Going into college, I did not think about minimizing my own future
income risk because, let’s face it, I was young. But my parents, on the other
hand, definitely had that on their minds: they completely covered the cost of
my college education so that I would be debt free upon graduation. Given that
I’m an out-of-state student, that is no small cost. With the same thoughts
toward my future, my parents suggested I major in electrical engineering, where
the technical skills and know-how I would learn would make it very easy to find
good employment. Even though I had my reservations, I agreed, knowing that they
were right (as usual). I was semi-interested in technology to begin with so I
thought electrical engineering might work out for me. But even though I was a
fine student, my interest waned as I had to trudge through the basic courses where it’s
rote learning and memorization. Even though we had labs, they weren’t very
hands on, or interesting to be frank. So I decided to switch into economics,
where I have greater passion for my studies and academics. Previously, I’ve
interned at a large financial corporation with the hopes of possibly working
there in the future. I’ve also founded and led the Illini Investment Group as
an extracurricular activity. I’ve done these activities all with the hopes of
them correlating directly into the job market or, alternatively, graduate
school. I know that a career in economics, either through employment or
graduate school will offer me two good paths toward decreasing and better
managing future income risk. In a similar vein, even though I do not have an
older sibling, my older cousin is in medical school and he does have an
interest in medicine, yes, but it was also done with an eye towards a
successful career and decreasing future income risk.
Since you mentioned going to graduate school, which only a few of your classmates discussed, let me talk about graduate school in Economics and what it might prepare you for. If you go for the doctorate, then of course becoming a professor is possible. But economists are also hired by many U.S. government agencies, such as the FED, the Justice Department, and by International Agencies like the World Bank and the IMF. There are also numerous positions in various private sector firms, particularly financial houses, and at think tanks. Doctoral education may be undergoing a change in how it is funded. When I did it, I was on fellowship the full time. If you went here, you'd likely be on an assistantship. Many students don't consider this possibility. They want to enter the real world. But it is a possible alternative.
ReplyDeleteOn a different note, could you please change your template for the blog. It is very difficult to get comments to show up with the present template.
One of the great things about an economics degree is that you can use it for so many different things. It sounds like you've set yourself up well to work in the financial sector, where income risk is basically non-existent. Although it also sounds like you're open to a wide variety of options which also reduces your income risk. The risk I might be worried about in that case would be the risk of not having enough time for schoolwork during interview season, since lots of interviews for lots of options can be incredibly time consuming and draining.
ReplyDeleteQuick note about the comments - opening the blog in Internet Explorer shows the comments immediately. It would be nice if you could change the template, though, to eliminate some of the hassle of switching from Chrome to IE. :)