<p>Hello everyone. I'm a senior in college and next year I am going to Rice in Houston. Since I was a young kid, I've always LOVED houses. I used to watch the viewings every Sunday and build them with my legos. As I got older, I began to spend a lot of time browsing the real estate websites of various cities. I KNOW that I would love to be a real estate agent selling houses in the $750,000+ range. The thing is, the market isnt high in that area and I think that it would be hard for a younger person to enter it and become successful. One day, I would like to become a developer and design houses, have them be built and then sell them for profit. I already come up with my own floor plans and such. </p>
<p>Now, my other passion since childhood has always been medicine. I've always wanted to be a doctor and have loved my biology and anatomy classes. Thus far, I believe that I am on the proper road to be successful in this route. I have shadowed many different specialties including cardiology, OB, and radiology and I feel as though I would love to go into anyone of those areas. Even though I know the road is long and rough, I truly believe that I am cut out for it. Somedays however, I wonder if my reasons for wanting to become a doctor primarily lie in the financial gain (although I dont think that doctors make a WHOLE lot of money, they are well off). I do have other reasons like the idea of life-long learning, the daily challenges, my passion for medicine and innovating medical technology and using my mental abilities to the max on a daily basis.</p>
<p>I'm really unsure what route I should pursue in college. I think that I would rather be a real estate agent over a doctor but I think that the odds of me becoming a successful doctor are much higher than becoming a broker. Also, I believe that I could be a specialist AND build and sell houses on the side so that is a very viable option.</p>
<p>Does anyone have any ideas, comments, opinions?</p>
<p>You don't have to decide now. Major in whatever you want and as long as you do all the premed requirements, if you decide you want to take the medicine route than you can and if you decide you want to go the real estate/house route then you can do that.</p>
<p>For pre-med you can major in anything you want. So maybe try business or marketing. I'm pre-med and I wish my school had a business major like that. It seems really helpful.</p>
<p>Real estate is a totally different animal than medicine. You can get a real estate licence in a month. You say you are a COLLEGE senior, Is that correct? If so, you are going to Rice for grad school, right? I'm unclear about your motives because four years of college should have geared you in one direction either way. Someone getting into Rice for grad school and wanting to sell real estate professionally is a major disconnect for me. Something about your post needs futher explaining.</p>
<p>Take lots of classes freshman year in a wide range of subjects. You do not need to know now, as a high school senior, what you want to do for the rest of your life. Relax -- you've got plenty of time to figure these things out. Most people change their jobs/careers several times over their lifetime -- you could become a doctor and then a real estate agent and then do something entirely different.</p>
<p>You have two dreams -- neither of which requires a specific major.</p>
<p>We should all be so lucky.</p>
<p>Major in what you want, but take the pre-med requirements. If it turns out that you have the academic credentials to get admitted to medical school, then you will have to make a career choice. If not, you already have your Plan B.</p>
<p>Perhaps the most useful thing for you to do is to try to get some practical experience in both of your potential career fields -- during the summer or as part-time jobs or volunteer work. That way, if you do find yourself in the pleasant position of making a choice, it will be an informed choice.</p>
<p>I agree you don't need to decide now. Take some of the premed requirements next year. Also look and see if Rice's excellent architecture school has anything to offer. (I know when I was at Columbia I took a really interesting course in real estate development where we learned about all the tax laws pertaining to real estate and finished up by putting together a proposal to turn an apartment building into a condo.) Real estate really is something you can get into with just a general education. Though no doubt some business and architecture courses wouldn't hurt.</p>
<p>You don't need college to earn a good living in real estate. You just need to work hard, be very, very good, and hope the economy is vibrant. I wouldn't spend four years in college and then four years in med school if my heart was in real estate. Then again, it can help if your goal is to sell estate/upper bracket homes, from a conversation with your customers standpoint, if you can point out that you're a Rice grad. Some of your upper bracket customers will also be Rice grads or alums of other respected colleges and universities, and may be more inclined toward an agent with whom they can identify.</p>
<p>Congrats on choosing Rice. You will love it. Keep yourself open to lots of options. Take some pre-med courses and also a range of other classes. You might find a new passion! My son-in-law was a music major, took the necessary pre-med courses and went to med school. Other students bail on pre-med after discovering it simply isn't for them. College is a time to learn and explore. Real estate will always be there for you, which is wonderful since you obviously have a strong interest in that field.</p>
<p>Beware of wanting to be a doctor for financial gain. Factor in enormous student loans, lots of hours doing less than stellar work, and you will find that there are more lucrative careers like Nursing. Really. Go talk to some doctors and nurses. Ask them about their relative debt burden. Do the financial analysis. It's a good thing to do regardless of career path.</p>
<p>Real estate agent, developer, doctor. Those are quite different fields. Find out what type of personality it takes to succeed in each field.</p>
<p>Real estate - Good people skills, salesman type personality.</p>
<p>Developer - The successful ones have the reputation of being some of the slimiest people. On order to succeed, you have to be good at getting other people to invest money in your project (the less you have to put up the better), and not feel bad if they loose everything (Donald Trump).</p>
<p>Doctor - I'll let you figure this one out.</p>
<p>As you go through school, try to get a job with a real estate brokerage firm. Answer phones, office paper work, etc. That will give you some exposure to the industry, and whether you would really like the job. You will also learn the different ways to create a book of business.</p>