<p>Hi everyone,</p>
<p>Background info: I started in college as Pre-Med, figured out it wasn't for me, and ended up graduating with a BS in Economics (3.2 GPA) from a top 20 school. I had no internships, as I worked full-time odd jobs to get through school debt free. I graduated at the beginning of the great recession, so I moved in with the parents and worked retail since I couldn't find a real job. I finally got a job working for a bank making about $50k (low cost of living area in Midwest). This was low level sales position though, so I went to school on nights/weekends to earn an MS in Finance (3.5 GPA), and ended up with an office job as an investment analyst. I've been at this job for almost 2 years now. I still make 50k, 5 years after graduating from undergrad. I have a house that I own half of, car is paid off, no consumer debt, about 60k invested/savings, and 45k of student loan debt from grad school.</p>
<p>I had a nervous breakdown several months ago (I've since recovered nicely!) because I felt trapped in the way my life/career path was going. I've found that while I enjoyed economics, I find accounting/finance insanely boring and I cannot stand working in a windowless office. My hobbies are all outdoors-related, and I am a master climber, hiker, kayaker, etc. If I had a million dollars I would be outside 100% of the time. I need a change.</p>
<p>My friend who is a kindred spirit as far as the outdoors goes is getting a BS in Geology and absolutely loves life. He's going to graduate and either go into petroleum exploration or grad school. He has explained to me that it's very possible to get these exploration-type jobs with a geology degree. And it doesn't hurt that in the petroleum industry, they make multiples of my current salary, which has no substantial increases in sight.</p>
<p>Is it true that I can be paid to explore and run around outside for 50% of the time or more? That is an absolute dream job. Would vanilla "Geology" open this career up to me or is there a more specific niche I'd need to major in? I've spoken with my local college's geo dept, and because I started out as Pre-Med, I actually have all the prerequisites for a Geology BS out of the way(calc, chem, bio, phys, etc)...I just don't have any Geology classes. I'm thinking of taking a few Geo classes (would this even be necessary?), taking the GRE, and applying to MS Geology programs. What would be the best schools for an exploration-type job?</p>
<p>It kind of makes me ill thinking of going back to school for another MS degree after spending $45k on the first one. However, I didn't waste any TIME since I took it part-time while working. And as far as wasting MONEY, well since Geology is a science that actually benefits society, I would get free tuition and a $20k/year stipend...and if the end game is a six-figure job in petroleum exploration, then this is not an issue. I also think maybe the MS Finance may come in handy decades from now if I want to go into an executive or managerial role at an oil company. I have friends "wasting" 3 years at law school or worse...so really am I crazy for considering going back to school for 2 years?</p>
<p>One more thing...finance is very much an elitist old-boys' club and is entirely about who you know. I would like it better if Geology were a BIT more meritocratic, with less required kissing of the royal behind. I would also like it if the cool, six figure field jobs were actually ATTAINABLE. What I mean is, everyone majoring in finance thinks they're going to get into investment banking, but only a very small percentage do. Is it realistic to assume that if I do an MS and take it seriously, I will get one of these jobs? Or am I going to end up back in retail because these companies only take graduates from 1 or 2 "target schools" and your parents had to apply for the job 5 years before you were conceived?</p>
<p>Sorry for the length! Thanks!</p>