<p>In a way, both sound like romantic pursuits that have tremendous downsides for you personally. Journalism is full of underemployed grads who work for little money and writing for a living is hard work. And you sound like you’re entranced by the money and helping people that PT involves, but really aren’t into the coursework that it takes to get the degree, which is a bad sign.</p>
<p>I’ll suggest something that some will think a horrible idea, but if you go into it for the right reasons, it might just work. Law. Yes, the profession that no one can get a job in - except they can if you’re not aiming for Big Law. It’s a profession where you get to write (a lot) and help people. There are all kinds of lawyers that no one thinks about and aren’t top dollar, but if you’re going in knowing that, you can avoid big expenses along the way. Things like Legal Aid, public defender, legal advocate, family law, immigration, etc. that very much help people with difficult problems every day. If it sounds interesting, pursue the writing thing with a degree in journalism, communications, English, etc. learn to write, perhaps work for a few years, then go on to an affordable law school.</p>