# College Study Selection



## Grandmaster Yoda (Jan 18, 2014)

I have an idea, I am clueless as to which kind of job or college study I should pursue, so far I have come up with random ideas that have no basis for their own existence. I want to do computer science. Why? I don't know. I consider that to be not good enough. I am also willing to consider that I don't want anything. So that is a stalemate to think through. Instead, I think I can reverse the process in an effective way, assuming computer science actually made sense, it is a low opportunity job and thus will land me in a nice stop and shop location, a massive waste of money. Why care about what I want if I don't have a reason for wanting it? I also have no feeling for it either. So why not reverse everything. Look at the studies that bring back results in terms of making money and being successful and choose from there instead of choosing from everything and having no idea.
So I need statistics, graphs, pictograms. What jobs are needed by the societal collective in New York? I need a guide because a Google search will lead me to do nothing and quit.


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## Skeletalz (Feb 21, 2015)

Cmon you must have interests, something you enjoy doing. Base your choice around that, not what seems to be necessary in "the societal collective in New York" or the broad statistics.

I liked the CAD class in school, learning how various mechanical devices work and problem solving so I chose to study product development and production technology.

Choosing a field you dont really like or picture yourself liking is a great way to end up in a dead end job that you hate.


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## Pifanjr (Aug 19, 2014)

Computer science is great, there are more jobs than professionals so you're basically guaranteed a job and it's unlikely those jobs will be filled before you're done with your study. It's also a very broad field, so there's a good chance you'll find some part you'll like.

However, specifically for New York, something in Health Care seems most needed.

https://labor.ny.gov/stats/pressreleases/pruistat.pdf


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## Grandmaster Yoda (Jan 18, 2014)

Pifanjr said:


> Computer science is great, there are more jobs than professionals so you're basically guaranteed a job and it's unlikely those jobs will be filled before you're done with your study. It's also a very broad field, so there's a good chance you'll find some part you'll like.
> 
> However, specifically for New York, something in Health Care seems most needed.
> 
> https://labor.ny.gov/stats/pressreleases/pruistat.pdf


My stepdad steered me away because he said the computer science guys he knew were now working in stop and shop. I'm somewhat interested in it but I don't have a conclusive reason for it other than anything else.
Well a fortune teller said I would be a doctor.


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## Grandmaster Yoda (Jan 18, 2014)

Skeletalz said:


> Cmon you must have interests, something you enjoy doing. Base your choice around that, not what seems to be necessary in "the societal collective in New York" or the broad statistics.
> 
> I liked the CAD class in school, learning how various mechanical devices work and problem solving so I chose to study product development and production technology.
> 
> Choosing a field you dont really like or picture yourself liking is a great way to end up in a dead end job that you hate.


It's a balance of that obviously, but there's also the consideration of getting a degree that will get me a job or something. My stepdad is doubtful that computer science will do that but I don't know.


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## Pifanjr (Aug 19, 2014)

"1. Mobile Application Developer • Growth: 32% (much faster than avg.) • New Jobs 2010-2020: 292,200 • Average Salary: $94,000"
https://www.suu.edu/cose/csis/career-opportunities.html

"You could, for example, become a software developer. The salary is still quite high, around $90,530 per year, and you’ll get to spend your days creating, editing, and testing new software programs, meaning you’ll have a direct hand in influencing the technology of tomorrow! Plus, positions for software developers are expected to grow by a whopping 30% by 2020, which is considered much faster than average for all professions by the Bureau of Labor Statistics."
https://www.looksharp.com/s/computer-science-entry-level-jobs/new-york-ny

"16316 Computer Science Jobs available in New York, NY on Indeed.com"
Computer Science Jobs, Employment in New York, NY | Indeed.com


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## AriesLilith (Jan 6, 2013)

Don't just look at the money. Not having interest in programming at all and wanting to be a programmer, or not having interest in business/technical analysis and all and wanting to be a functional analyst, or not having interest in IT at all and wanting to dig deeper, is going to be bad.

Developers earn a lot but hey, they have to keep up with constant learning and adaptation. Would you dedicate extra time in your free time to do side projects and study extra technologies? Would you read constantly?

Mental jobs are not just some static job. To be a developer, be prepared to solve new situations and learn almost everyday.


If Computer Science sounds interesting, maybe try a few free programming courses (perhaps in Coursera) to see if writing code strikes any interest. Chances are what one will encounter in the career will be a lot more complex and hard.


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## Grandmaster Yoda (Jan 18, 2014)

AriesLilith said:


> Don't just look at the money. Not having interest in programming at all and wanting to be a programmer, or not having interest in business/technical analysis and all and wanting to be a functional analyst, or not having interest in IT at all and wanting to dig deeper, is going to be bad.
> 
> Developers earn a lot but hey, they have to keep up with constant learning and adaptation. Would you dedicate extra time in your free time to do side projects and study extra technologies? Would you read constantly?
> 
> ...


I don't know what I want to, I know that if I'm interested in something I can outperform expectations without breaking a sweat but I don't see anything that does that for me.


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## Waveshine (Mar 18, 2011)

Are you applying for college from high school or are you switching majors in college? If the former, you could apply as undeclared so you can have plenty of time to figure out what you truly want to major in.


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## Skeletalz (Feb 21, 2015)

Grandmaster Yoda said:


> It's a balance of that obviously, but *there's also the consideration of getting a degree that will get me a job* or something. My stepdad is doubtful that computer science will do that but I don't know.


You should have no problems getting a job in any technical field if youre worth your salt (I like that expression ). All Ive heard is that the job market for engineers, IT and similar people is severely underemployed with people getting national averages in salary right after graduating. One story Ive heard was from a girl who was studying mechatronics, she got a great job offer 2 years into her bachelor's degree from some company in Germany


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## Doktorin Zylinder (May 10, 2015)

What actually interests you?


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## Grandmaster Yoda (Jan 18, 2014)

Skeletalz said:


> You should have no problems getting a job in any technical field if youre worth your salt (I like that expression ). All Ive heard is that the job market for engineers, IT and similar people is severely underemployed with people getting national averages in salary right after graduating. One story Ive heard was from a girl who was studying mechatronics, she got a great job offer 2 years into her bachelor's degree from some company in Germany


But how do you know if you are worth your salt if you have no prior experience? Hmm I need a place to try things.


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## Grandmaster Yoda (Jan 18, 2014)

Doktorin Zylinder said:


> What actually interests you?


You and I know what actually interests me. Very little. I was imagining myself as a brain surgeon making sarcastic remarks to an unintelligent patient about how I "fixed" there brain but couldn't make them intelligent.


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## Grandmaster Yoda (Jan 18, 2014)

Pikazoid said:


> Are you applying for college from high school or are you switching majors in college? If the former, you could apply as undeclared so you can have plenty of time to figure out what you truly want to major in.


I don't know, in fact I have been told little which doesn't help me. Apparently there is an essay I need to write that otherwise wouldn't be obvious to me at all.


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## Doktorin Zylinder (May 10, 2015)

Grandmaster Yoda said:


> You and I know what actually interests me. Very little. I was imagining myself as a brain surgeon making sarcastic remarks to an unintelligent patient about how I "fixed" there brain but couldn't make them intelligent.


Are you going to be serious about this or not?

You're going to have to find something because most people don't get paid to exist.


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## Skeletalz (Feb 21, 2015)

Grandmaster Yoda said:


> But how do you know if you are worth your salt if you have no prior experience? Hmm I need a place to try things.


You wont have a good idea of how well you can handle the work in your field until 1) you choose a field and 2) graduate. Certain jobs can be different than what you do as projects or whatever but the general idea is still there.


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## Grandmaster Yoda (Jan 18, 2014)

Doktorin Zylinder said:


> Are you going to be serious about this or not?
> 
> You're going to have to find something because most people don't get paid to exist.


The problem is my lack of life and envy of other lives. If I were directly competing with my associates, I would have lost on account of lack of participation alone. Everyone seems to have their sport or their club or their community aid. My record is empty and unappealing. All I have is the pure grades, but that means nothing to the real world. I'm unappealing, but the isn't really the point of this. I've also worked around the lack of appeal by ascribing a definition of meaninglessness to much of it all. You're a loser? Just convince yourself that all accomplishment is a joke anyway. But that's not the point either. The point is I drift, I only do what I want and I am never forced to do something else. If halfway through the process of being a statistician let's say, I become bored, what's left? I would be going on ability but no effort and it would all collapse. There's no starting point which makes it even more difficult. I think it's all contingent, that's why I have a problem answering "what am I interested in". I used to be addictively interested in this MBTI theory, now it's completely bulldozed out of my mind in most respects. It's contingent and it's hard to pinpoint. That's the difficulty.


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## Grandmaster Yoda (Jan 18, 2014)

Skeletalz said:


> You wont have a good idea of how well you can handle the work in your field until 1) you choose a field and 2) graduate. Certain jobs can be different than what you do as projects or whatever but the general idea is still there.


I think working environment is relevant. I don't want to break my back doing manual labor for instance, unfortunately many people cannot say "I don't want" that.


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## Waveshine (Mar 18, 2011)

Grandmaster Yoda said:


> I don't know, in fact I have been told little which doesn't help me. Apparently there is an essay I need to write that otherwise wouldn't be obvious to me at all.


Colleges usually require you to write an essay to help determine whether if they should accept you.

So are you in high school right now? If so, colleges usually have an undeclared program where they allow students to explore majors and find the subject they want to major in (undeclared students are not committed to major in anything at all). Colleges let students to be undeclared because a lot of people (especially 18-20 year olds) do not know what they want to do for their careers yet. Undeclared programs usually are only available for college freshmen and last for their first 2 years of college. After the program ends, students are obligated to pick a major.


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## Grandmaster Yoda (Jan 18, 2014)

Pikazoid said:


> Colleges usually require you to write an essay to help determine whether if they should accept you.
> 
> So are you in high school right now? If so, colleges usually have an undeclared program where they allow students to explore majors and find the subject they want to major in (undeclared students are not committed to major in anything at all). Colleges let students to be undeclared because a lot of people (especially 18-20 year olds) do not know what they want to do for their careers yet. Undeclared programs usually are only available for college freshmen and last for their first 2 years of college. After the program ends, students are obligated to pick a major.


I might do that but I think it's equally important that I think now. I haven't started senior year yet.


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