Interpretive Therapies

Question by Kamesh M: College or Break/Cruise Ship?
What to do with my life College or Break/ Cruise Ship?
Well this is going to be my 4th year going to college, but i am still a sophomore. The thing is I transferred schools from university to community and only received 20 credits out of 45. That was 1 year ago. I am now 21, and do not know what to do. I am interested in Nutrition, and wouldn’t mind a field in nutrition/fitness. I would also like to further my goals and learn massage therapy. However right now im going to school just to get my Associates. And I feel like it’s a waste of time. I can just take certain amount of classes and just get a certificate as a fitness instructor and nutritionist I believe, also same thing with message therapy. I am probably wrong, but that what I am interested in. Now I want to take a break, I’m just fed up with school, and living with my parents. I want to grow up, my life is just wake up go on the computer, study, eat, and sleep. I want to grow, get a job, and gain confidence. I’m tired of staying at home, and nothing changing for me. However I am scared, but I just need a new life style.

SO HERE IS MY QUESTION,
1 should take a break from college?
2 where would be a good place to work away, that would allow me to work and play at the same time save up money. My thought is a cruise ship, however I hear it is competitive, and very strenuous. I don’t want to work weekends, or 10hrs a day. I can do 8 hrs a day and 2 days off. Maybe a job at the airport?

So any suggestions please, and thanks in advance.
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Best answer:

Answer by ideas
I’ve been in similar situations when I was younger, not being sure if college would ever pay off. As far as the associates degree being a waste of time, depending on what it is, it very well could be. Even a bachelors in many fields does not guarantee you a job, especially in this economy.

Still, my suggestion is not to quit school. A degree will not guarantee you a good job, but the lack of a degree will probably guarantee you a bad job. My advice is to find a good job you want to do and get yourself qualified to do it. There are lots of good jobs in the healthcare field that you can get in 1-2 years. Nursing is a great example of a great paying job with tons of advancement potential. You can become an RN in about 18 months if you have your basic education courses out of the way.

Have you considered joining the military? Take a look at the Navy or Air Force. They take much better care of their people than in times past, and often doing a couple years in the military will qualify you for benefits that last a lifetime, as well as valuable training and preference for federal jobs.

Most likely, no one is going to guarantee you that you’ll never have to work a weekend, or that you’ll never work ten hours in a day. Most people consider themselves fortunate to have any job at all right now, so if you’re not willling to work hard, employers will pass you up in favor of someone who is.

Good luck.

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Question by Kamesh M: College or Break/Cruise Ship?
Well this is going to be my 4th year going to college, but i am still a sophomore. The thing is I transferred schools from university to community and only received 20 credits out of 45. That was 1 year ago. I am now 21, and do not know what to do. I am interested in Nutrition, and wouldn’t mind a field in nutrition/fitness. I would also like to further my goals and learn massage therapy. However right now im going to school just to get my Associates. And I feel like it’s a waste of time. I can just take certain amount of classes and just get a certificate as a fitness instructor and nutritionist I believe, also same thing with message therapy. I am probably wrong, but that what I am interested in. Now I want to take a break, I’m just fed up with school, and living with my parents. I want to grow up, my life is just wake up go on the computer, study, eat, and sleep. I want to grow, get a job, and gain confidence. I’m tired of staying at home, and nothing changing for me. However I am scared, but I just need a new life style.

SO HERE IS MY QUESTION,
1 should take a break from college?
2 where would be a good place to work away, that would allow me to work and play at the same time save up money. My thought is a cruise ship, however I hear it is competitive, and very strenuous. Maybe a job at the airport?

So any suggestions please, and thanks in advance.

Best answer:

Answer by phantom_of_valkyrie
I have several friends that are massage therapists. No you do not need a degree. You need to go to a massage therapy school and complete your number of hours to graduate (in NC that’s 100). Then you’d be a licensed massage therapists. About the only places you can work are gyms and spas. They will take roughly 60% of what you make, leaving you earning rather little. However without a degree you don’t earn as much as those with degrees anyway.

You didn’t take many classes at that other school. 45 credits in 3 years is still like 2 or 3 classes a semester. I hope you were working full time as well–at my school 2 classes a semester was not a full time student. Since you aren’t a full time student, you have lots of free time to attend massage therapy school at the same time.

You have a valid point. Since you aren’t serious about getting your education perhaps a break would be good. However there is an expiration date on your classes so make sure you know that that is. In my state, in 7 years all your classes will have expired and if you want to finish your degree you’d have to start all over. If you quit, the likelihood you will go back decreases. However why stay in college 9 years to get your degree? Since you are in school getting an associates, that usually means you’d have to transfer again if you got a 4 year since most 4 years don’t give out associates degrees.

What I’d recommend is getting a job and staying in school until you get your associates at least. Then whenever you go back to school (or if) you’ll have that and won’t have to start anew. Even if you’ve increased your hours now to be full time, that’s still 12 hours a semester. So 4 classes…meaning you could set it up to have classes Mon/Wed/Fri and off all the other days. That allows you to work Sun, Tues, Thurs, Fri, Sat which is a 5 day work week–completely allowing you the time to have a full time job. If you do that, you could get an apartment and move out. Plus with a job you’d be able to afford massage therapy school during summer. Then you’d know if you can hack that. Many people don’t. If you can’t, you haven’t dropped out of school.

You say you want to grow up but you don’t do that by dropping out of college. Being an adult is about making adult decisions. You can start doing that at any time. Working hard both at a job and at school, moving out, paying your own way. Very few people who are 21 and still in school live at home with their parents. Most have dorms or apartments near their university. Things do not change for you by wishing. You have to actively do something different than what you are doing.

Quitting school and having no job and no idea what you want to do really just ensures that you do stay at home and nothing changes. It seems to me like you have enough play time so don’t worry about finding something that allows you play time. Play time doesn’t change things or allow you your own apartment or confidence. Any job would allow you to work. Cruise ships however do not sound like the job for you. You don’t have any experience for one and unless you speak another language, you are completely unqualified. Cruise lines require 5-10 years experience in customer service and prefer you to speak something other than just English. Usually they hire foreigners (Eastern Europe, Philippines) since the working conditions and pay is great for them. You sign on for a contract of about 10 months. During that time you’d work hard. The only people who don’t are entertainment. They have the days rather free other than rehearsal. Waiters work just about around the clock. They do not follow US laws on work hours and overtime. It is very competitive and strenuous. If you live close enough to an airport to get a job and think you have the background required to get a security clearance (yes it’s required–I know as I have a TSA card) which cost over $ 100 to get, how could that change anything? You’d still live at home.

Just apply at jobs. Look over your qualifications. What can you do? Being young doesn’t entitle you to a good paying job or your dream job when you don’t even have a degree. It’s a recession. Look for jobs at hotels, retail stores. It will take you a lot of time to look for work in many areas. Your college campus might be the best as they are required to hire a ton of their students. If you are good with computers, try a job at a repair shop. Consider UPS. They pay very well as it requires strength. Construction is another thing that is willing to teach the unskilled. Then once you’ve learned how to lay tile or hang drywall, you’d have a skill that pays well.

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