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What's the best major/career for me?

I have been trying to find a major/career that suits me for a while, but nothing seems to stick because I have so many interests. I recently graduated from Clayton State University with my Associate of Arts in Integrative Studies and I will be graduating from high school in May. I plan to enroll in college in August, but the college I choose strongly depends on my major. My interests include: Mathematics (Statistics and Algebra), Science (Biology and Human anatomy), Healthcare, Office work, Education (Teaching/children), Mental health/ Counseling, Handling money, and Management/Business Administration/ Human resources. My goals for my career include: helping others , having a salary that allows me to live comfortably, having a good work-life balance, and being happy with my career. I would love to find a major/career that includes most, if not all, of my interests and goals. I would also like to be able to start working after I obtain my bachelor's or master's degree (if needed). Can you please provide me with any majors, careers, and colleges that could possibly be a good fit?

#career #business #healthcare #management #education #college #mentalhealth #science #math

business science management math mentalhealth
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Doc’s Answer

Ramsey my I suggest a Hospital Administrator. Hospital administrators manage healthcare facilities such as hospitals, community health centers, drug-abuse treatment centers, nursing homes, outpatient clinics and doctor's offices. Hospital administrators, who are also often called healthcare administrators or hospital managers, have a very demanding job. Because hospitals are open 24 hours, hospital administrators frequently have to work irregular and long hours. Due to their administrative position, hospital administrators must possess leadership skills, as well as the ability to communicate effectively with hospital employees. They are charged with overseeing healthcare services to ensure hospitals and other healthcare facilities run efficiently and smoothly. Hospital administrators must also oversee activities so that patients receive proper medical care.

Hospital administrators may act as the go-between for department heads and medical personnel. Their other duties include budgeting and fundraising, hiring doctors and other medical staff, developing hospital policies, guiding public relations efforts and evaluating employees. While smaller healthcare facilities may have only one administrator, large hospitals often have multiple hospital administrators to oversee specific areas, such as medical records and nursing. A hospital administrator coordinates and manages a wide variety of tasks and personnel. A master's degree in health administration is a must, although practicing doctors may come to the field by obtaining a master's in business administration as well. An internship can help you learn to apply your skills in a working healthcare environment.

HOSPITAL ADMINISTRATOR EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS
Hospital administrators are typically required to hold a master's degree. There are a number of Master of Healthcare Administration or Master of Health Services Administration programs that adequately prepare graduates for a career in hospital administration. These programs combine business administration and public health training, covering topics such as human resources management, biostatistics, health organization management, healthcare financial theory, epidemiology, healthcare policy development, financial management and public health administration. Health services or healthcare administration programs also typically require that students complete an extensive internship at a local healthcare center.

SALARY INFORMATION AND EMPLOYMENT OUTLOOK
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) delineates statistics for medical and health services managers, a category that includes hospital administrators. The average Hospital Administrator salary in the United States is $92,500 as of November 25, 2020, but the range typically falls between $84,000 and $150,500. Salary ranges can vary widely depending on many important factors, including education, certifications, additional skills, the number of years you have spent in your profession. The BLS expects job opportunities for medical and health services managers to increase by 18% during the 2020-2030 decade.

Hope this was helpful Ramsey

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In order to gain practical experience in the industry, students may seek or may be required as part of a degree program to participate in internship opportunities. Most internships involve completing a minimum number of hours working side-by-side with staff in a healthcare facility. School-related internships may be offered through a partnership with a local medical facility. Other internships may be found through hospitals or other medical centers. Through the internship, students typically gain further insights into how a hospital is managed, common management issues and the day-to-day operations of a hospital's administrative staff.
Thank you comment icon Thank you Dexter for your continued support. One of the ways we communicate that we can be trusted is in the way we care for other people. Doc Frick
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much John! Ramsey
Thank you comment icon Your Welcome Ramsey, Believe you can and you’re halfway there Ramsey. Doc Frick
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Malisa’s Answer

Hi there - When faced with the question "what should my career or major be" the first thing to keep in mind is that you major does not need to be your career. I've known a lot of people whose 'major' or areas where they have degrees are not the career they currently have. What I would suggest is doing some additional research understanding that fields of work will often utilize a lot of the skills you mentioned interest in. When you take some time and do self-reflection to understand what drives your interest verses what is a passing interest it will help you towards your next steps.

Management / Business Administration and Human resources skills are always needed in any type of leadership role for *any* field. Your handling money interest can be solved by handling your own funds and investments. You mentioned Education - add the research piece, how much do you really like teaching? Is it the act of sharing knowledge or really creating the curricula and helping children learn? Spend some time in classrooms, talk to some teachers to really understand what they do. Teaching can happen anytime / anywhere. In my role I teach people all the time. I coach people all the time. This fulfills my teaching drive I have held since I was young. Science and Mathematics really can play off of each other well and then add into Healthcare.

A good work-life balance is on you and how you manage your time and schedule. No job is going to offer that to you. Also being happy is a personal feeling. I would ask you think about happy verses fulfilled. Helping others - define what this means to you. Is it the physical act of healthcare or is it doing work that as a whole helps others do that they need in their life. Salary is a key consideration of course but it is not the only way for you to be able to gain funds to live the life you want. Consider that you will need to work up in any field to get where you are wanting to be.

I hope this helps you. In short -
- Self reflection: Ask the hard questions and be honest with yourself. What gets me excited verses what sounds like fun
- Do the research: What skills will be fulfilled per interest (see leadership comment above)
- Dip your toes: Go to the library and get some of the top books in the areas, read about it - all of it (good the bad and the ugly)
- Remember: Life is about choice and change. You can always change things up as experience and opportunities present themselves
Thank you comment icon Thank you Malisa! Ramsey
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Kristen’s Answer

Hi Ramsey! How about an epidemiologist? Studying infectious diseases like COVID to help develop vaccines is a very important job. Not only will you help people all over the world but it pay relatively well. You will need a Masters degree for this. You could also look into being a mental health counselor, there is a variety of track you can take there or a hospital administrator. Good luck!

Kristen recommends the following next steps:

Try to interview individuals in the jobs youre interested in
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much Kristen! Ramsey
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Natalie’s Answer

Since your interests are so varied, maybe spend some time in college exploring them! One of the uses of school is giving yourself the opportunity to dive into many things and decide what you do / don't like. It's equally important to learn what you *don't* like, not just what you do like.

You can also use the alumni networks at your school to find people that have jobs in those fields. Many of them will be willing to speak to you about what they do, how they got into it, and what they like / don't like about their jobs.

I wouldn't worry too much about picking just one career now, when you have so many interests. You can change careers multiple times in your life!
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much Natalie! Ramsey
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Brittany’s Answer

That's awesome you have so many interests! Like many people mentioned in the comments above, your major doesn't necessarily dictate the career you choose. Most often individuals enter college having no idea what they want to do as a career. By choosing classes that seem interesting to you and advancing in the academic paths that you are most passionate about, you will meet people and learn about careers along the way relevant to your field of study. My suggestion to you is to start networking early and talking to your professors about potential career paths and perhaps shadow someone in that field. It's also important to remember that you might not land your dream job right out of college, but it is a first step in the right direction.
Thank you comment icon Thank you so muck Brittany! Ramsey
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Brian’s Answer

Hopefully I can provide a different answer that may not be easily apparent.

Based on your interests I would suggest looking into Healthcare Technology. Specifically in a "product" role.

Example Companies:
Optum, Change Healthcare, Inovalon


While others jump to the idea of "hospital admin" there is also a completely different side of healthcare that hits on lmost all of your interests - and that is on the technology side.

Jobs usually pay well and provide great skills for the future.

Just something to think about - you may not want to focus on the typical answer as the healthcare world is huge and the people who will make the biggest change are those innovating the technology.

Thank you comment icon Thank you so much Brian! Ramsey
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Cathy’s Answer

Great question and I had this same exact question when I was in college. I had switched my major a couple of times from education to nursing and then finally decided on Business Administration for a couple of reasons. I, too, was looking for something that I loved, wanted a comfortable life-style, and money definitely didn't hurt but I wasn't sure what SPECIFIC field I wanted to go into. With a business degree, it left it open for me to explore different career paths, if I wanted to work in a hospital but didn't want to deal with blood then I could find something in the admin/management side. Or if I wanted to be around kids but didn't want to commit to being a teacher, I could open my own daycare. While I was in college, I was working my way up the management chain in a restaurant, which I was content with because someday I wanted to own my own restaurant. But then I got an opportunity to work for Verizon as a retail sales rep progressed my career relatively fast to promote to assistant manager, general manager, and now manage a team of small business reps across the entire state of Oklahoma. I never imagined I would end up in telecommunications but I am so glad that I kept my strategy broad because now I have everything that I was seeking-work/life balance, benefits, purpose in my career, etc. I did have to do some tough stuff to get here but I am glad that I did.
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Erin’s Answer

At the age you are and during this time, nothing is free and nothing is cheap. If you are unsure as to what you want to do right now that so better that thinking you want to do something and regretting the work later. You need to look at several important factors.

-What do you like doing that makes you actually happy.
(Do you feel like your in your natural environment when, working with children, or working with computers, in an office space, outside, in a kitchen, in a garage)
The environment and what you are doing is extremely important. If I had a time machine I would swap my Paralegal and Prelaw B.A. Degree for a restaurant management degree. Why is this? Because in the end when your not doing what you love work really is draining your life and your time. If your not building up who you are and who you want to be then why are you pushing forward. We all want to live comfortable and have money, but it also sounds like you have an interest in helping people which unfortunately comes with the issue that jobs in this industry just are not high paying. Be prepaid to begin out of college making 32,000-45,000 a year if you go into customer service or childcare and education.
-Pay
It will not be as high as you expect. Jobs will try to cut corners and skimp you. I have worked for one of the most famous law firms where I was hired and paid only as a legal secretary but the company would not hire an assistant or paralegal for the attorney, so I had to be an office secretary, legal assistant, and paralegal, all at the same time while only being paid the lowest position wage. Know your worth and know your boundaries, if your employers are taking advantage of your work ethic find a place where you can work for less stress for equal or more pay.
-Tenure
I find a really important thing to looking for when looking for a degree is where you would like to stay and have tenure and know you can easily do so. The most important thing for your career, especially starting out is having a couple of years or at least over a year with good references you can use. Having time and management that can support you being a loyal and hard worker is extremely import once you get out of college with your degree. This will also help with job security keeping to a better work-life balance and mental health.

In the end, do what you love. Right now before you spend all the money on the degree, figure out what you are naturally good at first, what makes you happy, what are you willing to afford and live with. Figure out who you really are before you spend time forcing yourself into something.
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much Erin! Ramsey
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Jade’s Answer

I wish I had as much passion and knowledge when I was your age! Although I may not be able to offer specific advice on what major or college, I will add my perspective. I was similar to you in having a few passions with what I wanted to do and couldn't decide what was the best fit for 'me'. After a couple of semesters of trying to decide, I ultimately figured out that I could do a double major and it would only take me 1 extra semester. So think about how 2 majors could be cohesive in what your goals/passions are and see if the time/investment is worth it.

I would also add, that as you progress and graduate, your education doesn't have to stop there. You can always pursue further education with a master's program, certifications, etc. Additional perks for your first job would be a company that cares about continued education and could help with the investment in an additional degree!

If you know individuals that are in the fields you mentioned, ask them if you can interview them and/or shadow them, but ask that they share the good and the bad with the position.

I have also found that as I have matured and been exposed to more of the 'real world', the career passions that I had in college have changed, I am still passionate about those things, but not from a career perspective, so I try to find opportunities in my personal life to make sure I am still fulfilling that passion. If your time permits outside of school or your career, you can always volunteer or be part of committees that allow you to fulfill your passions.

As some have mentioned: be open, take your time, but also enjoy your time in college. My friends in my college years are still some of my best friends 15+ years later even though we all live in various places.

Best of luck! No matter what, with your passion, you'll do well.
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Larissa’s Answer

Hello!

Going off of what some others have stated, your major does not have to be your career choice, unless you want to do something very specific like Education or Healthcare.

If helping people is one of your interests, majoring in something like psychology or human services is a good background for several different careers, not just those related to mental health.

As far as being happy, that is up to you and how you feel about your career. You can have a job where you are directly helping people and feel stressed rather than fulfilled.

My advice, always, is to make less money while you still can. What I mean by that is a lot of jobs that you may really enjoy start off on a lower pay scale. There will always be room to move up. We often look for a job that will pay us a lot of money, and end up extremely unsatisfied in that job. Once you are in that position, it is so much harder to take a pay cut especially if you are a little older and have purchased a home or car.

Also, another thing to thing about... if you are interested in areas such as Human Resources, business, finance or management but also interested in human services and mental health, consider something such as working in finance or Human Resources at a non-profit organization.
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much Larissa! Ramsey
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Priscilla’s Answer

Hi Ramsey
It sounds like you have diversified yourself well and will have a lot of options. My advice is, try new roles while you are young and exploring. Look into internships to test out what you like and don't like. Also, create a linked in profile and reach out to people in the fields you find interesting. Linked In is great for networking and people are on there generally to meet others and also talk about what they like about their careers. As a people person you can try out different corporate jobs, sales jobs, management roles to help others, and more. Human Resources sounds like it is on the top of your list with the interests that you have, or consider a role like chief of staff. This is where you can learn about expectations from a leader and help others navigate their own career goals. Good luck with your journey, if you have more questions you can always linked in me and we can speak directly.

Priscilla recommends the following next steps:

create a linked in profile
look into internships
discuss internships with college guidance counselors
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much Priscilla! Ramsey
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Rav’s Answer

you have interests in areas like teaching, medical professional, software, Business, HR, arts...

first make a list that interests you the most, in above.. In every profession I mentioned above you will definitely have work and life balance, not exactly sure about Medical professional.

In all these areas you would be getting pretty decent salaries on an avg 40,000-50,000, in the beginning of your career.

In every profession ,in the beginning there will be challenges - you will learn a lot from those.

if you are an expert in arts and crafts you can start earning money for your college by doing some online classes for little kids by teaching ,drawing or dance..etc, or help kids virtually with their home work.

If you would like to volunteer for any opportunities you can find out info about them in local libraries or church.
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much Rav! Ramsey
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Mike’s Answer

Ramsey,

I would recommend joining civic institutions and expanding your network of relationships.

Edmund Burke, of 18th Century England, advised the reader, "To be attached to the subdivision, to love the little platoon we belong to in society, is the first principle (the germ as it were) of public affections. It is the first link in the series by which we proceed towards a love to our country, and to mankind. "

Why are the "little platoons," important? They require us to recognize our duties and responsibilities to the community, which provides us with the prerequisites for flourishing.

This is a long way of saying you aren't alone in this journey. Lean on family, neighborhood, community, church, sports leagues, civic associations and other entities to help guide you.

Spend more time cultivating relationships than on credentials.
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much Mike! Ramsey
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Debra’s Answer

I would try to concentrate on the 2 or 3 that you are most interested in. That way you can narrow the field down and take the classes or experiences that relate to those. The others you can keep as hobbies or interests. It is always best if you enjoy what you do and are happy to go to work.
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Cheryl’s Answer

My best advice here is find what you love and the money will come. You will spend a great deal of time working, if you enjoy it you will be more passionate and engaged. Checking specific business sites will always track what is the up and coming industries, just because an industry is not popular does not mean you would not be able to make a living or find something you are passionate about. Opportunities show up in all kinds of places and present themselves in many ways.

Cheryl recommends the following next steps:

Be open.
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much Cheryl! Ramsey
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Simeon’s Answer

I think some good answers would include lab tech, nutritionist, and sonographer. Sonography and radiology techs are fast growing fields with a lot of demand.
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