College and Majors

Two corrections:  Social work & sociology are NOT the same thing. In general, social work deals more individually with people and works to solve their problems. Sociology studies groups of people & takes them for what they are.

Number 2, you don't necessarily have to have a Masters in Social Work to practice social work (as Marty_ga stated). Some states only license people with an MSW, but many states license at the bachelor level.

That being said, I started out being a Humanities major (which is pretty much a degree in "undecided"). After taking a few classes in different areas, I decided I really enjoyed my behavioral sciences classes. I switched to family studies (family psychology & functioning) & eventually added social work.

Just a heads up, if you're interested in sociology, be prepared to devote your life to research. Sociologists are used in a number of fields to conduct studies and provide statistics. If you can, take a research methods or psychological statistics class. They are basically watered-down versions of what sociologists do.

If you're interested in a more problem-solving approach or want to work more one-on-one with people, you might look into psychology or social work. As I said, many states don't require a MSW for social work, but if you have a psych degree, you'll definately need to go to grad school if you want to get a job in the field. A perk of social work is if you already have your bachelors degree in it, it can take as little as a year to get your MSW. With a degree in something else, you can get your MSW usually in about 2 years.
 
I absolutely loved my social work classes & will be starting my internship at a psychiatric hospital in a few weeks. There were lots of things I was interested in before, but when I took a SW class, I just knew. It's a great feeling when you find your life's mission. Good luck finding your major & feel free to PM me if there is anything I can help you with! []

I initially went to university for evolutionary biology, decided there were no careers that I would feasibly get with that degree, and switched to engineering. Now I am an engineer, getting bored and don't like the stress. I am trying to get a job in technical writing (writing technical manuals for cars/armoured vehicles). It would be less pay, but less responsibility and less stress.
 
If I did it all over again, I would go to school to be a pharmacist! Hah! I don't think I'll be happy with any career.... [&o]   I may still go back to pharmacy school, but it's hard to give up a decent paycheck to pay tuition again for 4 years.

Number 2, you don't necessarily have to have a Masters in Social Work to practice social work (as Marty_ga stated). Some states only license people with an MSW, but many states license at the bachelor level.

my brother's wife is trying to get work as a social worker. i forget what her bachelor's degree is in, but she pretty much has to have a master's degree to get a low paying job.

$40k is way above average in this state. with just a bachelor's degree the work is more or less volunteer work. it is a paid job, but it is considered part time with no benefits and very little income. with a master's the pay is on par with what anyone working at a gas station would make.

---------
as to the original post, i would say major in something you love. work will come or it wont, but at least you can say you enjoyed the time you spent in school. i have a b.s. in electrical engineering, and if i used it to wipe my a$$ i would get more benefit out of it than i ever have job wise. [sm=2cents.gif]

$40k is way above average in this state. with just a bachelor's degree the work is more or less volunteer work. it is a paid job, but it is considered part time with no benefits and very little income. with a master's the pay is on par with what anyone working at a gas station would make.

I was thinking the same thing, it really doesn't matter what your major in college is. Just pick some thing you find interesting. Pretty much everywhere you cannot get a job in the field of your major without further education. I was a psychology major in college and there isn't anything out there for you without at least a master's. The important thing is to have fun and enjoy what you are doing. Getting a graduate degree is what really opens up the career options!!!

I have a lot of Big Ideas about higher education, one of them being that most 18-year-olds are too young to pick the right college, the right courses, and the right major. I don't say that to be disparaging to the age group at all... but so much happens to a person between the ages of 18-21 practically no one is the person they were when they entered school as a freshman, when they graduate let alone a couple (or five, ten, twenty) years later when they choose a career path. I think it's just greed on the part of the universities that they pressure high schoolers to make these adult decisions about their educations and then push you through the system - the longer you stay the more they make.
 
Aaanyway, I also agree that in this day and age a bachelor's degree doesn't always do a whole lot for you career-wise, and is fast approaching the equivalent to what a hs diploma would have been 10-20 years ago. A ba/bs really is a stepping stone to a higher education more than anything else.

Alright, you people are scaring me! I have a son starting college in the fall (hopefully), and a 16 year old daughter taking nursing at her high school. I have a feeling we are in for some uncertain years.

Aaanyway, I also agree that in this day and age a bachelor's degree doesn't always do a whole lot for you career-wise, and is fast approaching the equivalent to what a hs diploma would have been 10-20 years ago. A ba/bs really is a stepping stone to a higher education more than anything else.

Word to your mutha, jones. Even having a Masters anymore really doesn't make you any kind of hot shakes. I'm a research assistant at a university and I was only able to get this job with a Masters. I make $26K a year. To really do better I'd have to get a PhD.

Back before I had my Masters degree, the only jobs I could get were administrative. I have a BA in English and Sociology/Anthropology with a certificate of advanced studies in mandarin Chinese (I'm not fluent, though) from an honors college. This qualified me to be a secretary. I was a secretary/admin assistant for 5 years before I went and got my Masters because I just couldn't take it anymore. I was never anywhere near being in an upwardly mobile position with just a BA.

ORIGINAL: cyclefiend2000

$40k is way above average in this state. with just a bachelor's degree the work is more or less volunteer work. it is a paid job, but it is considered part time with no benefits and very little income. with a master's the pay is on par with what anyone working at a gas station would make.
 
 
Wow, that's pretty bad. Here, straight out of college with a BSW, most of the jobs pay  $25k-$35k plus benefits. My SO is a medivac (air ambulance) pilot & is making only slightly above that. It's pretty in line with our cost of living. (Someone working fulltime at a gas station here MIGHT make $12k, if they were lucky.) With a MSW, I've heard people making $40k-60k (the top end being with lots of experience). Definately not a career to get rich in, but having a job you truly enjoy is worth a lot in itself. It's interesting how much variety there is within different areas of the country.

Back before I had my Masters degree, the only jobs I could get were administrative. I have a BA in English and Sociology/Anthropology with a certificate of advanced studies in mandarin Chinese (I'm not fluent, though) from an honors college. This qualified me to be a secretary. I was a secretary/admin assistant for 5 years before I went and got my Masters because I just couldn't take it anymore. I was never anywhere near being in an upwardly mobile position with just a BA.

Yeah, same here. With my BA I was qualified to be a secretary/receptionist starting at $21K. In Boston, $21K is really bad - just a step above working poor. After a year I got a raise of $2,000 more a year, still not enough to do anything but survive. My solution was to jump the corporate ship and start my own business.

and a 16 year old daughter taking nursing at her high school.

 
Speaking from experience, nursing is a great profession for a person to get into.  There is a nursing shortage now, and there will be for years to come.  This means that it is a very lucrative career and has flexible working hours as well.  Not to mention all the different areas of nursing and medicine you can get into based on what you prefer.  A young person in their early 20's can easily start off making $70-80,000/year in a hospital setting.  That's in my area at any rate.  If those kids live at home like some of my co-workers, they can save enormous amounts of money to buy houses with and dump the maximum into their 401K's.  Not a bad deal.
 
I also have a B.A. in Journalism.  I wanted to be a newswriter/reporter but wound up as an editorial assistant at TV Guide magazine instead.  Loved it!  Spent five years doing that, met my husband and then decided to go to nursing school. 
 
I now am almost finished with Animal Behavior College's training course.  Being a nurse with a really flexible schedule allows me to pursue things that interest me while still bringing in good $$ for the family.  Sooooo, I hope your daughter continues with her interest in nursing as the profession needs all the good, dedicated souls we can get!!![]  

ORIGINAL: ColleenC

Actually, I was an AnSci major with a pre-vet option.  I would love to do animal behavior.  I don't think we have a major for that here, but I will talk to my old advisor(who is also my mentor for breeding/showing dogs) and see what he can help me with.  Our AnSci curriculum is based on livestock production.  Most of the jobs it lists are livestock production stuff.  Other than vet school.  I want nothing to do with any kind of meat production!  I eat meat, but I don't want to see it before it looks like a package at the store.  I don't know what to do!

If there's no degree in animal behavior, you could do your undergraduate in Psychology, Biology, Zoology, etc. and do your Master's in Animal Behavior (there are many colleges for that, and on online that I know of). 

Is there such a thing as a university or college that offers an associate degree or certificate in something like animal behavior? All that seems to be available that's less than a bachelor's degree are schools like Animal Behavior College.

have you checked with junior colleges or 2-yr tech schools in your area?

i did a search at the local tech school and they had a couple of small animal related majors.

There is a community college in California that has an associates degree program in exotic animal training and management. Even though it's only an associates program, it is highly competitive and a grueling 2 years. If you google "training zoo" you can find it. There's a book about it called Kicked, Bitten and Scratched, which I read and it was fascinating.

ORIGINAL: houndlove

There is a community college in California that has an associates degree program in exotic animal training and management. Even though it's only an associates program, it is highly competitive and a grueling 2 years. If you google "training zoo" you can find it. There's a book about it called Kicked, Bitten and Scratched, which I read and it was fascinating.

Are you talking about Moorpark?  I actually thought about going there because my mom lived very close to it.  She moved out to the desert so shes not close any more.  I kind of wish I had, but I really don't want to live in CA.  I really would rather not move.  I have a training job, and a great mentor who helps me with breeding/showing.  I'm going to go part time this semester and take a couple of independent study classes while I figure out what I want to do.  I'm going to talk to my mentor, who happens to be an animal science professor and my former academic advisor, about animal behavior.  Thats the plan for now at least.