How did you decide on your education?

[Grog]

I like math and the university I choose was the one recommended by some mathematicians I know. It also turned out to be really close to my family and friends. In Sweden you don't pay for your education so money was not a big problem (although Stockholm is the city with highest costs of living in Sweden).

[Xenophobe3691]

Really? I got the idea of being an engineer from Dilbert. No lie. As I looked into it, I saw that it involved physics and math, two subjects at which I was good at. I also love playing with blocks and legos, as well as tearing stuff apart to see how it works. Solving problems is one of the most fulfilling things in my life as well, so that didn't hurt.

I chose UCF because it had a top notch Aerospace program, and was designed from the ground up to have a very competitive AE program. Plus, it was free thanks to the state's scholarship program.

[NeoGoomba]

*shrugs* You reap what you sow. I know of several such people who've gotten good jobs in relevant fields and I've been proactive in planning my future by acquiring internships, getting work published, etc. By the sound of it you didn't do anything beyond coursework, so you're not exactly going to stand out among the crowd.

Actually, I did two internships, one for a publishing company and another for a magazine, both as Editorial Assistants, and I was an EA for a local paper while I was in school. Landing a job was cake, it's just now that I'm a "professional" in the Editorial field, I'm finding it a most unsatisfying field both financially and professionally. Sadly there are no major papers to work for in the area, and the corporate-whore environment I just left is indicitive of where the news media industry is headed, so I'm weighing going to a vocational school for something worthwhile.

[His Divine Shadow]

*shrugs* I do IT stuff and I like it. Computers are the only thing which didn't feel like a chore or bored me to death (well now I also like guns, I could probably work in a gunstore but what kinda future is that?). I just took a bunch of IT related educations that I got accepted into.

I was also accepted into the gymnasium (dunno what it's equivalent too in the US) too but the idea of attending that place which was across the street of my hated high school for atleast another 3 years almost made me want to cry. But it was a fallback position atleast.

[Raw Shark]

I chose the cheapest and most convenient university which could provide me with hands-on practical experience and prepare me best to start a career ASAP.

The above is what I should've done. Instead I convinced myself that I had perfectly sound and logical reasons to go to the school that I looked at with the hottest, loosest girls. In retrospect I wish I'd just taken a couple years off to get laid and then really focused on my education in my 20's.

[Balrog]

*shrugs* You reap what you sow. I know of several such people who've gotten good jobs in relevant fields and I've been proactive in planning my future by acquiring internships, getting work published, etc. By the sound of it you didn't do anything beyond coursework, so you're not exactly going to stand out among the crowd.

Actually, I did two internships, one for a publishing company and another for a magazine, both as Editorial Assistants, and I was an EA for a local paper while I was in school. Landing a job was cake, it's just now that I'm a "professional" in the Editorial field, I'm finding it a most unsatisfying field both financially and professionally. Sadly there are no major papers to work for in the area, and the corporate-whore environment I just left is indicitive of where the news media industry is headed, so I'm weighing going to a vocational school for something worthwhile.

Ah, my mistake. Have you tried searching for jobs in other areas, or are you stuck living where you are?

On another note, supposedly a lot of doctors and lawyers major in English first before moving on to their respective graduate schools. Go figure.

[rhoenix]

After almost getting a junior tech support position for a prominent company in the environs of San Jose, I decided that all the stuff I'd studied in preparation for possibly getting that job (such as packet sniffing - and what the parts mean, detailed info about TCP/IP itself, etc.), I decided that this sort of job would be endlessly fascinating.

So, beginning at the end of February of this year, I went back to my trade school alma mater, Heald, to get a A.A.S. in Network Security, followed by the Cisco course to lay the groundwork for me to get my CCNA, and eventually, the CCIE Security certification. I'll also likely take the extra courses to properly transfer my A.A.S. degrees into A.A.'s, so I can pursue a Bachelor's or more later on.

This is the first time I've felt that this would be a specific field I could do as a career, and do well - so I'm chasing it with far more determination than I would have in the past.

[Mad]

I knew that I wanted a Computer Science degree when I entered college, as I already had programming experience going in.

I went to a local community college for an associate's degree (Tidewater Community College in Virginia). The community college was much cheaper and most of the early stuff is general education. The college even had professors from local universities teaching some classes.

After graduating with highest honors, I obtained a merit-based scholarship to a local university (Old Dominion University) so I could get my bachelor's degree. (I was offered a minority scholarship to another local university. While the thought of a white boy getting a minority scholarship was hilarious to me, I decided to go for the more respected university of the two.)

My student loan for TCC was paid off within 6 months of graduating ODU, and I didn't need any additional loans. So I have a degree and no debt. The "community college -> transfer to university" plan seems pretty popular in that area (one joke calls TCC "13th grade"), and is a lot cheaper than going to the university for all 4 years. Of course, if your local community college is utter garbage, that plan might not be as good.

[Exonerate]

When I was a kid, I knew I wanted to go into some science-related field. Then as I got older, I got involved with computers more, picked up a bit of skill in graphics, programming, etc. In the end, it came down to what I wanted to do for a living, and I wasn't really sure I wanted to spend it coding stuff. So I went into Mechanical Engineering, figuring that it would be interesting and if I wanted a job that involved building stuff, this would probably be a good starting point.

As for schools, I had a couple choices, but academically, they were all very close. I was offered a scholarship for one, but it was across the country and expensive, so that was crossed out. One was too close for my liking, and another was a six hour drive away and in the middle of nowhere. So I choose the one with a nicer campus and weather and a higher ranked engineering program.

[El Moose Monstero]

Realised I didn't have the head for complex maths so had to rule out the childhood interest in space via astrophysics. Looked at what else I enjoyed and was best at; physics, english, history. Decided that I probably couldn't do the former and the two others were non-starters for career options.

Wanted to do something that gave something back to the community - ideally working governmentally as my parents are both civil servants (NHS, city council). I wanted something that involved bits of what I enjoyed, so ended up doing environmental science, as I saw a lot of potential career options in the ever-expanding field. People whinge about the EU, but it's a money spinner for environmental consultancy.

In the UK, noone looks at you too closely if you've got a degree, so many people have them these days, and my personal opinion on the university I went to is that they weren't rigorous enough. Decided I needed a masters, did it at the same place, which was a mistake - got duped by their claims of superior research and volcanic opportunities. Both were more or less lies.

My supervisor at that university pointed out a Ph.D in volcanic research, and for the employability increases and the additional skills, I think there are worse things to do with 3-4 years than study volcanoes.

Advice from all that: Don't do your masters in the same place as your undergrad. Try to figure out why you want the degree; if it's just a degree, fine, but if you want to do something with it, then pick your university with more care. Oh, and maintain a realistic view of your skills. I'm still not sure I'm good enough for Ph.D and academically publishable work.

[Netko]

I was pretty much set on computer science (or, more correctly, something relating to computers) since primary school where I excelled in the IT programme at the school (went to a bunch of national-level contests and won a bunch of extra slots for the school in them - I was really saddened when this year I found out that my old school didn't even qualify for the county level contest), chose my gymnasium based on that which allowed me a crack at international competitions (ACSL), but which also humbled me a little about my abilities since the school was the premier school for future IT heads. Still, it was still the best choice for me, however at that time I also started getting interested in other things. So when the time to choose a faculty to go to (I was certainly going to go to the University of Zagreb) I considered CS, law and economics. In the end, the job marketplace was the factor that made me decide for my old love CS - there currently isn't even a single registered unemployed holder of a degree from my faculty (FER), while there are many, many economists and some lawyers - and this is of course also reflected in wages and earnings.

There have been some stumbles with my university career, however this year some really good doors opened do to my involvement and activity in some student organisations so I'm feeling really positive about my career prospects after uni and don't regret the choice in the least.

[Melchior]

I needed somewhat of a mission in life: during my last year in High School I was in doubt between physics and medicine and had to decide quickly because of the practical impossibility of studying for two different entrance exams. I choose medicine because I did not feel entirely ready to work in a foreign country (research in Italy is a sorry proposition, sadly); also I find the endless period of study required (ten years, roughly) strangely reassuring.

[mjn6172]

I started at FSU because at the time it had the second-best Musical Theatre program in the country (the best was NYU, but I didn't want to go that far.) I ended up taking an Intro to Psychology class my first semester and enjoyed it so much that I switched majors, but that's another story.

I stayed with FSU for graduate school for two reasons. First, it was really convenient to stay there; but they were also the only school in the state that offered the accelerated two-year Ed.S. Program, everywhere else it was a three-year program or two years for a Masters only.

[Simplicius]

I initially went to Clarkson because it presented me with the opportunity to leave high school and start college as year early. My initial intent was to study aeronautical engineering, but I started to become discouraged when I realized there weren't any pressing aviation-related problems I was keen to solve. At the same time my interest in government and policy was on the rise, so I ended up first changing my major and then transferring to a school with a larger department and course spread. Presently I'm postponing graduate school and looking around for a paying job substantial enough to justify my major while planning my steps beyond that. In the interim, I hope to acquire some more technical qualifications or skills that don't cost as much as a university degree to acquire and which will serve me well in rough times as well as make me more self-reliant.

[Raesene]

While I had a few favorite subjects in high school, history, biology and chemistry were always on top of my interests, so I looked at those options at university. Biology/medicine was off the list nearly immediately as it's overpopulated and (to be honest) I didn't want to make life-or-death decisions for other people. I didn't want to have that kind of responsibility. History provided unclear job prospects (didn't want to stay at uni or teach at a school, becoming an author was also not appealing) and also too many students resulting in not enough places at seminars etc.
Chemistry had comparatively good job prospects and less students, so I enrolled as a chemist and am happy with my choice - most of the time .

[DarthShady]

I finished high school with a CNC technician degree and then took a hard turn left into ATC. I just finished the ATM part of it and soon we begin the sim training in Belgrade. Considering that we are the first generation of controllers in Bosnia it's gonna be hard work. But it's worth it.

I went into ATC because of financial reasons, but i have fallen in love with it now.

[Honorable Mention]

I knew early on I wanted to go to law school. I joke about figuring things out but that's only because right now is the time I have to buckle down and take the LSATs/apply to law school. Because of this, my major was largely irrelevant and my GPA was more important (though a 3.8 as an engineering major would be more impressive than a history major. I think I'll live, though.)

As for my university, it was close to home and work, top tier, a real great community, beautiful campus, and even though it was private it had to compete with SUNY schools so it ended up not being that expensive overall. I was also considering an MBA afterwards and it has a decent business school.

[montypython]

I was always focused on improving the community through health services, so I studied biological sciences for undergrad, then did different areas for grad study before finishing on health policy and admin. Getting a position right now though is a whole nother struggle...