Hey everyone,
I’ve been doing some thinking over the past weeks about my career, and I now know that I don’t want to pursue architecture anymore. I’ve discovered that I really love learning about outer space and exploring other planets. However, I’m 24 years old and I’m not entirely sure what I should do. I’ve been looking at possibly getting a second bachelor’s degree in planetary science… more specifically from the School of Earth and Space Exploration at ASU. I took a vacation down there last December, and I absolutely fell in love with the area. I want to go back and take a tour of the school to get more information.
I currently work at an architecture firm in MN making decent money. I’m paying off my student loans and saving my money by living at home. I know that getting a second bachelor’s degree might not make sense financially, but I think it would be a great first step in getting into a new field that I’m truly interested in. Since ASU offers in-state tuition at a cheaper cost, I could potentially move down there and work for a year, and then start school as an in-state resident. But I also need to gain more insight into the scientific field and how I would secure a job after I graduate. My dream would be to work for NASA. I have a deep interest in space, and I’ve finally realized that it would be the most fulfilling career for me, so I want to do whatever I can to get started. I’m excited, anxious, but confused as to what I should do next.
Any information and advice would be extremely appreciated.
My two kids are interested in studying art and planetary science. I’m not sure which one will be making more money after graduation. It could very well be the artist. Science funding has been under assault since the “sequester,” and well, we’re not supposed to discuss politics on this board…
The market for pure science majors, even as low-paid graduate student assistants, is not going to be good in the near future. And you are unlikely to do much science with just a bachelor degree unless you count advocacy or education.
One thing to consider is possibly majoring in engineering - if you get a job at NASA after graduation, great, but it’s much easier to find backup jobs in related fields with an engineering degree.
For now, I’m letting my kid follow her dreams, knowing that she is going to gain a lot of marketable skills on her current path, but also knowing her dream jobs are kind of a long shot.
Thanks for the response. If I want to continue to pursue architecture, I would have to get my master’s degree which would take another 3 years, then a couple more years to complete the IDP program, and then I would need to take the tests to become licensed. So I could either choose to continue doing architecture or start fresh on a path geared towards science. Science definitely interests me more than engineering. And architecture suffers considerably during recessions, so job security is a concern as well.
I still need to do some more research on actual career choices. Science by itself sounds intriguing, but at the end of the day, I need to be able to have a career that pays well, and I’m not sure how that works exactly in the scientific field.
It mostly doesn’t. The free market doesn’t need to know the chemical composition of Titan. You’re not getting a skill with a huge amount of demand.
Academic research science is a highly competitive field: undergrads compete for graduate student fellowships, graduate degree holders compete for postdoctoral jobs, postdocs compete for professorships and research grants. And there are never enough spots to go around. The hours are long and the pay is very low for a very long time.
Honestly, the best way to be well-paid and have job security is to take the skills learned in your science education and apply them in the software industry or something.
That’s understandable. My next plan now is to actually talk to some people within the field of astrobiology and planetary science to hear more about the jobs. Maybe I could even get in touch with some graduates. Do you have any recommendations on how to do this?
As far as software engineering, I don’t know how to code but I could take some online courses on it. That would at least give me some familiarity with it if I want to pursue a science degree.
Since you know you are interested in ASU, I’d email the undergrad advisor there and ask for suggestions of people to talk to.