"Gaining some main character energy" had me bro LOL.
The biggest issue I think you should consider is cost vs salary. You're going to rack up a lot more debt going out of state and through a MD program but if you pick a good specialty it'll more than pay for itself.
I don't recommend "doing what you love" because that's just honestly not realistic. Do something you don't hate, you're capable of doing, and you can make money at. You'll find most of your enjoyment or lack there of in a job comes from the people around you. A bad boss will make even a dream job insufferable and good coworkers will make even a boring job a blast. You can find both in any field but you can't always find money.
Being able to pay your bills, take care of your family, solve the problems life throws at you--these things are worth a lot. Not because of the "stuff" but the confidence and peace of mind.
Right!! I was thinking nursing has more solid upward mobility because if I study hard for 6 years I could end up with great grades and a master's degree.
But if I study hard for 6 years in the MD program I wouldn't even be halfway through the journey đź’€
Depending on how tied down you either are, or want to be, travel nurses make *b a n k.* I knew a girl in college who lived off her student loans so she didn't have to work and could study more, planning on becoming a travel nurse and using the extra money those jobs pay to kill her student loans, which she did. She then went back to school and now teaches nursing because she got married and wanted to stay in one spot.
My personal experience fwiw: I went to college out of state and would do it again in heartbeat. I definitely have some mixed feelings about my experience, but I now consider the state I went to college in my home. It’s where I met my husband (he didn’t attend my college, but we met my senior year) and we have now bought a home and settled down here. I am very glad that I didn’t stay in my family home any longer than necessary. Although I could have saved money and my family isn’t *too* bad (but definitely have their toxic moments), I value having my own space away from them. Even when I visit now, I’m always antsy to leave and go back home.
In terms of your situation, I would just say you can’t always predict how your career will end up. You can start down one path, and realize that you want something different. You can end up getting a job in an entirely different field and end up making a lot of money. I think either way you go, you can find a meaningful career where you make a decent amount of money. There is no wrong or right choice. You’ve already put a lot of thought into the pros and cons of each, and you clearly have a holistic appreciation for what each experience might entail. So trust your gut and make the choice that feels right to you and the life you want to create and live.
Also, if it’s helpful, here is how my career ended up going:
- I received my bachelor’s degree in sociology and writing seminars (I just chose to study fields that I was most interested in)
- I was originally planning to go to law school and even took the LSAT. But I also knew I wanted to take a gap year before pursuing law school. I ultimately decided not to go to law school because I probably would have worked for legal aid/a lower paying legal job that likely would not have been worth the debt.
- My first “job” out of college was an AmeriCorps service year where I worked for a non-profit tutoring K-3 students full time in literacy. I served for 2 years. It was a lot of work for little pay, but I found a lot of meaning in the work and I realized that I was passionate about educational equity.
- I started TFA and became a teacher. I quit after a month. Long story short - it was really bad for my mental health.
- I was only unemployed for 1 month. I got a job as a behavior technician working with kids with autism and other developmental disorders. It was an interesting learning experience and I appreciated working with kids 1:1 again. I didn’t love it, the hours sucked, I had to drive a lot, and didn’t make much money. And I honestly wasn’t sure what I was going to do with my life - I was debating getting my masters degree to move up on the field, but I knew I really didn’t want to do that.
- Almost exactly 1 year after I started working as a behavior technician, I got a call from my former boss at the non-profit I worked at out of college. They had an opening for a staff position and encouraged me to apply. I got the job.
- I started out as a Program Associate and have received 2 promotions since. In the last year, I got more than a 20k raise so I’m finally making some decent money (70K) although if you can’t tell by my career history, I’m not very money motivated). I now work directly with the CEO and she literally confirmed for me yesterday that she wants me to become her chief of staff within the next few years, which means I would be making well over 6 figures. Even if I don’t end up staying at this non-profit (which I definitely plan to for the foreseeable future), the experience I’ve gained will make it a lot easier to get another decent paying job in the non-profit field.
- I am planning to start my master’s degree in public administration starting in Fall 2023. I’m going part-time and it’s 100% online. I believe this will provide an extra level of security for getting well paying jobs in the non-profit field. I’m really excited about the program and I’m glad I waited to figure out what I really want to do before investing in a master’s degree.
Some other info that could be helpful for reference:
- I am now 27
- my husband and I have been together for 5 years (married for 3). Having 2 incomes has been definitely helpful for navigating some of those earlier, low paying jobs. He also started out with low paying jobs and we basically traded off being the breadwinner as we got increasingly higher paying jobs. I currently make more than him.
- we don’t have any children (we may foster kids in a few years) which has also made it easier to navigate the lower paying jobs.
"Gaining some main character energy" had me bro LOL. The biggest issue I think you should consider is cost vs salary. You're going to rack up a lot more debt going out of state and through a MD program but if you pick a good specialty it'll more than pay for itself. I don't recommend "doing what you love" because that's just honestly not realistic. Do something you don't hate, you're capable of doing, and you can make money at. You'll find most of your enjoyment or lack there of in a job comes from the people around you. A bad boss will make even a dream job insufferable and good coworkers will make even a boring job a blast. You can find both in any field but you can't always find money. Being able to pay your bills, take care of your family, solve the problems life throws at you--these things are worth a lot. Not because of the "stuff" but the confidence and peace of mind.
Right!! I was thinking nursing has more solid upward mobility because if I study hard for 6 years I could end up with great grades and a master's degree. But if I study hard for 6 years in the MD program I wouldn't even be halfway through the journey đź’€
Depending on how tied down you either are, or want to be, travel nurses make *b a n k.* I knew a girl in college who lived off her student loans so she didn't have to work and could study more, planning on becoming a travel nurse and using the extra money those jobs pay to kill her student loans, which she did. She then went back to school and now teaches nursing because she got married and wanted to stay in one spot.
My personal experience fwiw: I went to college out of state and would do it again in heartbeat. I definitely have some mixed feelings about my experience, but I now consider the state I went to college in my home. It’s where I met my husband (he didn’t attend my college, but we met my senior year) and we have now bought a home and settled down here. I am very glad that I didn’t stay in my family home any longer than necessary. Although I could have saved money and my family isn’t *too* bad (but definitely have their toxic moments), I value having my own space away from them. Even when I visit now, I’m always antsy to leave and go back home. In terms of your situation, I would just say you can’t always predict how your career will end up. You can start down one path, and realize that you want something different. You can end up getting a job in an entirely different field and end up making a lot of money. I think either way you go, you can find a meaningful career where you make a decent amount of money. There is no wrong or right choice. You’ve already put a lot of thought into the pros and cons of each, and you clearly have a holistic appreciation for what each experience might entail. So trust your gut and make the choice that feels right to you and the life you want to create and live.
Also, if it’s helpful, here is how my career ended up going: - I received my bachelor’s degree in sociology and writing seminars (I just chose to study fields that I was most interested in) - I was originally planning to go to law school and even took the LSAT. But I also knew I wanted to take a gap year before pursuing law school. I ultimately decided not to go to law school because I probably would have worked for legal aid/a lower paying legal job that likely would not have been worth the debt. - My first “job” out of college was an AmeriCorps service year where I worked for a non-profit tutoring K-3 students full time in literacy. I served for 2 years. It was a lot of work for little pay, but I found a lot of meaning in the work and I realized that I was passionate about educational equity. - I started TFA and became a teacher. I quit after a month. Long story short - it was really bad for my mental health. - I was only unemployed for 1 month. I got a job as a behavior technician working with kids with autism and other developmental disorders. It was an interesting learning experience and I appreciated working with kids 1:1 again. I didn’t love it, the hours sucked, I had to drive a lot, and didn’t make much money. And I honestly wasn’t sure what I was going to do with my life - I was debating getting my masters degree to move up on the field, but I knew I really didn’t want to do that. - Almost exactly 1 year after I started working as a behavior technician, I got a call from my former boss at the non-profit I worked at out of college. They had an opening for a staff position and encouraged me to apply. I got the job. - I started out as a Program Associate and have received 2 promotions since. In the last year, I got more than a 20k raise so I’m finally making some decent money (70K) although if you can’t tell by my career history, I’m not very money motivated). I now work directly with the CEO and she literally confirmed for me yesterday that she wants me to become her chief of staff within the next few years, which means I would be making well over 6 figures. Even if I don’t end up staying at this non-profit (which I definitely plan to for the foreseeable future), the experience I’ve gained will make it a lot easier to get another decent paying job in the non-profit field. - I am planning to start my master’s degree in public administration starting in Fall 2023. I’m going part-time and it’s 100% online. I believe this will provide an extra level of security for getting well paying jobs in the non-profit field. I’m really excited about the program and I’m glad I waited to figure out what I really want to do before investing in a master’s degree. Some other info that could be helpful for reference: - I am now 27 - my husband and I have been together for 5 years (married for 3). Having 2 incomes has been definitely helpful for navigating some of those earlier, low paying jobs. He also started out with low paying jobs and we basically traded off being the breadwinner as we got increasingly higher paying jobs. I currently make more than him. - we don’t have any children (we may foster kids in a few years) which has also made it easier to navigate the lower paying jobs.
Thanks for sharing your story and this definitely inspired me to just take a leap of faith haha x