Still not sure why you're in College?
Does money matter to you? According to CNNMoney, in 2011 first-time salaries for business majors were $48,089, while engineers started at $59,435, and liberal arts majors could expect to start at $35,633. In the debt column, The Wall Street Journal says that the class of 2011 graduated with an average college loan bill of $22,900, up 47 percent in the last decade. Yikes!
Still not sure?
Have you ever taken an aptitude test? Careerpath.com has a couple of quizzes that can help you decide. Remember, your career is something you are supposed to do for the rest of your life. You can do something you like, or you can do something to make money, or you can do both? How you ask? If you are good at accounting, but you've always wanted to be an actor, you could do accounting work for a Hollywood studio or agency.
How do you know what you like?
Think about the things that you mastered without anyone ever telling you to practice. Are you a video game aficionado? Are you a killer guitarist? A photographer with a flair for the beautiful? Think about what kind of careers are available in the field? You don't just have to play video games or the guitar to work in the software or music field.
It is expensive to go to the collage, especially for international students. Our tuition fee is 10 times higher that a local student, however we still go to the collage. The reason why we make this decision is we are clear what we are going to do in the future. We have our career development goal and most of us have family business. I used to straggle why I need to spend so much time for getting a paper, but after I went to internship I finally find the answer. We need skill and tools when we get into work, it's like a solder in a battle. No matter how strong you are, you have to have a weapon. Skills and professional knowledge is your weapon when you work in as professional. So study in collage is let you get ready for your future career, we need to really learn something in collage not an 'A' score.
ReplyDeleteSomebody that is in college should be there because they want to and know why they're there. Having a goal in life is important. After High School, education is no longer forced onto students. A person chooses to go to College, Trade School, or Work. Some people choose to work and go to school too. Choosing a career that's interesting is important, but everyone doesn't end up working in a field of there choice. Since College is payed for, some think studying a passion is important. Though studying a passion is important, it's not always the case. Some choose to just study to learn about a good paying job. It's the students choice to study, but it should be for a good reason; not just to keep a seat warm.
ReplyDeleteCollege is not just about trying to figure out your career, it's also about gaining the knowledge that will help you throughout your whole life. The different kinds of classes that we take help us to further recognize ourselves and that is what helps us with figuring out what we want to be doing. Tuition fees are just out of this world nowadays and every student is lucky to have a chance like this to get a better education. There are people that can't afford college and just work. Therefore, each and every student illegible to go to college has to appreciate everything. Our career should not be just about the money. It's not worth it to have a job that pays a lot, but everyday of working is something you're not happy with it. I myself don't have my career choice figured out, but that is why I am taking classes to figure out what I want to do. That is the whole reason of college. It's the best way of seeking more knowledge to make a difference in society. Yes, at times I do get frustrated with college because I feel like I'm lost, but it's the motivation and goals that help each and every one of us strive everyday to see a better future for ourselves. It all comes down to the person themselves. Some people don't see the importance of college until they lose the opportunity, and others put all their hope and dreams into it. The purpose of life is to make a difference in our lives for the better, and without education and gaining more knowledge we wouldn't get anywhere in life.
ReplyDeleteThere are many unemployed graduate students who are eager to seek a career or even a basic job that will cover the bills after college. But a career is not promised right after graduation due to all the competition and other young adults trying to find a job as well. There is a significantly larger chance of a student that holds a degree to get employed, rather than a person who does not have an education. That is one example of why I personally attended college right after high school. I witness freshman college students in some of my classes that are undecided about their major and even question why they are here. Some students that are already enrolled at East Bay complain about the high prices in everything, the parking lot that is not guaranteed a parking spot all the time, and the classes that are so far away from each other, but college is an investment and definitely an accomplishing feeling. Anyone can get a job, but it takes a dedicated, focused vision, motivated individual to graduate college.
ReplyDeleteCollege seems to be the expected action after high school and doing otherwise almost speaks to being a failure. Yes, there are trade schools and the possibility of going straight to work, but it isn't what society seems be asking students to do. For some people, going to school is not an option because of financial issues, medical problems, or family commitments. For others, continuing their education is what they have come to think of normal behavior, not really considering why they want to go to school and if college is actually the right step for them.
ReplyDeleteFor me, I go to school because I know it's the "smart choice" for getting the better paying jobs and I do enjoy learning. Even though I still don't know what career I want to do after college, I want to be prepared to do the best job I can do. To me, having a four year education is the best way to prepare myself.
There are many different jobs and careers that have yet to be made and knowing what you are interested in is a great start to figuring out brand new business world. Reasons to go to college can be whether or not a person likes to learn by the books, if you are determined enough to stick with the program, and even for the money value to gain back after graduation.
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ReplyDeleteMy parents were never given the opportunity to go to college and that is why they have been dedicated to send me to college. In the past, having a college degree meant getting a well paid job right out of college. Today, the unemployment rate is high and the job market has become very competitive. The cost of attending college and the difficulty of finding jobs has raised the question of it being worth it to get a college degree? A college degree puts individuals ahead of those with a high school diploma. Even though it is difficult to find a career right out of college, a college degree will help individuals set certain standards and goals that they can work towards achieving in the future.
ReplyDeleteReading the title of the article and asking myself the same question, I would say that I am attending college to pursue higher education. Higher education will help me get my foot in the right path of getting experience to one day have a career that will be high paying. I am not obtaining a degree in what I enjoy doing but a degree that will help me be financially stable.
I agree with this post because college does consume time, money and energy so it makes sense to know exactly what you want to succeed in that way by the time you need to graduate you know which direction you want to be in. It baffles me when students barely choose a major their junior year, or continuously change majors because they are basically setting themselves back and at the end they have to pay it all back. I can understand if your an incoming freshmen and need to find out what fits your personality but procrastination will hinder you, and your graduation. This blog points out a few things that struck my attention such as presenting a website that helps steer you in the right direction by taking quizzes to help you choose your career path. Personally I have only changed my major once and I instantly found my passion in my career choice but it may take others some time to figure it out but that's why we have resources to fall back on such as this blog to help it us students it just takes that one person to actually take the initiative and look.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this article, because it is true four years is a very long time to waste if you are not sure what you actually want to do with it. If you study your whole entire schooling on a subject that does not help you in finding the right career, you potential can be stuck with a job you highly dislike. Not only that but it is a chance that you find a career that does not fit you financial needs, your school loans and other bills can exceed your future living arrangement.
ReplyDeleteMy mother and father both decided that college was not for them after they have been in school and realized that they would not be able to afford college in the long run.
Everyone goes to college for one reason, to have a good job that pays well. I agree with that, I am going to college to have a good job with good pay, but there is also another reason, I want to learn something new. In high school you learn, but in college you learn even more.
ReplyDeleteMany people who go into college do not know what they will major in. It's oaky to not know what you will major in for the first two years, but once you hit that two year mark and you still dont know what you are doing there. You just wasted two years of your ife. There are some students who made up their mind on what major they will pursue. I am one of them. The reason that I decided on my major and career is because I you will have something to look forward to. When you know what your goal is and you hit a bump along the road during college, some will feel like quiting, you can use your goals as motivation to work harder at reaching your goal.
Going to college is an amazing opportunity, although it makes an immense hole in your pocket, what you get out of the experience is what is most important. Reading that Liberal Arts majors start off making only 35,000 a year of course crushed me. Then I realized that im not really choosing my major based on the pay. I chose my major based on my passion. Being a teacher is what I have been wanting to do since I was a very young girl. I might have to go through life paying off college, but i know in the end it will all be worth it.
ReplyDeleteUnlike other countries, all American citizen have good chance going to college with the support and grant from US government, therefore going to college is not a burden for them. There is someone think going to college is the only way to have a better future life but there is also someone think going to college is the good way to get financial aid to live for several years. There are many different thinking about going to college, but from my opinion, an international student in the US, I think going to college is the good choice to survive in American society. If someone still do not know why they are going to college, perhaps, they are not ready to decide and choose the way to reach their future career. Going to college helps you know why you are weak in your life like communication, skill or what you are expert like statistic, writing. It makes one of the decisions of your future career.
ReplyDeleteCollege is not a cheap, but most students agree to put that hole in their pockets in hopes to repair that hole and more by obtaining a job that calls for college education. I am in college to get the knowledge I need to get a career I enjoy, making good pay. It is important to know your major and what you want to potentially do in life but sometimes its not that easy. Planning for the future could be overwhelming but college is an amazing opportunity to explore and discover what you want to do in life. Collegepath is a great resource to help you with what you want to do as well. You do not want to be the student sitting in lecture, not knowing why you are there, what you want to do in life-- the best part, having money fall out of your pockets while you sit there not wanting to be there nor knowing why you are there!
ReplyDeletePeople attend to college for many reasons such as parents pressure, achieving their goals, or get a well paid job.
ReplyDeleteFor me, before enrolling college, I was not sure what my major is. I only think about make more friends in order to develop my social skill and improve my poor English. Gradually, I realized that without study goal, going to college equals wasting time. Then, I chose Accounting as my major. Since having a study goal,I started to make a study plan and take effort on it to achieve my goal. Even though the college fee are expense, the knowledge that I learn is not the money can estimate. I think it's worth to invest in education.
As a international student, our tuition fee is more than 10 times higher than the local students. But still have so many international students came here for study, cause we believe we can be better in the future. We came here for study language, professional skill, personal talent and open mind. We go to college because we want higher education. It is ourselves duty to balance the value to go college or not. I decide to get higher education, because I want to prove myself and it is value it. I go to the website: www.careerpath.com and take the quiz from the website. It shows my interest and my style is all yellow. It means I am preferring administration like I like collect information and analysis it.
ReplyDeleteI’ve just declared my major, which is liberal studies. Before I declared this major I was considering being a doctor or something in the medical being aware of the starting salary. I never had an interest of being a doctor nurse or anything to that extent, especially when I took the aptitude test and every single result concluded that my special area was in the teaching field I decided to pursue in that area. I think sometimes you just need to do what you love and what you’re good at. I’m fully aware that teachers especially in today’s society are underpaid but that’s something I’m want to do .I look at it this way, while I’m in college ill be enjoying my classes and succeeding in them oppose to taking some boring science class that I barley pass, that's when the money you spend in college becomes a waste. I believe that having degree now day’s is just a piece of paper that says you’re smart. When I become a teacher and if I feel like I’m not making enough money I can always move into another area. It might require more work but that’s a chance imp willing to take. If people spend their college lives listening to statistics I believe they will end up wasting more money after 6 or 7 years in school due to the changing of their major’s. Every career field has up’s and low’s the best thing you can do is figure out what works best for you, what you like and understand that you wont be stuck with that career forever you can always leave and choose something else, nothing is limited!
ReplyDelete-Abey
Going to college is a great opportunity among everyone. It gives you the chance to strive higher in life and do better. I think that acquiring better degree's rather than a high school diploma is what leads me to achieving better job opportunities. Although, everyone knows that college isn't cheap. But think about the assistance you can get from the government if you can't afford to go to college. To be specific, financial aid will most definitely help you. In the end, it'll be all worth it. Especially if you pay for your tuition without the assistance from your guardian. As a college student, I feel that it's worth every penny to go to college.
ReplyDelete- Jeremy A.
Almost every American can attend college;however, most choose that college is just not for them. Unlike me and others who feel the same as me, I do not think I am fit for college. Yet i know it will take me farther later in life. My major is psychology and I am hoping to take my degree to a masters, possibly even a Ph.D. I do not really enjoy psychology as a hobby, but I feel i am knowledgeable in it, even though I have not been studying for too long.I am instinctively good at video games, but who isn't these days. I would like to do my hobby as a career, but it seems it wouldn't take me far. I could get jobs close to video gaming like, graphic designing, storyboard creator, or possibly even game artwork; however, i am not into those type of sub category of video gaming. Hopefully in my lifetime, I can be a psychologist, and still enjoy my hobby hopefully, or become a stereotypical boring psychologist who sits on his computer chair reading the newspaper and drinking some coffee waiting for clientele to come in for their therapy.
ReplyDeleteAs a current college student, I face the same issues. I’m currently undeclared and haven’t even considered what I want to major in. My goal is to get my general ed., transfer, and figure it out from there. Taking the advice from the article, and thinking of the things that I’ve “mastered” and turning them into career would be fun. However a lot of the things we’ve mastered aren’t quite considered a career or they lead a lifestyle that you don’t want to live. The things that we love to do aren’t always realistically worth devoting your life too. College is expensive and not something to waste your money on. To get a career in today’s society you must have a degree or you can kiss your chances of employment goodbye. I feel that it is not a question of what I will get my degree in, but how I chose to use the degree that I’ll earn.
ReplyDeleteAll throughout grade school I believed that college was my only choice. That completely stressed me out because I never thought that I was smart. College is used to give people an advanced education and to help with job opportunities. The problem is that you should major in what you’re good at or what interests you. I’m interested in sports and computers so that my help me decide what I want to do. At this moment I’m an art major, but I want to find a career that won’t be threatened by new technology or this economy.
ReplyDeleteGoing to college for the passed three years, it has taken me a long time to even think what I want to do after school. I am grateful my parents can pay for college, however, I have been confused about what to do in the future (after school). It is highly time consuming to get the classes we want and to even figure out what we want in our schedule. Most schools in California have limited so much of the classes, that it becomes a drag trying to get what you want. That makes it more confusing to figure out what to do in the future. I wish college was not to go there to feel like it has become a waste of time, but to feel as though the education will help us all out with knowledge and even to gain experience. If only there were more options in schools and if the tuition prices were not increasing, I bet many students would not feel as confused about why they are in college.
ReplyDeleteIn my experience, I am at my third year of college and I am starting to feel like what I am learning in school is not what I want to do in the future. If I change my major and minor or add in another minor, it becomes a big hassle (especially when I am trying to graduate in a year). But I hope I figure it out soon what I want to do in college or else it will become pointless to even come to college.
I'm a first year college student here at csu east bay and there has been alot of stuff going on. It's fun and all but your main focus is keeping up with your classes and staying on track with all your assignments and homework. The last few quarters, I received horrible gpa because I was distracted and wasn't prioritizing on school. But i learn my mistakes and at this moment,I'm kinda getting better than last time and I have to work twice as hard in order to stay here.
ReplyDeleteAlthough it is expansive to go to college, there is so much you can learn from there. I can't say all the courses I have to take are equally exciting and enjoyable. But just merely the anticipation of what is waiting for you in a lecture can bring me the joy and excitement that I want especially when it comes to astronomy, astrophysics, physics, mathematics and, most importantly, the lab. There are so many things unknown to human and so much to learn. I don't know about others, but I'm sure that uncovering the secrets of the universe is the best thing life has to offer. Perhaps, there could be a way to prove/disprove the existence of God.
ReplyDeleteThus, going to college, to me, is worth every penny and my time.
Most people just go to college for the "experience", when really its just a big high school and you're paying for it. College would be so much simpler if we could just go straight into our major. I know we got vocational schools for that sort of thing, but its not the same. We all are in college for financial security, consequently, there will be those that say they go to become" what they love", for example, a nurse or social worker, and wonder why their life sucks afterwards because they only got enough money to pay their bills and buy groceries. We're in college to establish our financial status. You want to be rich, middle class, or poor? Decide on that when you think you want to become a nurse, social worker, or photographer.
ReplyDeleteStill not sure why you're in College?
ReplyDeleteI am quite sure why I left my country and come to a whole new country to study, to seat in a lecture hall, instead of starting to work with a low paid. The reason I chose to come here is that i want to get a more higher quality education so that i can be much better then other competitors. Of course, the four years or more spending in college is time consuming and expensive. But if you compare this 4 years with the time rest of your life, it is just a small piece. What is more, you can get lots of benefit form it. People who get a higher education usually have a higher salary then those do not a higher education. whatever you want to work about your interest or work for money, you still need to get skills, tools from college. Actually, i think people nowadays have no choice to choose going into college or not, because almost every people have gotten a college education or are in the college right now or are going to go into college. You will be left behind if you do not get a college.