<pre><code> I have only posted to this forum once before about another issue I was having with selecting a school to go to. It has been more than a year and I can happily say that I enrolled in the County College as opposed to somewhere else. I started the last semester as a computer science major. However after further research and time with that major, I decided that computers was not for me for multiple reasons. My new problem now is deciding a major. I have still continued with school as a liberal arts major; I chose that because it was very general and I could still get classes in that I might need in the future. Considering I have decide on where to transfer in a year, I have begun thinking about what I want to transfer into. As of now, I know what I don't want to do. I certainly do not want to do anything with computers, nothing in the medical field, and I hate mostly anything to do with business; these things seem to really limit my choices for practical majors. I know that whatever it is I do, I do not want to be miserable with the job, I want to at least enjoy what I do and not just choose a major because the jobs pay well. I don't necessarily want a mansion or a new sports car every year, but I do want to live comfortably; I would like to be a homeowner and own a decent car, without having to be in huge amounts of debt (other than a mortgage or a car payment, of coarse). As of right this minute, I have narrowed it down to three things that I am considering because they interest me. The things that I do enjoy, as I will mention, are things that aren't practical, they are generally viewed as areas of work that don't pay well unless you teach (and even teachers don't make a lot comparatively), so I have come to the conclusion that I will most likely be a teacher of something, and there are three main areas of study that really peak my interest:
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<li> Last semester I took an intro to philosophy class and fell in love with the subject, it seemed to be a subject that contained all of my personal interests (logical arguing, political philosophy, art-specifically music) and this semester I am taking an ethics course with the same teacher. I am thinking about becoming a philosophy professor based on my interest in it.</li>
<li> I have played music since I was 6 years old and have loved it all of my life. Lately I have not played music as much as I used to because of school and work, but I do still play, and write.<br></li>
<li> Less though than the other two but still an option, is teaching History or some type of Social Study. I loved my social studies classes in High School (generally in High School I was in world history, U.S. history, AP history, contemporary world issues and finally Vietnam era) and my sociology class I had last semester.</li>
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<p>As many of you are probably thinking right about now, I will never make a good living and will have to endure and pay for a lot of school to make little money, however this is essentially what I am trying to figure out. I have had a conversation with my mother and step-father about this and they aren't crazy about my first idea. Based on what they have found, they say that I would have to get a P.H.D just to even start looking for a job as a philosophy professor, and that it would be a lot of money to do that much school. Based on what they found the average money a philosophy professor makes is about $60k a year, and that a lot of it would be going back to pay student loans. They understand that I don't necessarily want a mansion and all of that, but they have said that to even have a little (a house and a car for example) you need to make a lot, and certainly more than $60k a year (keep in mind we live in the more expensive part of New Jersey, so everything here costs an arm and a leg, and $60k a year minus student loan debt wouldn't even come close to actually living decently though I would be willing to maybe live elsewhere). The same thing pretty much goes for teaching music, minus needing a P.H.D. The advantage here is that school would cost a lot less and therefore, most of the money I would make I could keep. The disadvantage here is that I would probably have to start out teaching High School or Middle School, which is something I am not to fond of doing. I was recently a high school student, so I know what little "snots" I'd have to deal with five days out of the week as well as spending much of my time grading a lot of work. As far as I can tell, college students are less "snotty" and there is less work that would need to be graded. But to teach music in college I would need a P.H.D and therefore eliminate the advantage of not having to get one. I realize, though, that I could start out teaching high school and ultimately teach at the college level after getting my P.H.D over a longer period of time while I had a steady job at a high school. The same thing pretty much goes with teaching history so I will not repeat myself.</p>
<p>Is there anyone who can give me some information on my situation, maybe someone who has been in a similar situation or has pursued these areas of study? Any help will be greatly appreciated!</p>