Choosing a Career as a Catholic

[MagipolyKarp]

So I have been at a Community College for 3 years mostly stagnant in my progression towards transferring largely due to the fact that I have no idea what to do. The problem is, as sad as it may sound, that I don’t feel passionate about anything really. I have been studying Biology but in my studies I have been almost completely unfocused the entire time and instead put most of my time into things related to sloth, conceit, sexual sins, and secular life in general, all for which i am deeply ashamed and am greatly trying to fix at this point… (pray for me in this regard if possible).

         As such, I have literally taken zero knowledge from my efforts in school and am kind of saddened because the last few years of my life have really just been purely meaningless. Im 21 btw. I don't really want to waste any more of my time here.

         But yes, the one thing I do know is that I want to benefit my fellow man as much as possible with whatever career I choose. I chose Biology for monetary reasons and although I see great potential to help people as a doctor or something along those lines I don't know if it's right for me.

I am posting here for any general support and to here your thoughts on the following:

Did being Catholic influence you toward gravitating to a particular major in college? If so, in what way?

Should I even be concerned with whether or not faith should be intertwined with work somehow or should they be seen as separate?

WHAT DO I DOOOOO?

Hope I am making sense. Thanks a lot!!!

 

[robertkchacon]

Love your post! Love your honesty and desire to do the right thing! God bless you!

It sounds like you first need to simply work on your relationship with God. It sounds like God has touched your heart for a desire to do good and help you fellow man. But God also wants you to have passion, and excitement about life and how your do serve Him and others.

Pray about your past life , discern your sinfulness and go to confession. It sounds like you are very aware of you sins so you may have already done that, but go to confession! Know that all that all you have done in your past can be swept away clean in Gods eyes by confession. You may still have to suffer some of the temporal consequences of these sins, such as angry ex girlfriends you may have used for sex, or stuff like that. But God will consider you a new born baby.

And dont regret! You are still very young! You have awoken from you past life early enough to do great and wonderful things for the Lord! Be thankful, love the Lord and He will set your path. Just listen to Him, take time to pray every day! Go to Mass to meet Jesus every week and try confess your sins monthly or so. And read your bible regularly, weekly if not daily.

When you have come to let God take over your life, and if you are listening carefully, He will direct your life. So, yes! The career path for a Catholic MUST be guided by his faithfulness to Christ. And when he grabs a hold of you and shows you your path, you will never work a day in your life. Doing His service as a Doctor, medical researcher, fireman, whatever, will be a joy and your work will never be drudgery.

But it starts with your willingness to be faithful in letting Christ be the center of your life. Start by just exploring what interests you. Is there ANYTHING that you would enjoy doing everyday, that you would look forward to doing each morning? Your career should have at least some the following elements: 1) Holds a great interest and desire for you, 2) Applies skills and talents you have, 3) Is part of a service that helps others in a way that God would find pleasing, and 5) Is something that suits your personality, and 6) is something you will do very well at in terms of level of performance, not in terms of pay. (The list not being in any particular order of priority)

There is a classic book called “What Color is My Parachute” that gives great career seeking/job seeking advice. The author is not overtly religious but the book is inherently spiritual and even Christian in its approach. I think the author is or was Catholic.

Great question! Great honesty and openness. Thanks for the posting! God bless, I am praying for you!

 

[Winter_Warlock_1]

Magi,

There is a great “test” on the internet - Jung Career Indicator - there are about 75 - 100 multiple choice questions. Afterwards it gives you a breakdown of the type of personality you have and a list of potential careers that suit your personality. There are several sites that have different type of questions so you can take it a few times. It can be very insightful.

I have done the test a few times and it has me listed as an INTJ. Which is what my personality is. It may help guide you but the choice will be yours to make. Pray and listen to what God is telling you in your heart.

May God grant you peace and strenght.

Winter

 

[Rhubarb]

I just turned 30 and am finally now almost done with my BA. Don’t feel bad about the time it’s taking to get focused. We all move at our own paces.

As for studies, check into what University you plan to attend and see what there is. I attend the University of California at Davis, and have been shocked with the vast array of programs and departments that it offers that I wouldn’t even think of. I could rattle off a dozen science and humanities degrees that can be leveraged to help your fellow man.

 

[Archaeopteryx]

I had no idea about what I wanted to do with life, and that contributed to my deciding to enlist in the Marine Corps. So I suggest you consider the military. I gained both a maturity and sense of direction I wouldn’t have if I had went straight to college after high school.

 

[adawgj]

Catholics have a wonderful tradition of being scholarly so being Catholic doesn’t have to separate you from work.

As of right now I’m a history major and I chose history because it is my favorite subject.
History has helped me regain my faith.

 

[tawny]

So I have been at a Community College for 3 years mostly stagnant in my progression towards transferring largely due to the fact that I have no idea what to do. The problem is, as sad as it may sound, that I don’t feel passionate about anything really. I have been studying Biology but in my studies I have been almost completely unfocused the entire time and instead put most of my time into things related to sloth, conceit, sexual sins, and secular life in general, all for which i am deeply ashamed and am greatly trying to fix at this point… (pray for me in this regard if possible).

         As such, I have literally taken zero knowledge from my efforts in school and am kind of saddened because the last few years of my life have really just been purely meaningless. Im 21 btw. I don't really want to waste any more of my time here.

         But yes, the one thing I do know is that I want to benefit my fellow man as much as possible with whatever career I choose. I chose Biology for monetary reasons and although I see great potential to help people as a doctor or something along those lines I don't know if it's right for me.

I am posting here for any general support and to here your thoughts on the following:

Did being Catholic influence you toward gravitating to a particular major in college? If so, in what way?

Should I even be concerned with whether or not faith should be intertwined with work somehow or should they be seen as separate?

WHAT DO I DOOOOO?

Hope I am making sense. Thanks a lot!!!

Praying to the Holy Spirit to give you guidance & direction in your career choice.

 

[Cricket2]

As a biology major of the past, and as one who loves the subject, your post indicates to me that biology is not your passion or interest, so don’t spend more time on it. Also, you are currently undecided about “what to be” which is fairly NORMAL for someone of your age. And though a lot of folks promote that higher ed track, it is not for everyone, at least this early in the game.

Remember, if you have taken several core courses most will transfer, so don’t think of the time you have spent as a waste. It all counts. But maybe you are one who would benefit from a trade, or certificate program of some kind: There are options like being a chef, working as an administrative assistant for almost any company out there, becoming a professional cake decorator, banking (even just a teller for a while), cashier or waiting tables. Just trying some things out that you can enter without further education may help you find your way.

Of course, if you are thinking of a career more oriented toward your faith you could consider becoming a Director of Religious Education, a Parish Secretary, a member of the admissions staff in your local Catholic Hospital. Then there is always making an effort to check into Missionary work of some kind. Your local Archdiocese just may have information on current missionary work the Church is involved in.

So, you could certainly let college go for a couple of years, try out a couple of different jobs (each for 6 months or a year) and even try life out in another state. (Remember if you want to return to college you have to live in the state that college exists in for one year to be a resident.) Or, you could go ahead and see if there is a missionary effort to get involved in. You might be surprised at what you could discover. The important thing is to try, regardless of how you may feel. (Bored or disinterested.) Think back if you must to when you were a kid even and see if you remember something you thought you wanted to be when you grew up. There could be a clue there.

 

[Sunbreak]

I am posting here for any general support and to here your thoughts on the following:

Did being Catholic influence you toward gravitating to a particular major in college? If so, in what way?

Should I even be concerned with whether or not faith should be intertwined with work somehow or should they be seen as separate?

WHAT DO I DOOOOO?

No, I just picked something that sounded interesting, so being Catholic wasn’t a factor.
Your faith is part of your life whether or not you are working in a faith-related job.

The thing is, just choose something and stick with it for awhile. You can change careers later if you want. Many careers have transferable skills. You can make any job into something better by doing the job well and being kind to the people around you, even if you worked at a fast food job.

 

[Costner]

Uncle Sam wants you to join the Military!

 

[Costner]

I had no idea about what I wanted to do with life, and that contributed to my deciding to enlist in the Marine Corps. So I suggest you consider the military. I gained both a maturity and sense of direction I wouldn’t have if I had went straight to college after high school.

 

[Deo_Gratias42]

Catholics have a wonderful tradition of being scholarly so being Catholic doesn’t have to separate you from work.

As of right now I’m a history major and I chose history because it is my favorite subject.
History has helped me regain my faith.

Ah, but does it help you pay your bills?

I’m in a similar boat. I have a mountain of student loan debt, a lot of education in fields that interest me, but with no job prospects because it’s all useless education.

 

[lily22]

what about a religious vocation, like theology?

 

[Petaro]

At the end of high school,I was already to go into a seminary and had discussed this for over two years with the archdiocese and had passed all the psych exams etc.
However the final exams of high school were marred by me having a series of massive asthma attacks and I was in intensive care every weekend of the exam period.
The diocese decided that I was too unwell to enter the seminary even though I had rejected two commonwealth scholarships to University and a teaching scholarship, and I had not applied for any courses believing that my future was set.
The Church had absolutely no interest in my predicament and I found the only courses available was in diagnostic radiography. After two months of lectures on barium enemas, a family friend pushed some buttons and got me an offer to do Arts at a small University. Because my father had died of war wounds I got a repatriation department scholarship and decided on a double major in Philosophy and Psychology almost as a psycho-social moratorium as I had no idea of career. I finished my degree and got a job as a technical writer coding the Oberon Submarine spare parts for NATO port resupply as they had never met a person with a Philosophy degree. I then did all sorts of jobs whilst doing Law part time. I was able to get Senate approval to increase my credit point load to accelerate a six year course into four and finalised the Supreme Court exams to become a Barrister, and I have had a successful legal career for the rest of my working life.
Law is a good job for Catholic as there is much justice that can be obtained in so many little ways.
Of course I have never forgotten the support given to me when I was fell sick from the church I had been in discussion with for the previous two years over my vocation. No wonder they have so few priests coming through if this is still the order of charity meted out to their friends.
Choose a job that will save your soul in offering opportunity to live your love of God in any practical way you can find.

 

[mommy_k]

You should do what you love. If undecided, take liberal arts so you have a BA. Work in different fields or intern until you find your passion. I remember reading for each year of education after highschool, you can add 20K to your annual pay. Most employers thesde days look for a BA.

You need to expose yourself to a lot of things, and a college advisor can help direct this.

I did not choose my career based on being a Catholic. You can apply Catholic morals and ethics to any field you choose.

 

[dedo]

Interesting thread. When I was younger, it took me a long time to figure out what I wanted to do. For a long while, I was also really not that interested in anything. I systematically looked at one career after another, and usually eliminated what I was looking at once I learned more about it. I envied the people that had it all figured out, or were drawn to a particular career.

Looking back, what did help is to stay in church. At the time, I don’t know if I really fully believed God was “up there”, but something inside of me made me think it was important for me to show up – even though I did not know why at the time.

While I did not know what I wanted to do, I tried to keep my options open. That meant working really hard at everything so my grades would be good enough for me to get in to graduate or professional school.

In retrospect, I now see that when I was looking for a career, I could only see the “next step”. I could not see where I would be 5 years down the road. Thus, the two things I did right (staying in church and working hard) were what I could see. I found my profession in my last year of professional school.

I am now starting a new path and considering second career options. The job I am doing now is age dependent, and I will likely need to leave it within 5 years and I don’t want to sit at home. So again, I can only see the “next step” and I am trying to get a little clearer on that.

You mentioned several areas you are working on improving, and that is good. All of us are trying to do better at something. However, what I am working on now, and I hope will improve my ability to clearly see the “next step” is to focus on improving my spiritual walk and on how I can be of better service to others. I don’t have to be perfect to help someone who has nothing. I believe that if these are my priorities then most of the other issues will fall into place. Seeing the “next step” will be easier, and I will be better able to be accepted by people who are also interested in “making a difference”, if I make that my first priority.