Students:
Many of you are studying majors that lead to specific careers. For example as a pre-med student, you will likely go to medical school to become a doctor. Or, as another example: if you are studying biology, you will likely go on to work in a lab as a biologist. At least this is what you have been told a hundred times by your parents, high school counselor, and other career coaches.
But, is that the way it has to be?Does majoring in something mean that you must do that, and nothing else, for a living?
Not necessarily!
There are career alternatives available in that particular subject that interests you the most --and for which you want to dedicate your career. To illustrate, the field of intellectual property (IP) in legal services employees a wide variety of medical doctors (MD), engineers, chemists, biologists, dietitians, nurses, and many other majors at all levels (BS, MS, and Ph.D.). The lawyers in a firm specializing in IP will look to the engineers, biologists, chemists, etc as specialists in their subject area.
IP firms have a HUGE need for specialists and pay them salaries that are usually much higher then many other industries. Additionally, if you are interested in going to law school, many of the higher end firms will pay for your law school tuition if you spend several years with the firm and agree to go to law school part-time.
Of course there are many other options. As another example,
did you ever consider teaching in a University or College? If you have (or plan to have) a Master's or Ph.D. degree, many Universities and Colleges would be very interested in talking to you about teaching at their institution. You might have to start out as a lecturer or Assistant Professor ... but, with time, you could become a tenured Full Professor with all the clout and prestige that goes along with this title!
The point is: Don't be led by the status-quo. You are unique and can definitely do something different from the rest of the flock.
Granted, you are going to have to do more research if you want to find a niche which is out of the ordinary -- but, it will be worth it to be able to do something satisfying and exclusive of what everyone else is doing with their degree.
Consider your options,
there are many of them!
- Professor Gary
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Gary Plourde is an independent author. He writes about Traveling, Sailing, Inventions and the Patenting process.
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