<p>So I'm a 5th year senior at my college and I'm getting a degree in Early Childhood Education. The thing is, as the semester goes on I really don't think I want to so this anymore. I get all A's and B's in my education classes, but I'm really struggling with my math class right now, and if I don't get a C or higher I have to retake it, which will set me back again (I already had to stay an extra semester bc of the other math class I took). And my professor is no help. She's really mean and extremely condescending to people who aren't good at math and are struggling in her class. I feel like I'm doing everything I can to try and pass this, but it's just not enough. I even go home on the weekends and pay a tutor just to help me in this class. I originally didn't come into my university as an Early Childhood major; I was actually a Music Education major bc I love singing and have studied voice since I was 11. But the dept. head was a huge ******* who loved intimidating students and made it a point in weeding out people in his Solfege classes, and it got to the point where I would be having panic attacks 2-3 times a week and almost hung myself in my dorm room bc I was so afraid of failure. I also realized that I really didn't want to teach music, and that I would have much rather been performing. The problem is, you can't exactly do anything with a Music Performance or a Theater degree that doesn't end up with you shelving books at the local Barnes and Noble. I thought that things would get better and everything would be great in my life once I changed over to Early Childhood, but it really hasn't, and I feel like I made a big mistake and that I should have just transferred to a different school instead of changing majors. I'm not really passionate about teaching anymore, I hate making lesson plans, my block placement that I'm in right now is ridiculous (I do not want to teach 2 year olds; I spend 90% wiping their snotty noses and I don't get to teach them anything), and I just feel so alone all the time, like I don't have anyone I could talk to for advice. My academic advisor treats me like an idiot and talks down to me, I don't have any professors that I feel comfortable talking to about this, and my parents just want me to graduate and get out of there. And it's not like i could just quit school and work for the rest of my life, since my part-time job as a grocery store cashier is awful. So the way I see it at this point, I only have 2 options: finish school and be miserable there, or quit school and work at a grocery store for the rest of my life and be miserable there too. I could really use some advice from anyone who can tell me what to do. Thanks</p>
<p>This is a joke, right? If not, whatever you do, don’t teach.</p>
<p>No, its not. Why would I joke about something like this? I’m just at such a loss right now for what to do and like I said, I don’t exactly have a support system that could help me.</p>
<p>Well, it seems pretty clear you don’t want to teach. But you also need to finish your degree. I see a few options.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Finish out this major, suck it up, and teach while you work on an administrative degree. A lot of teachers go into counseling etc. around their fifth year. Only you know if you could hang on that long.</p></li>
<li><p>Finish out this major. Then find the cheapest community college you can and take enough courses in a field like business so you really are qualified to do something else. Even if you don’t work in the field, having a degree might mean having a better job, or slightly better-paying job, while you work on your next credential.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>2a. Same plan, but just work for 4-5 years while you save some money and get a better feel for what you want.</p>
<ol>
<li>Change majors now to something like business and do everything it takes to finish it as quickly as possible. A lot of people go into their sixth year. No one wants to, but it’s actually common. If there is a program that you already have a lot of credits in, then you might even be close to (or at least no insanely far away from) finishing a major in another area.</li>
</ol>