<p>In January I finally made the decision to leave Montserrat college of art during my junior year. Now I am working as a waitress and looking into going back to school for the spring in 2012, but I am almost completely unsure of what I should do and I could really use some guidance or suggestions.</p>
<p>I dropped out of Montserrat because I have completely lost my passion for art and do not want a BFA, which now seems completely useless to me, and definitely not worth the price. The decision to go to Montserrat was a very last minute one. I was actually accepted the day classes started. Paying for school had also become a serious burden after my mother ruined her credit by “forgetting” to pay Sallie Mae for a parent plus loan and had to pay on a monthly basis. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I was 18 and was even told that I had been awarded a large sum in scholarship and grant aid when actually that aid was in the form of government loans (Montserrat’s financial aid office consists of one lady who is horrible to deal with)</p>
<p>I am now trying to figure out if I should go back to school within the next year, what to major in, where to go, and how to pay for it. Right now I am looking at sociology majors but I a worried about not picking a practical major. I have also considered Social Work but felt that might limit me to a very specific career in the future. Thought on this? Are there other majors I should consider? I want to major in something that will help me help others. I am interested in poverty, food waste, women’s issues, philosophy… so many other things. I want to help others but do not want to be restricted by institutional limitations.</p>
<p>Since I have earned 78 credits at Montserrat I hope I can find a school where many of my credits will transfer. My major was Painting and Drawing so I have a mix of Fine Arts studio classes and general liberal arts classes. The longer I take to finish my degree the more debt I will end up in. Which brings me too… Cost. The prospect of paying back loans for the rest of my life horrifies me. I want to minimize any borrowing as much as possible but for my family to contribute to my education is very hard right now. My mother will now not be able to take out loans, and I really don’t want her to either. I don’t want to owe her anything. Another issue is that my mothers income does not really reflect the state of my families finances. Her agi is around 85,000 which surprised me to hear since she is struggling to pay bills… But this is because she is a single mother of seven who works 70+ hours a week. Do schools care about that when determining financial aid? One brother is now a full time student and currently only I and my older brother are moved out but she is still helping me financially (I only just got a job) and also my brother since he was arrested in October (for being in the wrong place at the wrong time- his case was dropped) and held for two months.</p>
<p>Should I just wait this out and go back to school when I’m 24?</p>
<p>Another decision I need to make is whether to go to school in New England (I am from Massachusetts) or somewhere further away. I would love to go to college somewhere without killer winters (especially since I get seasonal affective disorder pretty severely!) but New England is so… smart. And it seems so hard to just pack everything up and leave everyone I know, even if I don’t have many connections here. Also I am an atheist/artsy/liberal person so I haven’t been looking at southern colleges where I am afraid I would not fit in. Is that a misconception?</p>
<p>Too many questions for one post, I know. But if anyone could give me guidance in any of these aspects it would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>Also my current GPA is 3.6 and I don’t have impressive extracurriculars, mostly working and a little volunteering for a community thrift store.</p>