I don't know what to do with my life.

[Brent]

Okay so the jig is up. I have to figure out what I'm doing with my life. While a lot of high school kids complain about this when they're going to college, it's way worse for me, because I'm graduating college. I have to do real stuff soon. It's the worst.

 

I told myself I would decide what to do over Christmas break, but I don't even know how to start! :bigcry: Can you help me plzzz?

 

I am graduating in May with a bachelor in Biology and a master's in Chemistry. I hate chemistry with all my heart and I will soon be able to dance upon its grave and pee freely upon its tombstone.

 

I applied to a few med schools, but the more I think about it, the less I want to do that. It's interesting and all but once I get into it I can't really turn back. I'll be in an MD/PhD program because I am poor and can't afford to pay for a regular MD program. My parents didn't go to school and they're in a lot of debt so money has always been really tight.

 

Anyway, my other options are to work in a lab or go to graduate school to get a master's or PhD. But I'm seriously confused. Plus, I haven't really gotten to another point: I don't know if I'm actually smart enough for medical school, and if I do it, I really want to be successful.

 

The problem with it is that (whether she wants to admit it or not) my mom is deteriorating in health pretty quickly. She is diabetic and her alzheimer's is kicking in so she will lose her job I'm sure within the next ten years or so. My dad sure as hell won't be able to pitch in enough to keep the house, pay all the bills, and get into retirement without my (and my brother's) help. Plus, he was diagnosed with a treatable cancer this year, which is another ridiculously complicated expense as it is. But my brother didn't go to school and has a hard time paying for things as it is. I just want to find a good balance between my family life, my academic life and my work life. So I have this annoying weight on my shoulders that I have to carry no matter where I go. I don't want to sound whiny, because everyone has problems, but that's the way it is.

 

To be honest, I never really wanted to get into all this science crap. I have always wanted to write. But after I saw the way the economy was going, and the hole of debt that my family has gotten themselves into, I knew I had to have something marketable, so I switched to this :| And now I'm at this crossroads.

 

Gimme some advice plz k ugggh. I don't want to pick the wrong thing. I feel like I'm being funneled into something I don't want to do, but I'm beginning to think it would be best for my family and my lifestyle to just roll with the punches.

 

Thanks for listening to me bitch. Coldplayers are the best. :)

[neonhorn22]

What if you helped compose science textbooks? Or got a job writing articles for science journals/periodicals. That way you'd be satisfying your want to write and staying within your field. Or, there's always teaching. I bet it wouldn't be too hard to get the few credit hours to make you eligible to take the tests to earn a teaching license. Teaching science at a middle school or junior high level isn't a huge responsibility, and it's fun at the same time. Most of my favorite science teachers were the ones I had in middle school and junior high......back in my day. ETA: This would be feasible choice because it would give you summers off to write and hopefully get published. :)

[i'maveryneatMonster.']

If money is really tight and will be for a while you could work and save money, medical school is pretty expensive, not to mention the books and instrumental.

And being in medical school doesn't allow many things as well... but it is still a great, beautiful career. Think a lot about it.

[Caroline]

It's hard in this economy to do what you want, especially when you feel the need to support your family. I would think your parents would want you to do what makes you happy. If you didn't have any financial problems, would you go to med school? I'm sure you're more than capable of going to medical school, but if you find yourself questioning it, then your heart probably isn't in it.

 

I'm sorry, I know this is complicated. There's no easy answer. Everyone can sit and tell you all day long their opinion, but at the end of the day it's your life and you have to live with the decision.

 

I'm sure you'll be successful in whatever path you choose.

[austengirl]

It's hard in this economy to do what you want, especially when you feel the need to support your family. I would think your parents would want you to do what makes you happy. If you didn't have any financial problems, would you go to med school? I'm sure you're more than capable of going to medical school, but if you find yourself questioning it, then your heart probably isn't in it.

 

I'm sorry, I know this is complicated. There's no easy answer. Everyone can sit and tell you all day long their opinion, but at the end of the day it's your life and you have to live with the decision.

 

I'm sure you'll be successful in whatever path you choose.

 

 

I co-sign this.

 

I think you already know my opinion on the subject, but I agree that any parent would want their child to do what makes them happy.

[Brent]

If money is really tight and will be for a while you could work and save money, medical school is pretty expensive, not to mention the books and instrumental.

And being in medical school doesn't allow many things as well... but it is still a great, beautiful career. Think a lot about it.

 

Well, I would be doing an MD/PhD program which means I'd be paid while I was there but it's a lot more work. Basically, you're in grad school and med school at the same time. But I wouldn't have to shell out a shitload of green for it. Eh.

 

But thanks, I will :)

 

 

Everyone can sit and tell you all day long their opinion, but at the end of the day it's your life and you have to live with the decision.

 

Thanks :) I'm quite torn, but you're right.

 

 

What if you helped compose science textbooks? Or got a job writing articles for science journals/periodicals. That way you'd be satisfying your want to write and staying within your field. Or, there's always teaching. I bet it wouldn't be too hard to get the few credit hours to make you eligible to take the tests to earn a teaching license. Teaching science at a middle school or junior high level isn't a huge responsibility, and it's fun at the same time. Most of my favorite science teachers were the ones I had in middle school and junior high......back in my day. ETA: This would be feasible choice because it would give you summers off to write and hopefully get published. :)

 

I thought about that, but to write things like that you need a lot of experience in science, plus a PhD with a really solid postdoctoral background. So I wouldn't be doing that until about 40-50 years old. I write papers for the lab I'm in right now, and it's actually quite rewarding. We've been published in quite a few journals and stuff. Unfortunately, though, there's not a huge market for it outside of an academic environment.

 

I've also had a few works of fiction published in some literary journals, but I know I shouldn't go for that because it would be dumb with a good degree in science under my belt. Authors don't make ANYTHING, and they rarely become anything (which is tragic if you ask me).

[chuck kottke]

Don't hate the sciences, chemistry gave us batteries to start our engines, and biology gave us a better understanding of.. drosophila! :laugh3: Now we can heal injured fruit-flies!

Oof, yea, those pressures to help out your family in need, I know that well.. hm.. to find a place where you fit in well, and that doesn't lead to a highly imbalanced life - well, the science writing might be one good option, or I know one fellow graduate who now works in designing illustrations for sciences text books and magazines. Plowing ahead in the PhD - MD field will probably be a very all-engrossing thing, but would likely lead to a very good paying profession, solving one problem but not providing balance. The problems we face with financial matters & a lack of safety nets I believe have a lot to do with a poorly structured economic system that has done a lot of damage to the working class families (I know that equally well), something we do need to correct, hence all the movements coalescing to occupy the centers of power and demand reform and justice. We must succeed in changing things, it's essential for making our lives better, for human progress to happen.

With a slow economy, I don't know what the job prospects are like at the moment, but that's something to consider as well. Quite a bit of medical research to be done, jobs in the companies that make medical equipment from a design and testing perspective, supplies and the production of medicines, sales and marketing of chemicals/equipment/pharmaceuticals (for as much as that needs reform, it is where one source of jobs are), and writing descriptions of things for medical journals and labels.

And if that doesn't suit you well, there's always science fiction writing! Screen plays to paperbacks, what suits your interests?

[Mackplay]

1. Med school is a LOT of hardwork and even when you graduate, there is no rest. However, helping people heal is the most rewarding job in the world.

If you are not 110% into it, I'm afraid you'll fail or will end up miserable for the rest of your life. Personally, I know you won't.

You think that you might fail med school. HELLOOOOO, wake up buddy. You have a freaking master degree in chemistry and a freaking bachelor in biology. You might end up being in the smartest student of your promotion. Seriously! The fact that so many med schools wanted you is proof of what I just said. You have some doubts because you are very anxious. I would be too. Med school means a lot to you, so nervousness is to be expected. When I was in college, I'd freak out before every exam even though I knew that I studied well. And now, even after running few marathons, I'm always nervous, stressed and think that I might not be capable of achieving my goals. If you don't get nervous about something, it probably means that you don't care.

 

2. If you decide not to go to med school and choose another career path, you can work full time and study part time. Millions of people are doing that.

 

3. Or you can join the workforce as soon as June 2012. You're getting a bachelor in Biology and a master in Chemistry. That's HUGE and you can already make a very very decent living. I think you might have a starting salary around 40-50000$ a year. That number (which is super awesome) will only grow with the experience you'll getting from working.

One of my friends has a master in Chemistry. That's "all" she got. I don't know how much she makes but I can tell you that she is not suffering. She works for the FDA. If you have any questions, I can ask her. She'll help gladly.

You should talk to someone at your school and ask them what companies are hiring and what's the average initial salary. Believe me, with your double degree, you are pretty much set.

 

 

4. The Christmas break is not over yet, so think about all you want and how you want your future to be. I know that whatever decision you make, your parents will support you and will still love you. And remember, problems are always temporary.

[CrystalK]

I believe in you!! :hug:

 

Maybe it would be refreshing, especially with your rigorous and partly unsatisfying academic background, to do something crazy - like the Peace Corps or that type of program. You could take a couple years off, work within your field of study, pay off some loans, and gain some incredibly valuable life experience.

 

..but I'm only a sophomore in college. I really like macky's advice.

[chuck kottke]

Let us examine for a moment the other side of life. This is a test. For the next 60 seconds, we will be conducting a test of the emergency broadside service. This is only a test.

 

Pursue a career in Art. Make fitness fun. Sell colored balloons to kids at amusement parks. Perfect the art of body painting. Go ice fishing. We've overloaded the planet with technocrats, geeks, geniuses, and the like - and look what it's done! Sure, they've got the answers, but most of the problems are created because we think too much and feel too little. Heart disease? because we've refined foods using science and eat fat because we're nervous from all those science exams!:P Then we take the panacea we're offered, served up as either soft serve or butter brickle, and the beverages sure to temporarily ward off the pressures of modern life. And then there's ..Stress! Not enough partying and biking on the trails, that's the problem. Smell the flowers, enjoy their beauty, laugh, forget the chemical names for all the scents they give off, or how their genetics works. All the vitamins and minerals are there in nature, in healthy foods grown in rich natural soils, all preventive of the cancers and other things ailing us. Science gave us phthalates leaching into foods, mountaintop removal, reactors that melt down, and foods lacking active vitamins but loaded with pesticides. Science gave us the machines of war, the spy cameras hidden in every towel dispenser, the antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria, medicines that don't break down in nature, and the hand sanitizers that sterilize everything, including the environment. Artists know to just enjoy things as they are, in their pure and natural state. To seek higher truths through reflection, contemplation, and creating portals for imagination.

Income? Mass movements are where it's at, become a veggie-burger street vendor, serve them VB with spinach and sweet peppers on whole grain bread, the crowds will love you and you'll earn enough to buy a good used VW van, with a solar hot water system included. Paint some flowers on the side. The waste fryer oil makes great fuel, and the times spent rallying with fellow humans is priceless. You'll never regret a career in becoming fully human.

=======================================================

This message brought to you by all those who have checked out of the merry go round. Peace.

Occupy Everything until citizens are in control again.:cool: Then we regain control of the FDA to protect us, not the plutocracy.

[NumbersGirl]

I thought about that, but to write things like that you need a lot of experience in science, plus a PhD with a really solid postdoctoral background. So I wouldn't be doing that until about 40-50 years old. I write papers for the lab I'm in right now, and it's actually quite rewarding. We've been published in quite a few journals and stuff. Unfortunately, though, there's not a huge market for it outside of an academic environment.

 

I was going to suggest the same thing, writing for textbooks. I know you say that you need more experience to be qualified for writing that stuff, but there are other things you can do. You can draft stuff for review, or you can be the reviewer/editor yourself, write the page margin text... there's lots of things you can do without outright writing the main text. My husband's friend has a degree in english/literature, and he gets ad-hoc jobs from publishing companies for writing in textbooks, reviewing, margin text, all sorts of stuff. He works from home and submits his work electronically. So, if your concern is being able to take care of your parents in the near future, that could be beneficial. You might want to at least inquire about it, it couldn't hurt.

 

 

Oh, and take a Strong Interest Inventory (or other similar) test if you haven't done so already. Not one of the wimpy ones, but one of the really detailed ones that you can take at the Career Center at your college/university.

[Brent]

Thanks everyone!

 

Oh, and take a Strong Interest Inventory (or other similar) test if you haven't done so already. Not one of the wimpy ones, but one of the really detailed ones that you can take at the Career Center at your college/university.

 

Yeah, I took one of those. It's not that I don't know what I'm interested in, it's just that I don't know how to find the right balance between family and future employment, plus my interests. It doesn't really factor in the economy and personal issues, though. So, I wish it were that easy! :unsure:

 

As for the textbook thing, I have a little experience in that department because I edited a few journals, and my professor that I'm very close with has been working on a molecular biology textbook, and I've been doing a little background on that, plus editing it. So I guess I have my foot in the door. I've never really seriously considered that. Maybe there's another path I can take to get into the industry that's not-so vanilla.

[chuck kottke]

With family, be there when you can, when it's really important. But there are services to help them out a bit, and you need to focus on a career to make things happen as well, so keep on keeping on in life. I'm glad you're concerned about their needs in life, but you've got to be strong to help them out as you can. Good to keep those services going strong too, since we rely on functioning well in our work and career environments to keep things going in the modern world, so keep supporting the support networks we have out there - those services are vital, as are decent pay and benefits for ordinary Americans.

Vanilla is good, though I know what you mean - well, maybe start out with plain vanilla and then as you get your feel for it, branch off into other areas, there are more options, and you would then have experience to back you up. Just ideas, that or join a commune! ;)

[Crests]

become a stripper

[Reilly]

I'm a stripper before I go to bed or in the shower.

[chuck kottke]

Exotic Dancer, strippers are old-fashioned. :nod:

[Crests]

:nod:

[Prince Myshkin]

It's possible to make quite a lot as an escort.

[Brent]

^ Problem solved! Hope to see you on Compton Ave. :gorgeous:

[MaxRide]

This thread went from serious to awkward in five posts.

[NumbersGirl]

It's possible to make quite a lot as an escort.

Yes lots of money, but quite a bit of risk also. Within the past week, 4 escorts ended up dead around here (suspected serial killings).

 

 

This thread went from serious to awkward in five posts.

I just made it even more awkward. :nod:

 

Doesn't negate my original helpful response though.

[Brent]

Within the past week, 4 escorts ended up dead around here (suspected serial killings).

 

:uhoh: :uhoh2:

[ColdplayingfromKansas]

This thread went from serious to awkward in five posts.

 

:nod:

 

Sorry Brent, I can't really be much help here since I'm only a sophomore in high school, but I wish you luck in whatever it is you choose to do! :)

[chuck kottke]

Alright, be a heavily armed escort then! :laugh3: And just steer clear of those place with cereal killers, they leave a lot of soggy corn flakes on the tables and such. ;)

I get to be a chauffeur tomorrow, yippee! I need to invest in one of those stylish caps and the wool tweed jackets. :biker:

[SupermassiveCPnerd]

Just LOVE CP. ;)