Career/college

Indecision about what to do next at this stage of your life is common. You can either try out college by attending some classes in your nearest community college, not even a full load perhaps, and see how you like it. Or you could try working for a while and see if you are happy with that or if you feel you need a college degree in order to live better.

Two more things to consider. Not all college degrees require four long years of study. Some good jobs require only two or even one, depending on the course of study. Also, if you do decide to go to college this coming fall, most degree courses of study require the same basic introductory classes so you don't get to specialize until about the third year (in a four year degree plan), meaning that if being in college goes well, you still have some time to decide on your major field and career objective.

Many people do not know their direction when they go to college and they figure it out when they get there…some go extremely focused and pursue ….some go focused and change directions.

I can’t (and neither can anybody else) tell you what to do ….If you want to go …do it…… If you have a trade that you might be interested in…try that…it’s a lot cheaper and can be financially rewarding.

Make a decision.... and head in that direction ….If God wants you to go in a different direction ..that will be revealed to you.

I can't tell you what to do, but I would suggest spending some time reflecting. I went to college and I enjoyed it, but it's not for everyone. Reflect on and feel where do you want to be when you are looking back at your life at a later time. Who is the person you want to be? Who are the people you want to help and serve? What is the difference you want to make in your life? Then think about whether you need to go to college to achieve that. Maybe you, maybe you don't, maybe there is an alternative path that you haven't seen yet.

jelena.j4 said:

Hello,
I need advice on this topic its really important. I have to decide if i want to apply to college or just end up with a high school degree. I prayed about it but i am not sure. What if i go to college but God doesn’t want me to. To be honest i would only go to college to get a more payed job. But im still not sure wich career should i pursue. I dont really have a lot of time to decide since im finishing highschool this year, and if i want to apply to college i should start with studying for it.

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I would recommend to take some time without college and if you will later in life see the need of it, you can study it remotely while already working, for example.

If you do not know what you want to do, it does not have much meaning to invest a lot of time and energy into studying "something" just for the sake of degree. We have a lot of people with worthless college degrees doing manual work or common office work, here.

However, you can study something that you are interested in, for now, no matter if you will want to work in that field. In such a case you will not waste your college time completely, but you will learn something for your personal life or hobby.

I went to college for no particular reason and got a journalism degree for no particular reason. Seven years later, I went to law school and got a law degree mostly because lawyering seemed to match my skill set. I can't honestly say that I regard either decision as a particularly wise or satisfying one.

If I had it to do all over, I think I might choose professional sports (I had a better fastball than a close friend who pitched in the World Series) or a trade or craft that I actually found enjoyable. The way society is going, I think a number of trades and crafts have better long-term potential than most careers that require a college degree.

The keys to me are (1) in what direction do your actual abilities point and, most importantly, (2) what are your actual interests and what do you actually like to do? In 40 years, you'll be way happier that you focused on those things than on income potential or what others pressured you to do. Perhaps spend some time with a counselor who specializes in helping young people make these sorts of decisions.

My wife and I were saying just this morning that a few years in the military can be a great way for many young people to discover who they really are and what their abilities and interests really are.

jelena.j4 said:

Hello,
I need advice on this topic its really important. I have to decide if i want to apply to college or just end up with a high school degree. I prayed about it but i am not sure. What if i go to college but God doesn’t want me to. To be honest i would only go to college to get a more payed job. But im still not sure wich career should i pursue. I dont really have a lot of time to decide since im finishing highschool this year, and if i want to apply to college i should start with studying for it.

Click to expand...

1. you absolutely should study for it - because you don't want to cut off options so early in the process.
2. In the mean time be praying that God will make it clear to you. Sometimes He guides by having you stay out one year between High School and College while you gain clarity on what you want as a career.

Two people work 45 hours a week - one makes 2x or 3x more than the other. What do they do? Maybe the one who makes less lives in a crowded area that is higher in crime and maybe the other one is able to locate in a lower crime area. Who knows? Either way ... don't limit God's option with your life.

Encourage you to talk with your guidance counselor if one is available at your school. There are tests you can take to help determine a career choice.

Definitely continue to asks the Lord for direction.

Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, but rather lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven;
Again, seek those things which are above; set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth; Again, look not at the things which are seen which are merely temporal; but rather look on things which are not seen which are eternal.

Don't go to college just to be going to college. Many people get college degrees that are not in demand. A college degree does not guarantee you a good job. There are a lot of job opportunities that do not require a college degree, but do require specific job skills. Some employers offer on the job training. Some require specific skills like computer skills, office management, medical terminology, etc. Look at job openings on a website like Indeed.com to see what kinds of job skills are in demand. Right now might be a good time to talk with employers because there are a lot of job openings since a lot of people are quitting their jobs, but be careful to not get into a dead-end job.
Look at the Occupational Outlook Handbook - Bureau of Labor Statistics.

I went to college to study for a field I couldn't make money in, so I went back and retrained. On that journey, I met many people who changed their majors, and many who transferred from one college to another. I also met a number of people who went back, and a number of people who went for the first time who were older.

You have options. You can change course if you need to. Consider an undeclared major. Consider going to a community college to get the basics out of the way, and earning transferable credits for less money (downside - since it's not a 4 year program, you would need to transfer and deal with the next school's transfer requirements).

Edit: I'm from the US, and your profile says you're from Serbia. I am unfamiliar with the college and university options in Serbia.

What do you want to do for work? University isn't necessary for the overwhelming majority of careers.

I used to regret not finishing my degree, now I don't care.