College

Post 1

Friday, August 11, 2006 - 2:42am

The Ayn Rand Institute has an Objectivist Academic Center currently working on full accreditation. They offer distance learning courses. You might want to check with them.

Do you have other passions that you could also turn into a productive career?

Post 2

Friday, August 11, 2006 - 8:41am

Dustin,

It's quite difficult to get a job in philosophy in academia. You would do better if you did something like law, psychology, or economics. You could teach these subjects and still promote Rand's ideas at the same time.

There are quite a few talented people out there who have been unable to get stable careers in philosophy. A doctorate in anything is a major life investment. Make sure your investment pays off.

In my own life, I became a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer back in 2000. I then found that it was a complete waste of time. I wouldn't want to see anyone have that experience in any field.

Of course, you are just starting college. So, you have plenty of time to make a decision.

Post 3

Friday, August 11, 2006 - 10:59am

Hello Dustin. It depends what you want to do for work. I have a friend who loves working on cars, and does so at a luxury dealership, the same dealership who paid for his training and certification after he had been there for six months. He makes around $80,000 per year, more than his college professor brother who is still paying off student loans. But both are happy in their work and would rather be doing nothing else. Discover what you value and go after it.

John

Post 4

Friday, August 11, 2006 - 12:03pm

One thing good about car work is that they are not going to offshore your job.

Post 5

Friday, August 11, 2006 - 2:56pm

Hi Dustin,
I am a rising junior in high school, so I don't think I can assist you in your college matters, but, I would recommend that you learn about topics you think you would enjoy. As for myself, I desire to attend Georgetown College of Law in Washington D.C. Unfortunately, certain qualifications required to attend this college are absolutely absurd. For example, I need to complete at least 100 service hours in order to give my application a decent chance. I can't help but wonder how my service to others serves as a base for judgment as to the type of student I am. Other prominent institutions have also been adapting similar standards. I am a diligent student and work endlessly to achieve the best academic standard possible to myself. However, the thought that a fellow student would be seen in a more positive light than myself due to more service hours, angers me greatly. I am doing all I possibly can to better my chances of gaining admission by attending leadership conferences such as NYLC. I absolutely love the city of Washington D.C. for the historical relevance and the symbolism of freedom embodied in its buildings. I desire to become a lawyer and become involved in politics because there is so much chaos that I wish to resolve in the world. I know my dream is a bit on the idealistic side, but I truly wish to right the wrongs of our country. I wish to be a voice of reason in our congress so that the United States can prosper to unimagined limits.

Returning again to your topic, there is nothing wrong about having passions for certain types of employment that shall not prove to be lucrative. However, search for other jobs that you can enjoy and will not crush your enthusiasm for work. Then perhaps you can attend to your sociology and philosophy passions on the side. Even if your future work might not entail specifically with sociology and philosophy, nothing can stop you from continuing to study these subjects in your own time as best suits you.

Post 6

Monday, August 14, 2006 - 7:26pm

Dustin,

I am about to attend college as well. My courses for the first year will be nothing exceptional. The plan is to try a lot of different things, since, we, as youth, probably do not know for sure what we want to do in life.

Post 7

Tuesday, August 15, 2006 - 1:02am

quote

I'm interested in what courses people here have taken in college. My first year begins next month and I am already confused on what courses I'd like to take. I'm going to a local community college and have registered to take Algebra, English, Ethics, and American Government. Philosophy and Sociology are my true passion but I have been told many times that degrees in the fields are useless
_________________________________________________________________________________________

If you like Philosophy and Sociology, you may want to take those next semester.

(I wouldn't refer to any degrees as useless. A degree amounts to what you do with it.)

What you 'take' in college should be based on your interests, your passion(s) and your purpose for attending college in the first place.

College is a wonderful place to gain general knowledge, specific knowledge and to even discover new interests.

For some people the focus is obtaining credentials for a desired caeer field. For others, it's just the next logical thing after high school and/or they have no idea what career they wish to pursue upon beginning college.

If you plan to go on to a four year college for a bachelor's degree, you should be fulfilling liberal arts course requirements at the community college level, and you will choose your major in a four-year college. In that case, you have various options regarding required courses.

If you don't have the luxury of parents supporting you and./or paying for your education, it may be wise to choose a two-year curriculum that will offer marketable skills, so you can get a gig and perhaps work for a company that will pay for your education from there.

Also, regarding your passions, it would be wise to make an appointment to speak with department faculty members regarding your options and career possibilities in those fields.

You have options, explore and adventure...

and

Good luck in college!

Post 8

Tuesday, August 15, 2006 - 4:53am

Speaking from experience, whatever you decide to take, just make sure you actually attend the classes (ie, don't party too hard!)

Post 9

Tuesday, August 15, 2006 - 1:30pm

Dustin,

If your college is typical, there will be many boring classes with lousy professors. The key is to avoid those, whatever they teach. I went to a large enough school with enough perceptive students that it was possible to observe and ask who had energized and inspired them most: the professors, not the subject. I hated history in h.s. but the most revered professor on campus taught it, so I took it...and it awakened my interest in that subject because he was brilliant.

One warning: the entry level "101" course in many subjects, particularly the humanities, are often boring or poorly taught compared to the upper level courses at a major university. I don't know if that's true at a community college, but the point is professors prefer to teach grad students or juniors and seniors, so they frequently slough off or give short shrift or are inattentive to the 101 couses.

The other principle is breadth. You have your whole life to specialize, so try to take as wide a range of subjects as the college allows. If I had done that and had not done too much "math and science loading" I would have found out far earlier that mathematics was not my love, but the humanities. Once you've been out of college a while, no one is going to look at your college transcript, so don't feel constrained about what individual courses you choose to take.

Post 10

Tuesday, August 15, 2006 - 1:36pm

> Philosophy and Sociology are my true passion but I have been told many times that degrees in the fields are useless.

Presumably you will go somewhere else after two years in community college, so what you majored in there would be buried. So don't worry about it. The other alternative is load up on those courses as much as you can (if you like how they are taught at your school) but declare your major to be something else or 'interdisciplinary'. For example, suppose I thought I was going to be a professional mathematician but loved classics more. I would have taken as few math classes as the major required (or deferred them to junior and senior year, in case I might decide to change my major late) and taken as many Greek, Latin, Ancient History as were offered early on. And looked to see where this led me.

Warning: philosophy and sociology courses can be particularly infected by relativism, subjectivism, collectivism, and confusion...they were among the poorest courses at my school. So just because you like the subjects doesn't mean you will like the courses. And there is real danger a particularly poor professor and poor textbooks or readings could turn you off on the subject.

Post 11

Tuesday, August 15, 2006 - 2:04pm

Something else not being mentioned here - if you plan to graduate, there are required courses to take, like them or not, boring they may be or not, poor teachers or not........ deal with it, then move on.... to those of true value to you........

Post 12

Tuesday, August 15, 2006 - 1:58pm

Well, everything's on hold as of this morning. Today was my birthday and my local college denied me entry and took me out of my enrolled classes. I've been denied a pell grant from my state department of education because my "family makes too much money". I have one parent who is a construction foreman, and I'm their dependant. Now I have got to come up with the cash for my semester in two weeks, or take one class at a time which I can afford. All of the advice has been great, though.

Post 13

Tuesday, August 15, 2006 - 5:51pm

Student loan?

Thursday, August 17, 2006 - 7:13am

Why did the local college deny you entry? Was this related to not getting the grant or was it something else?

Post 15

Monday, August 28, 2006 - 1:25pm

A sociology degree could lead to a career in social work or counseling, human resources, criminology, ethnology, statistical research among others.

What is it that you want to do for a living? Usually that is the question that needs answering first.

Post 16

Monday, August 28, 2006 - 1:35pm