GPA as well, something like a 2.1? Failed 1 course too.

Then I worked like 4-5 different part time jobs over 3 years

Finally went back to a different school for something completely different, and since my GPA was wrecked, it didn't make sense to transfer those credits (wouldn't let me pick and choose which credits to transfer). Still going to school and working 2 part time jobs... technically 3 but I just tell them what days I can / can't work and they call me if there's something..... keeps me from sitting at home, tempted to drink / do drugs

"Idle time is the devil's playground"

Anyways, even if 1 person just reads this and saves themselves a lot of headache and $, I'll be glad.
 
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