Income Risk
This prompt definitely instilled a bit of panic within me, as it forces me to dwell on things I tend to try not to think about. I would say that many of my current decisions are more focused on the here and now rather than being cautious for the future. I would also like to add that many of my decisions are heavily influenced by my parents- what they expect from me, what they have planned for me, etc. Since entering college, however, their influence on me has dwindled a bit (at my insistence).
I’m currently double majoring in Political Science and Economics, with the hopes of attending law school and ultimately being a corporate lawyer. My major has caused quite a bit of controversy amongst my parents, as my dad was hoping I’d major in Business. I took a couple of classes freshman year that were in the College of Business- Business Calculus, for example. After the first semester I was convinced that I did not want to be in Business, as the courses filled me with dread and I found myself unmotivated to learn in them. On the contrary, I loved both the economics and political science courses I had taken. Although the choice seemed simple to me and intuitive to me, I was terrified to tell my parents; choosing a path for myself that was not preapproved by them was, at this point in my life, unheard of.
I am sure that their plan was made with caution for the future- majoring in Business, especially at the University of Illinois, would undoubtedly lead to fruitful career prospects. I couldn’t argue that the major I wanted was better, safer, or more likely to land me a high paying job. All I could say was that I simply wanted to do Political Science and Economics, and that majoring in Business would make me miserable for four years. Ultimately I ripped the band-aid off, faced the consequences (being shunned by my father, crying from my mother, an overall sense of disappointing my parents, etc.), and changed my major to what I wanted it to be. I would be lying if I said that I haven’t wondered how much easier it would be for me if I had done as they told me to do, especially now that I am job hunting as well as applying to law schools. All in all though, I am confident in my past decision regarding my major: their path might have led to higher paying jobs and better law school acceptances, but my choice has ensured me of happiness and mental health benefits.
I’m an out-of-state student from Oklahoma, and thus have definitely accumulated debt. Although I am blessed in both not being expected to pay it all off by myself and having parents who can afford to support me, I fully intend to pay most of it. I would say my student loan debt is something that I really try not to think too much about. It’s terrifying for me to truly consider the crushing mass of it all, especially right now as I am unemployed and actively searching. Law school will add an easy 200k to the mountain of loans I have, so I’ve been considering taking time between my undergraduate and graduate paths. The thought process is that I could secure a job, save some money while trying to make a dent in my student loans, and then eventually go to law school (hopefully within 3-5 years of graduating from the U of I). This potential path would definitely err on the side of focusing on the future, as I would be entering grad school with some money saved up as well as job experience under my belt. On the other hand, I feel this overwhelming urge to not fall behind my peers and friends. I don’t want to be the last one to actually start my life as an adult, and pushing law school back a couple of years would have the effect of postponing all of my other life plans. Writing this out makes it all seem so silly- the pressure of keeping up with everyone else shouldn’t outweigh logic and financial security.
Most of my self-insurances against income risk come from confidence in my ability to adapt as well as some light coding experience. Many economics jobs list experience with Python, R, or SAS as a plus, so I feel that this will assist me in landing (and keeping) a job. Knowing a bit of coding also provides a sort of failsafe backup, as software engineering jobs are plentiful right now. I also take comfort in the fact that law school coupled with political science and economics provides a large range of knowledge.
I have a friend, whom I met through a political RSO on campus, that is currently employed in Chicago. She received her MBA from the U of I last spring and subsequently started job hunting. She was well connected and thus networked her way into a nice, comfortable job in Chicago. There weren’t really any surprises in her experience, but she does mention that job hunting itself is a scary, depressing process. She’s given me good tidbits of advice, especially regarding resumes and the interview process
It's interesting that I had a student from Oklahoma in my class the last time it was offered (2017). I wonder what the likelihood of that happening twice in a row is.
ReplyDeleteThe pleasing the parents (or not) is it's own issue, which I would generally keep separate from the income risk part, except if they are footing some of your college costs. There, the income part is obvious. And your parents having a preference for business, I suspect, is about the likely income you'd make not about that work being "better" in some other way than being a lawyer.
Debt overhang from college forces a mindset of earning a good income early, so that burden can be retired quickly. But beyond that if you thought of a job as having many attributes, what it pays is but one of those, how it positions you for the future is perhaps another, and whether you get some satisfaction from the work apart from the money depends on still other attributes, probably does matter, longer term.
So you can look at some choices, coming to Illinois for example, and ask in retrospect was that wise, and consider other choices, about major is another one, and ask if that's sensible. I'm seeing a lot of students who are double majors and seem stressed out. I'm guessing they perceive the double major is a credential thing. But one major might be enough and maybe there would be deeper learning that way.
I'm unclear on where you learned coding, but it doesn't seem a necessary skill at present. I think the real skill, however, is being able to teach yourself new things on an as needed basis. I wonder if you've developed that way in college.
I have yet to meet another student on campus who is from Oklahoma, so at least someone has!
DeleteMy parents are footing most of the costs of college, any payment I give back is purely my own desire, not theirs. This makes it difficult to disobey them though, obviously, but simultaneously lowers income risk.
It's definitely true that having large amount of debt forces one to pay almost too much attention to the salary of a job. There then becomes a power play between the two necessities of not hating your job/being miserable and making enough money to not drown in your loans. I think the question of how a job now will impact my future later is something I don't consider often. I assume that the majority of jobs won't have a negative impact on my future prospects. However, I can see that choosing jobs strategically now can open new paths for the future.
I see the double major as less of a credentials thing and more as a way to be knowledgeable of two subjects. Although econ is my main major, I supplement my political science classes by being proactive and informed about world and U.S politics. I'm not sure if double majors hold much weight in the real world, though.
I self-taught myself Python through a paid online course. It's interesting that you view it as unnecessary, as my dad told me otherwise! I think coding is, at the very least, beneficial to have on one's resume. I do feel that I've learned to learn new things- the internet helps a lot in this aspect.