I’m not a parent, but I’m posting here because I’m desperate for advice from adults. I have stereotypical Asian parents who want me to go on a premed track and immediately dismiss any idea of me studying poli sci or Econ. They told me I have until May 1 to convince them about what I want to do and how I’m going to get a job after graduating. If I don’t give them a solid plan, they’re sending me to my state flagship when I’ve been accepted to schools such as BC, NYU, and BU. Please help. Thanks.
Note- I have been getting straight Bs in science classes since second semester of freshman year
Well, I think you have a better chance of getting a job with an econ degree than a poly sci degree, so start there.
You can major in anything as a premed major. Do,your parents know that?
You can tell them that you are squeamish and cannot stand having to do dissections in Biology and Gross Anatomy. That was one major reason I never considered medicine. I was an Econ/Poli Sci double major.
On a more serious note, Economics majors are on the upswing. Surely you have done some research yourself on their potential career paths. Also, if the life sciences aren’t your strong suit, it’s going to be doubly difficult for you to be competitive for medical school. It’s a long haul. (My H is a physician.)
Also, if your parents’ financial situation dictates that they are better able to afford the state flagship instead of the pricier private schools to which you have been accepted, you will have to abide by those considerations. How is your state flagship for Econ and Poli Sci?
I have no idea how my state school is for Econ or poli sci. I never really looked into it because I didn’t think I would need to, considering I got into match/reach schools. Financial situation is not a problem at all, all the schools actually cost about the same except NYU, which is a little over budget.
Also, if I enter a pre med track, they would want me to major in chemistry or biology, which gives me heart palpitations just thinking about.
I think they think I’m trying to be rebellious by simply going against what they say, but I really do have a genuine interest in writing, languages, and the humanities. I have gotten straight As in English and History, whereas I struggled with calculus and sciences. They’re mainly concerned I won’t find a job after graduating from a “mediocre school such as NYU or BC.” How do I make my argument sound mature and reasonable?
I’m sorry for your frustration. I can understand how hard it is to be pressured…my parents USED to be like that, but they have softened a lot.
Hopefully you are able to have long discussion-not in dinner table, but in living room(I am slightly afraid that your dinner table will be upside down by the end of the “discussion”)-with your parents and sincerely show what you like and why. And I don’t understand why your parents think BC and NYU are mediocre schools. Are they immigrants? Did they go to college? NYU is NOT a mediocre school as you know.
Tell your parents several things
- You can be a pre med AND do econ/humanity major
- Employers in AMERICA don’t care what school you graduated unless it is some totally unknown school of questionable college, which neither NYU and BC is.
- Show them your HS transcript. Since you have struggled with math and science, you have to make them admit the fact you will do much worse in college level math and science.
Ok, I will pretend to be your parent, practice by answering my questions:
“You don’t want yo be a doctor? So, what will you do after college? Will you be making coffee at Starbucks?”
It’s too bad that your parents have not paid more attention to your strengths and weaknesses. Or perhaps you haven’t been honest with them? Assuming that they want you to succeed overall, you have to be honest with them. They can’t force a square into round peg.
At this point, all I can recommend is that you tell them you are unlikely to aspire to medical school. The sooner you are honest with them, the better off everyone will be. Worrying about job prospects is not an unreasonable thing for parents to do, especially if they are paying full price for you to attend. Although you say that “financial situation is not a problem at all,” you are being cavalier with their hard-earned money.
You have time to research your state flagship and look over the prerequisites for medical school. If you tell your parents that you’d be struggling to take Calculus (some medical schools will not accept AP credit for Calculus, IIRC), Organic Chem, Physics, etc., AND do well, they might start to see things your way.
I fully understand your feelings. My parents told me there were only four jobs in the world when I was five, they were doctor, lawyer, accountant and taxi driver (if I don’t study hard) . I was brainwashed and took a path what my parent wanted me to. I became a doctor and married another doctor. I must admit that I don’t hate my job (I earn a decent amount of money) but I never have the passion on it. My husband on the other hand loves his job. I feel his passion. When it is my turn to guide my son, I told him to follow his heart. People do well on what they love and are very motivated. My son never wants to be a doctor, he knows the hardship of this profession too well. Being a doctor is a package, of course you earn a descent salary but there are things like 24-36 hours shift (depends on where you practice), sleep deprivation, and the chance of getting infected ( eg. SARs, Ebola)… What I mean is you can’t survive if you don’t like your job!
Ask yourself: do I really want to become a doctor? If negative, why bother to study something you are not interested in
Ask your parent: why do they give birth to you? They want a doctor, or someone who loves them and lives a happy life. The world is changing fast, there are jobs that your parents would not have thought of in their times.
I still remember one of my senior in medical school jumped off the building and one of my classmates became a psychiatric patient in the fourth year of medical school.
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They’re mainly concerned I won’t find a job after graduating from a “mediocre school such as NYU or BC.” H
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???
Why would they think that NYU and Boston College are mediocre univs??? That is totally wrong.
Maybe the parents are the immigrants or didn’t go to colleges. It could be both.
Thanks for all the help and support. Yes, my parents are immigrants, although they did attend college, the most prestigious in their country. Asian societies typically heavily base socioeconomic/job status on what college they attended, which is why they still hold a very antiquated and rigid outlook on society and education.
As for the financial situation, my parents would not send me to my state flagship because it is cheaper (it is actually essentially the same price as BU and BC for me), they are merely using it as a threat, and also because they think that if I major in the humanities, it doesn’t matter where I go because in the end I won’t get a job anyway.
So I will definitely mention that I will undoubtedly become depressed if I major in a science-related field, and most likely obtain sub-par grades, which will exclude me from being accepted to good medical programs. How can I strengthen my argument for wanting to study economics?
1.Do you really have to tell them your intended major?
2. Just tell them you can get a job in Finance/Wall Street/Investment Bank … for Econ major
@AttorneyMother my parents are completely aware of my grades in science courses. They are hoping that I’ll somehow “straighten out” in college and be more motivated- like I wasn’t in high school. I really just don’t get science in general.
@anaesabc yes, they expect a detailed plan of what I will study, how I will find a job, what kind of jobs I am looking at, etc. If I don’t sound like I know what I’m talking about, then they’re gonna shut me down and put me on the pre med track. And they aren’t dumb enough to fall for the Wall Street/IB idea. They basically think if I major in Econ, I’ll be an “accountant-nobody”
Would it help if a doctor told your parents to straighten up and fly right? My Econ friends are now respected professors at top universities. It’s a much better life. One made millions consulting to industry.
The strongest argument you can muster against attending medical school lies in your last sentence:
Assuming that the costs of attending are relatively equal, then you should focus on your strengths in Econ and give them some assurances that pursuing a subject in which you have a strong interest will serve you best in the long run. Did you take AP Macro and Micro in high school? Tell them that you’ll work hard and look for internships during the summers. I don’t know what your state flagship is and how it compares to NYU, BC or BU. You’ll have to make the case.
Here’s a suggestion:
Search LinkedIn for successful professionals who majored in economics and/or political science. Show them five to ten LinkedIn profiles and tell them that you want to follow the same path.
I found some examples for you:
http://■■■■■■■.com/p6ccht9
http://■■■■■■■.com/qzh7p6b
http://■■■■■■■.com/q3fg3b4
The last one is particularly good. He has a Bachelor’s in economics from Rutgers, no advanced degree, and he is the head of global economics for Bloomberg LLP.
Your parents seem not to realize that getting jobs in the US are harder and harder.