I’m 29 years old and I’ve been recently thinking of changing careers. I have a BS in Physics and a Graduate Diploma (kind of like a certificate) in Science Communication (kind of like Museum Studies). I currently work at a non-profit science museum managing the summer camp program. I’ve been in the science museum field for the last 6 years, and I’m fairly passionate about informal science education. I believe in the mission of my organization, and (most of) the actual work that I’m doing is not terrible. I don’t make a lot of money ($32,000), but I do make enough to pay all my bills with a little left over for savings and fun.
However, over the past year I’ve been increasingly dissatisfied with my job. It’d be nice to make more money, and there’s some annoyances associated with working for a non-profit. It’s relatively low stress, except when camp is in session, which is pretty high stress. But mostly, I hate kids. I enjoy the parts of my job that are behind the scenes, but the summer camp season is coming up and I am absolutely dreading it. I am basically the “principal” of camp, and I hate it. The managing aspect of my job is ok, but managing other people is not exactly my dream either.
So I’ve been thinking about getting a new job. My organization doesn’t currently have much in the way of promotions to offer me, and even if it did, being my boss or my my boss’s boss doesn’t sound great either. Most of the jobs I’m qualified for would just be more of the same--working with kids and/or managing people. Most other jobs in the museum field don’t sound like something I want to do. This makes me sad, because for a long time this was my passion, but now I just don’t see myself being happy if I continue in my current career trajectory. I’ve felt like this for about the past year. I’ve been casually looking for other jobs, but nothing has really jumped out at me.
So now I’m thinking of quitting my job and going back to school to get another Bachelor’s Degree*. I’m looking at Wildlife Biology and/or Journalism. Firstly, I just enjoy school. I often take online classes through Coursera or other platforms. I like having all my time be about learning new things. I miss the flexible schedule and built-in social life. Second, over the past few years I’ve become increasingly interested in learning about biology, and animals in particular. I used to volunteer at the zoo, and still visit it quite often. I can see myself being a zookeeper (I know this is a highly competitive job), or doing research to support conservation efforts (I feel most drawn to research on small mammals or birds). It’d be nice to have a job which takes place at least partly outside. I’d double major or minor in journalism, because writing about science would still allow me to be peripherally in the science communication world.
I do not anticipate paying for school to really be a problem. I have enough saved up that I could pay for a couple of semesters at a CC up front. My fiance makes pretty good money and has previously stated he’d contribute if I wanted to go to grad school. Also, there is still money left in the 529 account my parents set up when I got my first degree (not sure how much), and they have also stated they’d be willing to contribute to more schooling. I would take my lower level classes at a CC before transferring to the local university. I’d also get a part time job.
My concerns: -I’m beginning to realize that what I actually “want to do with my life” is be a student forever. (This doesn’t seem like a feasible career option). I love science and I love learning. I miss just being surrounded by science. I don’t want every day to be exactly the same. And I don’t want to work with kids. -Would biology research be less tedious than physics research? Can I participate in research without a PhD (maybe I’ll want a PhD)? -Will I actually like this better than my current career? Will this just be a waste of time and money?
*Why don’t I just go to grad school for physics? First, my GPA just wasn’t really high enough to get into any grad programs for physics. Second, after doing a couple of research internships, I decided that physics research was not for me. It seems very tedious, and a lot of staring at computer screens.
Submitted April 20, 2017 at 07:15PM by purplebinder http://ift.tt/2pIWwqp
