Knowledge

How To Choose A Degree

One of the most important decision a person would make in their life is choosing their college degree. A normal college degree course takes between four to five years and costs a lot of money depending on which country you happen to live in.

But the more important reason why students should carefully choose their degree is because it greatly influences what kind of job a person would likely have after they finish schooling. A career usually lasts more than four decades that is why a person’s choice of degree could also affect them almost throughout their lifetime.

How To Choose A Degree Summary List:

1. Earning Potential
2. Cost
3. Interest
4. Prestige
5. Lifestyle Difficulty
6. Studying Difficulty
7. Danger
8. Grossness
9. Success Rate
10. License

Alternatives To A Degree Summary List:

Vocational Education
Online Business
Freelancing
Business Owner



Final Words

How To Choose A Degree Summary List Details:

1. Earning Potential

Nowadays, many students and their parents choose a degree’s earning potential above all else. For example, we see a family of doctors pushing their children to take medicine related degrees because of the relatively high pay and prestige given to medical professionals.

Although there are degrees with high probabilities of high income potential, students should realize that earning potential is not based solely on a person’s degree. Anyone can be highly paid in all kinds of profession if they are either lucky or are one of the best in their profession.

This is the reason why we see college dropouts earning more than highly paid professionals in such fields as medicine, management, law, science and engineering. For example, many of the richest tech billionaires are college dropouts.

These billionaire college dropouts employ managers who not only have college degrees but even masters and doctorate degrees. There are even self-taught computer programmers who outearn doctors, lawyers, scientists and engineers despite not having a degree.

As such, students should not choose a college degree based solely on its perceived high earning potential. What students should concentrate on is being the best at their chosen field whatever it may be.

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2. Cost

This is another compelling reason why students choose a certain degree over another. For example, a student might want to be a doctor but as we all know, a medical degree is usually very expensive.

In fact, this is one of the reason why there are not enough medical professionals around despite the overwhelming demand for them: not many can afford to study medicine. Usually, it is only the moneyed person who can afford to study medicine.

But don’t despair, many governments in the world understand the plight of students from financially handicapped families. There are governments who provide educational assistance and even scholarships to high performing students.

A student who is financially handicapped should explore government educational programs to see if they qualify. There are also educational foundations who provide not only educational assistance but also scholarship. Students should also explore these educational foundations.

So, students should not give up on their dream degree just because they cannot afford it. A student can also work part-time and study part-time. By doing this, a student might graduate after a longer time but they get to study the degree they want.

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3. Interest

This is one of he biggest criteria why students choose a certain degree and it also happens to be one of the most important reason in choosing a degree. A student who likes what they are studying is likely to perform better than a student who is only going through the motions of studying.

Don’t forget that studying for a degree usually lasts between four to five years. A disinterested student won’t likely last these long years resulting in waste of precious time and money. A misstep in choosing a degree can ruin a student’s future.

This is because if a student changes the degree they are studying, their peers would graduate way ahead of them which is a significant career advantage to their peers. Imagine graduating and applying for a job where you are one of the oldest job applicant.

But if you as a student really found out that the degree you are studying is not meant for you, then despite the hard transition to the degree that interests you, you should do it. Remember, your degree greatly affects your future career which lasts for approximately more than four decades.

It is advisable that you take an internship even an unpaid one in your chosen profession just to see if this profession and its corresponding degree is what you really want to do for decades until you grow old and retire.

There have actually been cases where students took several years off from school after graduating high school just to know what they really want to do in life and its corresponding degree.

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4. Prestige

Let’s face it, everyone at a young age is affected by media. This is the reason why for example, many are infatuated by medical, law, law enforcement, management, acting and musical degrees because these professions are usually portrayed in media as glamorous and exciting.

But let’s face it, even the most exciting jobs can become boring when it ultimately becomes a grind. Also, even the most boring jobs have moments of prestige and glamour. This is another reason why students should choose a degree because they are really interested in it and not just infatuated with it.

If a person is really interested in their career, then it doesn’t matter if their job is boring and unglamorous, the person would enjoy their job in spite of this. For example, many perceive that a librarian’s job is unexciting and unglamorous.

However, a person who loves books, reading and especially silence would jump at the chance to become a librarian. This is the reason why there are actual courses in how to be a librarian.

But if you want to be in the limelight then perhaps you should take up a degree in acting, music or even politics. Perhaps a law enforcement or a military career and their corresponding degrees might also interest you if want people to look up to you.

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5. Lifestyle Difficulty

Another thing to consider is the lifestyle a person would live according to their chosen degree. For example, a seaman degree doesn’t teach seamen the intricacies of living for long periods in the sea.

Marine schools especially don’t teach how mariners should handle family life while their families are on land and they are on sea. The same applies with a military career. Soldiers usually stay at military camps faraway from their families.

If you are choosing these kinds of degrees where you have to be faraway from your loved ones for extended periods, think twice. There is a reason why the pay for some degrees are much higher than normal, and this is one of the reasons for it.

Another example would be law enforcement degrees and their associated jobs. A law enforcement career usually tests a person’s moral, mental and physical endurance. Law Enforcements Schools in fact have strenuous tests for these three factors.

If you think that a law enforcement or a military profession is like what you see in media which is full of action and excitement, think again. The reality is very far from the truth.

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6. Studying Difficulty

There is a reason for example why graduates of law and medicine are usually highly paid. This is because not many students graduate with law and medical degrees. Studying law and medicine requires a lot of study of law and medical records.

A law student must study and memorize volumes of law books and must also study diligently the details of court cases. A medical student has to study and memorize volumes of medical books like disease records and medicine records.

If you are not really into book reading and memorization, perhaps you should reconsider your decision to choose either a law or medicine degree. Also, if you plan to be an engineer but hate studying in detail and memorizing mathematical formulas, perhaps you should reconsider being an engineer.

Perhaps you could choose a more artistic degree like art studies, drafting or architecture. Many students underestimate the studying difficulty of certain degrees. They think it would be the same as highschool were courses are more general in nature.

A student should consult with a senior college student just to have an idea of how difficult their chosen degree is in terms of studying for it.

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7. Danger

Most students also underestimate the danger inherent in a certain degree and its associated profession. We already know that choosing a law enforcement or a military degree can be dangerous and in some instances even fatal.

But there are also other dangerous degrees with their associated professions. For example, the pandemic has shown us just how dangerous a medical degree can be. Hordes of doctors, nurses and other medical professionals working at hospitals died during the pandemic.

If you are a student who is risk averse, perhaps you should consider another degree besides such degrees which leads to the professions of logging, mining, avionics, oil derrick operations, roofing and so on.

As you can see, there are many dangerous professions out there besides law enforcement and military. But knowing a little can be a lot. For example, everybody knows that electricity is dangerous and can kill. So, if you don’t want to be near it, stay away from degrees associated with it.

This just means that you should stay away from an electrical engineering degree and more importantly, from an electrician degree. This is also the reason why electrical engineers and electricians are usually highly paid.

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8. Grossness

It is no big secret that many people don’t want to do jobs which are considered “gross”. For example, garbage collection, cleaning and sanitation are considered gross jobs.

This is the reason why there is always a vacancy for such jobs. Most of the time, you don’t even need a degree to qualify for a job that are considered gross. For example, there are many students who take up nursing degrees but not so much with aged care degrees.

This is because being a nurse is less gross than being an aged carer. Let’s not beat around the bush, a lot of people don’t want to take care of the elderly because the elderly have the same care needs of an infant, only much strenuous.

There are actual nurses and aged carers who have actually quit their jobs because they can’t handle taking care of grown adults especially their personal hygiene and bodily functions.

This is the reason why there would always be a demand for such jobs. If you are a student who is more keen on choosing a degree/profession with relatively less competition, you should consider degrees other students don’t want to take.

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9. Success Rate

Many students choose a certain degree because they were motivated by a success story in a certain profession. For example, a student might choose an acting degree because they have seen a successful actor who came from nothing and is now famous.

Regrettably, this is an all to familiar story, There are students who choose acting degrees in the hope of becoming the next acting superstar. There are students who choose musical degrees in the hope of becoming the next million dollar singer.

There are students who choose finance degrees in the hope of becoming the next WallStreet billionaire. There are those who choose tech degrees in the hope of becoming the next tech billionaire. This goes on and on.

What people don’t know is that the more famous a degree and its associated profession is, the more is the competition to be on top. For example, Hollywood is filled with untold stories of failed actors and actresses who give up to take ordinary jobs because of the extreme competition in Hollywood.

So, a student should research actual information about the success rate for a given profession. For example, a business degree might sound boring but there is an infinite demand for business degree graduates.

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10. License

A License for a degree can make or break a student’s career. For example, you cannot practice a law, medical and engineering degree unless you have a government certified license to practice it.

This is the reason why besides studying for their degrees, students whose degrees also require a License also have to study again for their board exams. If a student passes their board exam they have a considerable leg up against those who failed.

Not passing their board exam can be a career ender for many. It means either you won’t be allowed to practice your profession or you would be paid significantly less as against a board passer.

In fact, there are companies who don’t employ graduates unless they are board certified. This is because under government rules, there are jobs and company positions that can only be filled by board passers.

But many students underestimate the importance of a License and only realize their worth after they completed their degrees and failed their board exam which essentially renders useless all the money, time and hard work the student put in to finish their degree.

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Alternatives To A Degree List Details:

Vocational Education

Vocational education has always been treated as the poor cousin of degrees. This is the reason why many students don’t take vocational education and find out too late that a vocational profession can stand side by side with professions that require degrees.

We hear it all around us for example, that electricians and plumbers usually outearn even highly paid business managers. These electricians and plumbers don’t even need to become a manager to be highly paid like a manager.

This is especially true in first world countries where the labor cost is high. In developing countries however, it is still the white collar jobs who usually outearn the blue collar workers. But this is changing. Even blue collar workers in developing countries can outearn white collar workers now.

Usually, most vocational graduate professionals thru the nature of their learned skills are able to start their own business much more readily than white collar workers. For example, an electrician can work for a company and freelance on the side because electrical skills is demanded by almost everyone.

Compare this to a white collar office worker who is only able to apply their learned skills in an office setting. Not everyone demands an office skill job like households. A household may need an electrician but not an office worker.

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Online Business

This is one of the largest industries today despite its relatively young age. The online business industry just started a few decades ago but is already worth more than one trillion dollars. Compare this with the mining industry which is centuries old but is worth less than one trillion dollars.

An online business can be started even with little schooling. All that one needs are computer skills which plenty of todays generation already have. It can also be started with little to no money.

All that one needs is a personal computer/smartphone and an internet connection and they are already in business. If you think about it, who doesn’t have a personal computer/smartphone and access to the internet these days?

So, it seems like having an online business is the perfect business. You can easily and cheaply start one right at the comfort of your own home if you wanted to. But this is also one of the negative things about an online business.

Because it is so easily and cheaply started, a lot of people are doing it already and competition is fierce. But don’t get disappointed. This is the same situation for almost all industries whether it is retail, finance, mining, agriculture, manufacturing and so on.

So, it is suggested that you should at least give online business a try whether or not you are still a student, a working professional or even retired. Don’t underestimate the luck factor in anything. A seemingly stupid idea can become a million dollar business thru sheer luck alone.

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Freelancing

This is closely related to an online business but requires more customer interaction. This is because you still need to connect with customers even though both of you are only connected via the internet.

Freelancing can be anything these days just like an online business. Whatever service you can do, there is sure to be a market for it no matter how rare or stupendous. For example, there are freelancer mother and daughter pairs who would sing online for anyone who pays for such service.

There are even people who would pretend to be your online boyfriend or girlfriend for a fee. Though somewhat on the murky side, these exemplify how varied the freelancing world can be.

These skills don’t need a degree but can earn a person money. Take for example writing skills which many people have already. Even a highschool level student can write a story, essay, article, report and so on.

As you can see, writing freelancing doesn’t require a degree but is a source of livelihood for many people. 17% of all freelancing jobs are devoted to writing. It is even mind boggling to note that there are 1.2 billion freelancers globally as of 2020.

This means that freelancing employs more people than some of the biggest industries around like mining and agriculture. This signifies how much demand there is for freelancing jobs globally.

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Business Owner

Starting a business requires capital and usually more than a person can afford. If this was not so, then we would see more people starting businesses where they are the boss instead of working for someone else.

But there are businesses that you can start with little to no capital like an online business and freelancing. But besides these two, you can also start a business where you sell your knowledge or skills.

For example, you can be a motivational speaker. One good example is Tony Robbins who despite not having a college degree became a multimillionaire thru selling motivational books and seminars.

Another business that you can do would be to teach your skills or be a consultant for your particular skills. For example, if you are a mother, you can teach or be a consultant to other mothers on child rearing and home care.

If you have juggling, acrobatic or comedic skills, you can setup a one person entertainment company. Sure, the entertainment business is tough, but what business isn’t these days?

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Final Words

There are many factors a student must consider before choosing a certain degree. Students should not be blinded by the prestige factor or the perceived high earning potential of certain degrees.

Even the most prestigious professions can get boring when it becomes a grind. Earning potential mostly depends on being the best in your profession and not on the degree alone.

Students also underestimate that degrees that require board exams/licenses can make or break their career and their entire life. This could mean that one can be excluded or treated like an inferior in some professions.

These and all the other factors listed above should be carefully considered by a student before choosing a certain degree. As already said, a degree is a gateway to career that lasts for decades. In short, a degree can greatly affect a person’s whole life.

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