What would you advised a teen who is looking for a college major with good earning potential?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would advise him that college is not about maximizing your earning potential. To work on his writing skills and make the most of the experience.

+100

If he is chasing money and only money, be a plumber. He will never get out-sourced, And he can own his own business after awhile.

Otherwise, he needs to learn and grow and figure out what he wants from life. Chasing money if he is from modest means will only make him unhappy given that social mobility is down in the US. Maybe he should consider moving/going to college in a country with better social mobility now that I think of it.

Writing skills are highly over rated.

The kids wants a stable job... accounting, Information Technology, Engineering will get him a stable job.

Finance is a who you know not what you know path.

People skills help much more than writing skills.

[Anonymous]

accounting and info systems together seems to be quite lucrative ....and then you can't knock the necessity for HVAC, plumbers, etc....Consulting takes all business degrees and if you present and communicate well you can pretty much write your ticket advising clients in the federal and commercial spaces.

[Anonymous]

Pursue your interest/passion. Take the time in college to figure out how to start your own profitable business in that area or make enough money to be happy.

- music major with own business.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Pursue your interest/passion. Take the time in college to figure out how to start your own profitable business in that area or make enough money to be happy.

- music major with own business.

Let me guess - you teach kids how to play an instrument?

Otherwise, did you have any help with capital from the bank of mom & dad?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would advise him that college is not about maximizing your earning potential. To work on his writing skills and make the most of the experience.

+100

If he is chasing money and only money, be a plumber. He will never get out-sourced, And he can own his own business after awhile.

Otherwise, he needs to learn and grow and figure out what he wants from life. Chasing money if he is from modest means will only make him unhappy given that social mobility is down in the US. Maybe he should consider moving/going to college in a country with better social mobility now that I think of it.

Writing skills are highly over rated.

The kids wants a stable job... accounting, Information Technology, Engineering will get him a stable job.

Finance is a who you know not what you know path.

People skills help much more than writing skills.

Not they are not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would advise him that college is not about maximizing your earning potential. To work on his writing skills and make the most of the experience.

+100

If he is chasing money and only money, be a plumber. He will never get out-sourced, And he can own his own business after awhile.

Otherwise, he needs to learn and grow and figure out what he wants from life. Chasing money if he is from modest means will only make him unhappy given that social mobility is down in the US. Maybe he should consider moving/going to college in a country with better social mobility now that I think of it.

Writing skills are highly over rated.

The kids wants a stable job... accounting, Information Technology, Engineering will get him a stable job.

Finance is a who you know not what you know path.

People skills help much more than writing skills.

Not they are not.

Yes. They are. There are many, many, many jobs that don't require writing skills. Most need very little to no writing skills. Actually I can't really think of many jobs that require writing.

[Anonymous]

Major in whatever he wants in college but go to dental school and become an orthodontist. I've been trying to sell my kids on this, but I don't think they are buying what I'm selling. Orthodontists RAKE in the money.

[Anonymous]

well, i too would remind him to think beyond earning potential. don't forget exploring new ideas, appreciating old ideas, and learning critical thinking, empathy and communication skills. (big fan of your basic liberal arts education here).

but there's nothing wrong about considering financial stability too! for financial stability, look for reasonably well-compensated careers that likely cannot be outsourced or automated: civil engineering, veterinary medicine, many healthcare related fields.

I don't much about finance; it obviously has huge earning potential if you break big, but I don't know that everyone makes it. I have a couple of classmates who went that route; one had family money and has done quite well for himself. the other is gainfully employed at a big financial institution but hates his life.

[Anonymous]

My advice would be to avoid architecture. My DH is an architect, and they do not make as much as you would think. It's a "cool" job, but pays modestly.

[Anonymous]

Pharmacy especially if you want to be able to move anywhere

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My advice would be to avoid architecture. My DH is an architect, and they do not make as much as you would think. It's a "cool" job, but pays modestly.

I don't think anyone thinks architects make a ton of money. Only superstars make money in architecture, and those people usually have family money to pursue the out of the box ideas.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Any kind of engineering job will give you decent income. Chemical engineering would probably be the highest paying, especially if you work for an oil or gas company. Software engineers have the most flexibility because you can live anywhere. FPGA designers are in high demand too.

Second previous posters who mentioned finance, but you do need the background in accounting as well. If you don't have the math, accounting, or computer science background you would need the old boys network to break in. It's very difficult to get an i-banking job without the right contacts and background. Read the book Pedigree).

Pharmacists also make decent money. If you don't mind being blue collar but do well for yourself, become a plumber. Female engineer here, and sometimes I think I should take up plumbing and work for myself

This is good advice, though the bolded seems outdated to me. Like advising someone to go into journalism in 2001.

[Anonymous]

Nursing. I always kick myself for not going into nursing. Plenty of jobs out there, some with a lot of income potential. Lots of flexible job opportunities, non-traditional work hours, etc. You can change your job frequently, work part time, work overtime, etc. Plus, you do not need to spend a fortune to become a nurse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Major in whatever he wants in college but go to dental school and become an orthodontist. I've been trying to sell my kids on this, but I don't think they are buying what I'm selling. Orthodontists RAKE in the money.

They do now, but people are 3D printing their own aligner systems now so I'm not sure this is a good long-term plan.

[Anonymous]

If the kid just wants a comfortable life with a stable income, STEM is the way to go. But if he wants to be Richie Rich rich, school is not the answer.