So this year I 'm becoming a Junior , its not the work that scares me but what I want to study. I only have one year left in highschool and I have changed my endorsement once already . In freshmen year I thought I wanted to be an architecture but I was discouraged by my mom that it would not be something I would enjoy and also the class I was taking for it , just made me realize this probably isn’t for me, really the class, I did not enjoy at all , I honestly didn’t know what I wanted to switch to but my mom “again” told me I should look into the medical area , she’s been wanting me to study in the medical field for the longest and she says its a path I would love , that its very rewarding and that’s its a very well payed in the areas . I decided why not so I change my endorsement to public services so I can do the med side . I wasn’t able to change it until sophomore year and I could only take a prep-class that specialized in medicine for the half of my freshmen year . I already felt like such a loser for losing a whole year of my endorsement . But now , honesty I don’t know if I want to be in the medical field especially becoming a doctor as my mom said . My whole sophomore year I wondered if I made the right decision choosing this endorsement .I’m not saying I didn’t enjoy the class or that I don’t like the idea of helping people because I do . I would love to be able to contribute to ensure a persons health is good and being able to say I did that . But honestly all videos I’ve watched and people who have worked in the field have really open my eyes and have made me feel discouraged of the thought of working in a hospital or being a doctor . For example, the ton of debt you’ll get , many school years involved and the many things you have to give up while in this field. The requirements/skills I’ve seen to be able to succeed in that field involve being very good with science/chemistry which I am terrible at, having a good memory with things which I am very forgetful if I don’t engrave it well in my head and the long study nights that come with studying in Med. Don’t get me wrong obviously , if I want to help save life’s I have to be well educated and of course that’s going to take many years of school but what scares me is that I wont be able to do and will probably give up because its to hard and it will take me y my whole life to succeed in my future . Honestly ,I don’t know if I should pursue a different pathway or stay with this one . I’m honestly scared I might become someone with no future and disappoint my family especially my mom ,I would be the first in my family to go to college but how things are looking like I don’t know if I’ll even go to college .
In the US, many students don’t declare a major until sophomore year in COLLEGE. perfectly fine to be undecided at your age.
Think about what classes and subjects you enjoy and see how those interests pair with career paths.
Start with subjects that you enjoy. Add your outside interests. See if there is any connection to the two. As an example - if you enjoy math and love sports, maybe statistics would be of interest. Of course you can use statistics in many /any industry.
Another thing to realize is in many cases, your major is about a subject matter but the corresponding career is far broader. Even in technical careers you can expand way beyond the specific major material. Think of engineers who run companies, departments, etc. They understand engineering, but they no longer practice it as a primary function. Maybe they are project managers or supply chain folks or CEOs.
You have lots of time to explore your interests and learn about careers that might be appealing. Good for you that you’re already thinking about this but don’t obsess as it’s quite normal to not know what you want to do when you’re seventeen. Today’s reality shows us that the average person changes their career / job several times over their working life. And many people are in careers that didn’t exist twenty years ago.
Parents often like to encourage their children to areas of work that:
- They are familiar with
- Have prestige
- Make money
I would add: - Can’t get outsourced
But YOU are the one who has to get through HS in your area of endorsement…you are the one who has to go to University…you are the one who has to work in that job.
I am not sure your options for endorsements but what do you see yourself doing?
If not specificially, do you see yourself working indoors or outdoors? Working with people or working on problems? Working on something technical? Writing?
If you aren’t sure, then I would pick something that gives you the most flexibility or exposure to many areas. What are your other choices?
Also I don’t know what your Universities expect…do you have to have an endorsement? If you want to go to a top school do you need one? Are your grades that of a top school?
What are your favorite classes? I know that I liked math and science…but physics more than biology. I did well in English but wasn’t much interested in History.
I ended up as an engineer who wrote many documents.
To your mom, you could say that Medicine is a valuable field, but given the need to understand Biology and memorize you are not sure it is for you and would like to explore other options in HS.