Stuck between a rock and a hard place...

[pinstikfartherin]

Ok, so I have lurked here for years. I mostly read, rarely post. Right now I am the most confused I could possibly be.

I am a 21 year old student working as a secretary for a hospice. I was attending college online so I could work full time. I thought that I wanted to go to college for Healthcare Administration...until I started working here. I've finished all but a couple of my general courses in college and I decided to take a break in March to decide what degree to pursue since I've marked one off of my list. It's been about 4 months and I still do not know what I want to do. Now is the time to decide since when I go back I will be starting the real meat of my degree of choice. But I have no idea what I want to do. I don't want to get a degree and realize that I've spent so much money on school and I hate it or don't want to do it. I just can't decide my career path. I'm stuck.

I like helping people, so I thought of just going for an associates in human services management.
I am very good with computers, so I thought of a bachelor's in information technology with a software emphasis.

I am just stressed because I have no idea what I want to do and it is time to decide.

Advice, suggestions? Help!

[Tikki]

1. When I was at University (mid90's) I heard a....

girl at the campus bus stop crying (real tears) to her friends there.

She was not doing well in a couple of her classes...I heard her say that she
HATED her business classes and couldn't concentrate in those classes even though
business was her major.

She said her parents wanted her to major in business because they didn't want
to waste her education on anything else.

Go with your passion and what you really want to study and know that your
interest will carry your grades.

You will find job(s) that you like...and you will have raised your esteem to meet your passion.

Tikki

Anthropology Major

[pinstikfartherin]

4. See..

My problem is that I don't want to waste my own money on something and hate it later. There are so many things that I could do and I think I may be good at, but I have a tendency to jump into things too quickly and not think about it much first. Now that I am trying to figure it out before I take the plunge, I just can't make a decision. Damned adulthood!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. I would suggest that you talk to a counselor...

That's their job: help you figure out just what would be the right path for you...

They can help you get around the logjam in your head...

I suspect you're stuck because you're coming to a real place where you might spend the rest of your life...

And it's scary!

Good luck!

:hi:

[pinstikfartherin]

3. Thanks.

And you are correct. I am scared to death to choose the wrong thing, but I can't spend the rest of my life trying to decide what I want to do for the rest of my life. I've already spent a lot of money on college, and I am going to finish one way or another.

Very scary. :scared:

[MilesColtrane]

5. Tune in. Turn on. Drop out.

Get to know yourself better.
21 is awfully young, and sometimes the best decision is no decision.

A crisis of self identity can masquerade as a crisis of future vocation.

Find what makes you happy, don't bank on what will give your imagined future self a comfortable life.

Finally, nothing's set in stone. I know people with music degrees that now work for Cisco, people that have business degrees who do nothing but paint, and my brother's degree was in marine biology. He's worked for a major pharmaceutical company for the last 25 years.