Ever think about geophysics. It’s often done through the engineering school.
How deep? How many parents here can afford 8 years of tuitions and expenses (i.e. the full COA)? I bet only a minority of CC parents (who are likely above average in their financial standing among the general population) can afford to. LOL.
@MegaMetalHead - the HSJr that is - ideally you should set up your own account on CC and not share with your older brother. @thumper1 is correct you are creating confusion and folks do want to be helpful.
@mcat2 She decided against pre-med, so that part didn’t get actual data. Deeper than we plan to at the moment, however. It has always been our intent that she share the financial bite, as we do not feel that a child who does not share in the earning of an education appreciates peers of more humble means. Undergrad support might not have changed, but it would have continued past 4 years.
I was planning to investigate military (had a classmate who did this and now has her own practice) and desert-southwest-rural (ditto, except retired) paths, as well as assisted with the discovery of others. The kid is in high school, and getting into college - or worse yet, med school - is a fairly involved project. Part of our responsibility as we see it is to help teach the student how to gather date, analyze it, make decisions based on it, and act on it in time.
What we did beyond money for undergrad selection:
For the undergrad process, we shared a spreadsheet on which we each put some data about schools (tuition, distance, middle 50, automatic merit, NPC numbers, parent actual contribution, expected student debt, etc), and she narrowed her list from 50-60 initial entries down to 7-8 using this. These were in rows so we could sort by distance, merit, net, etc…
This short list was pushed into a new tab with rows for who got which test scores when, which schools needed subject tests or interviews, when those were sent, url for the admin office, what the app fee is, what their deadlines are, whether they take common app, when the app was made, other data needed, and “accepted/wait/rejected” date. Again, this doc is shared, and she updates things as they happen.
We have another tab with url’s for scholarships. She should be done applying to schools before Labor Day, and between then and November we will be hunting scholarships. Part of the goal is that while her peers are sweating out recommendations and essays, she can balance time studying physics and calc against a social life and scholarship applications.
These columns/rows kind of evolved over time, and some that we thought would be useful were removed while others were added.
Geology graduates often take well paid jobs in mining, oil, and gas. But if those do not interest you, then you may not be able to effectively make that argument with your parents.
If your stats are high enough to get a full ride somewhere, then parental control through threatening to cut off the college money is minimized.
My husband’s father is a patent attorney. When H went to college, he was told he had to apply to be an engineer.
He spent 3 years being a chemical engineer and hating every second of it. Dropped out, worked for a few years, then finally went back to school (paid his own way) doing what he really wanted to do, which was Computer Science.
Loved every minute of it, did very well.
So you could try using the argument that your dad is throwing money away making you do something you have no love for and will ultimately fail at, or he could throw his money away letting you do something you have a passion for (and ultimately won’t be throwing his money away for, ironically).
I do think engineers are born, not made, and I also think engineers don’t understand that idea, which is why your dad is pushing you in that direction (I’m betting his undergrad was engineering-patent attorneys generally have that).
I would suggest the OP keep a somewhat open mind. He has time to decide on or change his major.
My son is interested in engineering and math. I’ve urged him to recognize that these degrees are often much more valuable when combined with some business or accounting courses. I want my son to do something he really enjoys, but I also want him to make a pot of money if possible.
Plenty of demand for geology majors in the energy industry.
Also, consider petroleum engineering.
^^ Exactly. Any of the western flagships will offer petroleum or geo engineering, and most if not all have excellent geology departments. Head west, make your father happy, and get the best geology education available.
I am a parent and I have empathy for your dad’s position. College is a huge expenditure in most families and he wants you to be in a position to support yourself after college. Although you don’t like what he is saying, you must recognize that he is trying to look out for your best interests.
There may be ways to compromise. Perhaps study both civil engineering and geology. It would be a great double major (or even minor in geology if that woks better). Having an understanding of the ground conditions would be important to building large structures so you could sell it to your dad pretty easily – you making yourself a more valuable engineer. In fact, my cousin has a a PhD in civil engineering and his specialty is studying the earth/ground before something gets built on it – he has a great career and has traveled the world. And if you decide you want to work you can have that option and if you wan to pursue grad work in geology you will should in good shape as well – if you go to grad school on a scholarship (which PhD programs can offer) your dad will have less to say about what you do.
Alternatively start doing research on types of careers that geology majors can pursue (ex. oil companies, construction companies - I don’t really know). If you can show your dad that geology provides viable career options he might be open to the major.
The patent attorneys I know have Ph.D.s in their field of expertise as well as law degrees. They spent an absolutely painful amount of time on their educations and possibly an equally painful amount of money. This will color anyone’s judgment about what degrees are worth paying for!
If the OP has the grades and test scores to get merit-based aid, that should be his/her focus. Maybe dad won’t have to shell out one cent for this possible geology degree. Start reading here: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1678964-links-to-popular-threads-on-scholarships-and-lower-cost-colleges.html#latest
From my point of view, it is not at all in the student’s best interest to pursue something he has no interest in. No matter how valuable a particular degree is, if the holder of that degree hates the subject matter, he will not make decent money or be successful. Not to mention the resentment.
My husband is a patent attorney, and you don’t have to major in Engineering to be one. My husband did, but he works with other patent attorneys that have their bachelor’s degrees in Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Computer Science… I don’t know about Geology, but I would make an educated guess that you still have a very good shot at law school with a Geology degree.
However - there is a glut in law graduates right now, and honestly, the pay with an entry-level Geology-related career may be comparable to what a law associate is currently making… I would check into it.
Try to make your Dad see that not everyone in the world who has made a good income, is a patent attorney with an engineering or business degree. There are lots of other lucrative and /or stable careers out there…
I wholeheartedly agree that the best, and most successful, engineers are born and not made. The same with lawyers. Both careers take a certain amount of passion and dedication in order to do well - and even then, they are not easy to get through. It’s even harder if you don’t even like what you’re doing.
I’m always amazed when people force their own career choices on their kids. It’s so short-sighted.
For the OP: the other thing to consider is your spending habits. If you have frugal spending habits, then even low paid career directions are financially feasable. But if you grew up in an upper middle class family where all of your wants have been provided by your parents who never said “no, that is too expensive”, then you need to consider how your spending habits will more likely force you to make choices between doing what you like versus doing what will make enough money for you to live on.
As I’ve often noted, geology is an interesting and versatile degree with pretty good job prospects. Of course, I’m biased. 
I’ve posted these articles before, but here they are again. There’s more info out there along the same lines.
@warblersrule good to hear since last night my s told me he probably will major in geohydrology rather than engineering - at least this week. 
As he plans for college we tell him to assume he will need at least a master’s and to plan his college costs accordingly since he is on the “paying with parental cash college finance plan” since our EFC is 100% at 99.99% of the schools out there. What does that mean? He understands the wisdom of picking the $20,000 a year college with a good geology program over the $50,000 a year college with a good geology program to earn his BS. He also is learning to ignore the USN&WR college ranking snobs out there who lead way to many kids & their families to act like lemmings and take on too much debt.
OP, just for kicks and to become more informed, and perhaps even inspired, google jay famiglietti. He’s a leading hydrologist I’ve seen interviewed on TV and heard on NPR. Who knows, maybe you’ll hear something that will become fodder for your application essays. My own son wrote about seeing the neurologist Oliver Sacks at a world science festival just before high school and being inspired to read everything he could his hands on regarding neuroscience, and then working in neuro labs during high school summers. Lo and behold, he just graduated as a neuro concentrator. His interest stuck and he’ll continue on to grad school.
According to wiki: James S. (Jay) Famiglietti is a professor of Earth System Science and Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of California, Irvine.
Geology, especially when related to mining and/or resource exploration can be quite lucrative. I would check out schools that offer excellent Geosciences / Engineering programs like SDSM or CSM.