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Permalink Reply by David F. on November 27, 2012 at 8:46am

I made some stupid choices about not having a GPA when getting my computer engineering degree.  I went back to school for an MBA in another state and got a GA position doing web development.  I got picked up by the school and have a career doing web development.  The interesting thing is how a lot of the courses apply when dealing with mobile application development and such.

I'm now working full time and going to school part time to get a MS Information Systems degree.

I have found a good work life balance, careers for my wife and I along with a decent place to raise a son.  

It is not where we expected to be, but it is what worked out.

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Permalink Reply by Dan P. on November 27, 2012 at 10:59am

Your life sounds like an ITT Tech commercial.

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Permalink Reply by David F. on November 27, 2012 at 11:36am

Oh, what is your story of life after graduation?  I did not mean to make it sound like a commercial, merely to relate that the path one sees is often not the path one travels though life.

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Permalink Reply by Dan P. on November 27, 2012 at 1:44pm

Sorry, didn't mean to sound insulting. I just thought it was funny the way your post reminded me of the format used in those commercials.

My own post-graduation story is rather short. I graduated in May with the intent of taking a year off of school before moving on to graduate studies. Since then I've been working full time in food service, though I can't say I'm enjoying it. I'm in the process of completing applications to MFA Creative Writing programs for the fall. After that I hope to teach at the university level and possibly continue into doctorate studies.

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Permalink Reply by David F. on November 27, 2012 at 2:39pm

I was not sure which way to take the statement honestly.  Somedays I wonder what if and remind myself that there where a lot of worse outcomes that could have been had. 

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Permalink Reply by MountainWater on November 28, 2012 at 3:33am

I am currently in between jobs but my career path has absolutely nothing to do with my degree. 

I got a sought after,challenging, and potentially high paying degree. But I had no passion or goals for the major. so, it never got me anywhere.

Now I will be working 100hrs a week, 7 days a week, 7-8 months out of the year for the rest of my life. But I love the job :) Not many people can saying they do what I do.

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Permalink Reply by David F. on November 28, 2012 at 10:04am

Which is?

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Permalink Reply by MountainWater on November 28, 2012 at 12:06pm

Professional sports team. Might drop down to the D-1 collegiate level in a couple years though.

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Permalink Reply by Michael1359 on November 29, 2012 at 6:59pm

I finally graduated last year at 50 years of age with my B.S., and currently work in the same job I did then, which does not require a degree. I am having a difficult time transitioning from what I currently do (Security Management) into a different, business related field. So far, it has not helped me one bit, but I hope that will change. We shall see.

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Permalink Reply by swmnguy on November 30, 2012 at 11:11pm

I left college just shy of a B.A. in Literature. I did what I would have done with the degree; I moved to the nearest city and got a job flipping burgers in a bar near the baseball stadium. Went to a lot of ballgames, lived like a bum in a houseful of recent graduates, went to punk rock shows and drank. A lot. Eventually I found my way in technical theatre, and I've been knocking around that industry in one way or another for 25 years now. I actually did have an idea I might wind up in this field. In college I found a love of theatre, but I wasn't willing to starve for years for the not-guaranteed break as an actor. I realized I could cut it in backstage work, and I could actually find work doing that.

I'd recommend a young man travel, with no money (not that they'd have any, anyway). Go someplace where you don't know anybody, get the least job you can find to keep body and soul together, and see what's going on. If it turns out well, great. If it's awful, at least you've seen something different, and you can go back to people you know and approach a career with a little perspective. I came out of college aimless, but working in a big-city bar for a while showed me a lot of things I didn't want to end up as. I myself was too worried about poverty and didn't get to do much traveling until my career took a turn that way much too recently.

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