Separate Peace said:
“I am currently a community college student that can use some advice. I am in my last semester there and about to transfer to a 4-year institution but I still have no clue what I want to do with my life.”
If you don’t have a definite major in mind, I would not transfer to the 4-year college at this point, unless finances are really not at all a problem. If money is an issue, see if you can delay this one more year.
“This in combination with other things, such as not having a driver’s license or a part-time job ( I am not fast food material), and owing student loan debt from my old school (about 3k), bring a lot of worry to me.”
I would suggest taking another term or (two) to take a variety of classes that looks interesting or generally valuable (for instance bookkeeping or marketing or computer stuff or Spanish) and just wait until something really catches your interest. You might want to take a light class load and find that part-time job as well as working on your driver’s license. That should keep you busy for a year and I think there will be a good return on investment if you are able to get your license and pay for an inexpensive car. That will give you a lot more choices than you have now.
Don’t be picky about what kind of part-time job you take while you’re spinning your wheels and figuring out which way to go. Take the highest paying and most enjoyable job you can get, of course, but it’s probably more important that you have a job of some kind, both so you can have spending money and for your self-respect.
If money is not a problem, go to the 4-year college, take a variety of classes, and see what strikes your fancy and/or you seem particularly good at. Also, 4-year colleges tend to have a wide variety of extracurricular groups, so work hard on investigating them, with a special focus on interesting vocational groups and volunteer opportunities. The volunteer stuff may lead you straight to a career. Also, go to the career fairs that are held on campus.
“To make matters worse, my mother is constantly pressuring me to know what my major and career path will be.”
You might want to just ask her, “Mom, what do you think I’d be good at and could make a decent living at.” And then have that as one of the options you are going to explore.
The good/bad news is that these days, nothing is forever. The bad news is that you cannot expect lifetime security in any profession (and make sure your mom understands that). The good news is that if whatever you try doesn’t work, you can try something different. You have to expect that you will have at least several different careers during the course of your life, unless you are very special or lucky.
Your old debt is not a huge big deal. I am much more concerned about the prospect of you acquiring new debt. While you are figuring out what to do with yourself, take a personal finance class like Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. It’s a 9-week class and you’ll learn a lot from it. I’m a stay-at-home-mom and I have been listening to Dave Ramsey on the radio for years now, and it’s had a huge impact on me. When I was an undergrad and grad student, I was totally into literature and I didn’t think at all about business or finance (except when working my summer job). The effect of listening to Dave Ramsey and doing FPU has been very surprising. I’ve discovered that I am very passionate about personal finance and someday (when my youngest is just a little older) I want to do tax prep work, and I might even want to become an accountant someday. That was a 180 degree change for me. The 18-year-old me of 20 years ago would be so surprised.
Get yourself out there, keep learning, work, volunteer, develop your social life, and see what turns up. As Dory in Finding Nemo says, “Just keep swimming!”
Where could I learn more about FPU? I heard of Dave Ramsey, but I am not familiar with his teachings.
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