Can university facilitate a 180 degree career change?

College Confidential Community
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<p>It’s become clear that having chosen a technology career wasn’t the best move. Long story short, the reasons I had for having chosen technology don’t hold water. In any case, as life went on, it became increasingly clear that my strongest interests lie elsewhere. I’m concerned about social issues. I enjoy writing and am good at it. My basic outlook on life is is creative and extroverted. It’s also become important to have a career which gives back to society in some way as opposed to simply making money.</p>

<p>Attending McGill for graduate school was a life-changing experience despite not earning a degree. I was there expressly for a program which was heavily mathematical. However, the experience at McGill helped me develop a more clear picture of my interests and goals. It helped me realize that it was possible and desirable to pursue a career which is aligned with these interests and goals. The Catch-22 was that I had to pursue a career as a number cruncher to find out that I didn’t need or want to be a number cruncher.</p>

<p>In any case, my entire life experience since leaving community college is expressly oriented to an IT career. Computer Science courses don’t really translate to other careers or majors. IT work doesn’t develop many skills which are transferable to other careers. I will essentially have to repeat everything except general education coursework. Admittedly, it could be much worse. Most Computer Science programs train students to be one-sided; I intentionally went out of my way to seek out one which gave me the chance to become relatively well-rounded.</p>

<p>As a result, I’m considering going back to university full-time to rebuild my life in a completely new direction. The question is: Is this goal even realistic? Is it possible to use education to build a career which is completely different than one’s previous work?</p>

<p>Assume for the sake of argument that finances aren’t the concern. Partly thanks to this site, I have ideas on how to finance at least two years of further study. Also, the usual situation where a non-traditional student has to work courses around their current career isn’t really present here.</p>

<p>On a related note, can university be a time of personal growth even if one is no longer a traditional-aged student? Or is a non-traditional student basically limited to taking classes and going directly home afterwards?</p>

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<p>To offer a very short answer: yes to the question about turning a career and yes to the answer about personal growth.</p>

<p>In fact, having the focus you now do should make the university experience that much more rewarding (perhaps not the getting laid by the girl who plays the violin rewarding, but intellectually so).</p>

<p>If you feel in your heart there is another path for you, I have learned to trust that gut and the opportunities and resources I need fall in place when I need them to - from finances to jobs… Go for it.</p>

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<p>Most definitly.</p>

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<p>Yes, go read my rant in the premed forum.</p>

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<p>Thanks for your responses and support, everyone.</p>

<p>tamarind: I replied to your thread in the premed forum.</p>

<p>Also, there are a lot of intangible factors which help one build a life after graduation. There’s obviously the prestige of the school. Also, social contacts and alumni networks can, for better or worse, help one get a job after graduation. Are these also available to someone who goes back for another degree? Or are people still primarily going to associate someone with the university from which they received their first degree?</p>

<p>FWIW, I might ultimately get a Master’s degree but might also have to stop with a second Bachelor’s degree depending on circumstances.</p>

<p>Sorry if this seems like a stupid question. Unfortunately, the university from which I originally graduated honestly isn’t that well known outside its immediate area - an area I don’t really enjoy living in.</p>