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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Finish it out OP. 80k won’t mean very much in 10 years. You’re clearly qualified enough to get a job at a big tech firm — meaning your earning potential will outstrip that 80k very soon. Part of that earning potential could very well depend on that Ivy degree. I’ve found job interviews significantly easier with a degree on my resume.

Your bigger issue is your misery, but 3 semesters is not very long in the grand scheme of things. Please try to take classes that you want to take (art, literature, film — whatever calls to you!). If your parents are no longer paying, that should alleviate guilt about taking what you want at school and doing what you want to do. After school, try to pay off those loans as soon as you can. [b]A boring job is not the end of the work. A boring job can enable you to do things you enjoy doing outside of work. Focus on the happy in your life, and best of luck. [/b][/quote]

OP here. I thought this too when I took my internship this summer in tech sales at a FAANG. It turns out that having a job I hate also affects my happiness outside of work -- being miserable at my job makes me unable to rest, sleep, or be happy in my waking hours outside of work. Also, if I take out $80k in loans, I'll have to work way more than 40 hrs/week to pay it off -- leaving me with little to no free time post-grad.

If I didn't have the threat of loans hanging over my head (and currently, I don't have any student loans in my name at all; I would have to take them out for my last 3 semesters at Columbia), I'd go into a low-paying but meaningful job in either publishing or environmental education. Hating a 40 hr/week job, to me, is like hating almost all of your waking hours, so I think I'm fine going to a cheaper, less prestigious school and taking on less debt so I can pursue something that makes me genuinely happy instead of hating myself at FAANG or MBB or BB IB or law school. [/quote]

You can target lower comp than FAANG sale, project manager at cap1 for example, pays 90k at 3-5 year exp and you work from home for 25hr/week in their back office function (risk and ops).
[b]Low paying job isn’t automatically meaningful. Plenty of low paying jobs have harassment, bad work environment and toxic losers who prey on minority women. 
[/b]Startups also look for office managers (jack of all trades), you will do a touch of marketing, HR and product. You make around 60k but it’s enough to pay off your debt and live in the Shenandoah.
If you wait until 24 and do smith, your job prospects are going to be similar except you will be 27 and your colleagues will be 23.
[/quote]

+1 million

I wish young people would understand this.  Those low-paying jobs have a TON of abuse and gaslighting because "don't you support the MISSION?!" is always thrown in your face when you bring it up.  Lots of nonprofits are toxic cesspools hiding under a fragile veneer of respectability and build taking advantage of young and naive folks, both as employees and volunteers to churn through, into their operating model.  Sotheby's/Chrtistie's are another shitshow entirely.[/quote]

+2 million

This.  The highest paying jobs I've had have been the easiest, and most respectful of me and my time.  Not to say they weren't pretty awful at times, but it was WAY worse at lower-paying places.[/quote]

OP here. It's true that many NPOs are known for toxic environments and employee gaslighting due to the factors PP described. And if I find myself in one of those toxic environments... so what? I'll probably jump ship to a higher paying gig in corporate communications or any of the other industries I'm interested in. Having $80k in debt is much worse than being stuck with a toxic employer you can quickly quit. [/quote]

Hey OP,

I'm one of the PPs quoted above.  You're right that you're stuck in a toxic environment right now, but that environment (college) has a very clear exit strategy (fulfill your graduation requirements) and exit timeline (graduation day).  The working world is very different and not as clear-cut.  Yes, you can and should quit toxic environments.  But there's no guarantee that the next job will come when you need it, or that your ideal employer will accept you for the salary you do desire.  What would you do between jobs, and what if that period is a long one indeed -- would you move in with mom and dad?

Navigating the working world is very different from college and a big shock to many recent grads.  Moving from nonprofits to the corporate comms side also isn't a walk in the park.  Nothing is impossible, but those I know trying to do it had a very hard time competing against people coming out of the top comms/PR agencies; the nonprofit experience wasn't taken as seriously.  Don't let idealism about the working world blind you.  It's not better or worse than college, it's wholly different and comes with its own set of challenges and vipers.  Those take a while to recognize and to learn how to navigate.  If you're deadset on nonprofits, I'd recommend volunteering with the ones you're passionate about to see if those environments along with your expectations.  I had some pleasant surprises and some absolute horror stories through that experience.

I'm not saying you should stay at your current college.  But you should consider: 1) where would you WANT to go?, 2) how would your credits transfer -- would transferring require you to take out more loans and take more time to graduate?, 3) is the new place what you truly want, and what if you change direction again -- what's the plan?, 4) is there ANYTHING your college can do to help you stay, either via financial aid, a gap year, etc?

Good luck, whatever you decide.[/quote]

OP here. Excellent points, and I really appreciate you laying this out clearly for me. To answer your questions:

1. I looked at the program Smith has for non-traditional transfer students (women 24 or older). https://www.smith.edu/about-smith/ada-comstock-scholars-program

I would end up with WAY less than $80k in loans,[b] since by the time I'm 24, I'll be considered an independent student for financial aid purposes (so my parent's income wouldn't be considered).[/b] Since my income for my early 20s will inevitable be really low (especially since I'll be a college drop-out), I'll get close to a full ride from Smith (especially since the school meets 100% of demonstrated need). Ditto with Wellesley and Mount Holyoke. Yes, I'll be graduating college at 23 instead of 26, but I'll be saving myself a ton of student loan debt.

2. I did more research into Smith, and I think I would love it -- it's the total opposite of Columbia. The open curriculum (vs. Columbia's Core), the school environment (laid back vs. Columbia's intense, competitive nature), and more idealistic student body would be an excellent fit for me. And if they're giving me a close-to-full-ride as an independent student, I can't really leave at that point.

3. For your last question, Columbia doesn't really give a shit about me staying. This is because the school has AWFUL administrative support for undergrads and definitely uses a sink-or-swim mentality. The school's mentality seems to be "you should be lucky to go here!" instead of "we're lucky to have you," so they really could not give less shits that I have to take out $80k in loans. I could take several gap years (although keep in mind I'm already on one at this point) to try to meet that $80k deficit, but at that point, I'd be returning to college at age 23. I might as well just transfer to Smith then and go for almost free versus paying out the ass at Columbia. [/quote]

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