I think that Bostonian's point about finding the intersection of interest and career options is a critical one.

I don't think that the STEM fields have bright prospects in the future as many 'knowledge workers' may be taken 'straight off the peg' in low cost regions where education is good like Eastern Europe, India or China.

The one plus for Medicine is quality of life - 3/7 days is considered full-time in many US family medicine practices according to friends in that field AND one may live anywhere and be assured of an excellent standard of living. Specialists, particularly if they have an entrepreneurial streak can become wealthy but regular GPs can certainly have a comfortable existence almost anywhere. Freedom like that is worth way more than mere lucre in my book.

Academia is also a pretty cushy berth once tenure is attained but the potential for abject poverty, victimhood and full on abuse with an outside chance of ever getting tenure makes it look less than appealing.

At the end of the day, I understand that I will not be able to force my child into any field as she has my DWs stubbornness with my own as an exponent.

I will try to spend the next 8 years or so doing my best to help her calibrate her BS filters. If my DD insists on studying a non-rigorous subject like Angling For Unfair Advantages Studies or other bleating liberal social hypochondria promoting studies then I will consider myself to have failed in that task.

Last edited by madeinuk; 04/05/14 10:05 PM.
Become what you are