Career/Academic Advice

[Pine]

The lower-middle-class, working-class people I know on the other hand, mostly lead fulfilling and rewarding

lives.

Protip:

Middle class != poor

Poor != financial disaster

 

[hian]

Protip:


Middle class != poor


Poor != financial disaster

Pro-tip - Read my entire post, and notice that I specifically addressed your use of the term


"financial disaster" and dismissed it as hyperbola, because that's all it is.


The OP is not in risk of ending up in "financial disaster" no matter what the OP does to begin with,


nor are most people who chase unrealistic dreams because, as I said, they could still earn a living wage


working full-time in a non-skilled line of work (see : McDonalds).


So, either your paragraph was superfluous BS (because you wrote it


knowing that it doesn't pertain to what anything here were saying or thinking about),


or you were conflating financial disaster with lower income classes.


Maybe you should start thinking of writing as the business of creating coherent messages,


not as creating a collection of stand-alone sentences that may or may not be coherent, and may or may not


be relevant to the topic you're responding to.


Have a good day.

 

[Touchfuzzy]

Having gone from financial disaster to middle class (like actual, middle class income + not owing money)...

Man, money is nice.

It won't make you happy on its own, but a lack of it sure as hell can make you sad.

 

[EternalShadow]

Protip:

Middle class != poor

Poor != financial disaster

????

Are you saying middle class = poor, or middle class =/= poor? I'm not familiar with the use of exclamation marks here...

EDIT: Well, in my case, the "=" would be "==="

 

[Dark Horseman]

It's basic programming language, != is almost universally "does not equal".

And money isn't important when your parents are supporting you. But if you want to own a home, marry, have kid(s), be self-sufficient, and maybe even need to be hospitalized at some point, it is the most important thing in your life aside from the well-being of your loved-ones. There is welfare for the unemployed and many people have to work minimum wage, but almost anybody in those situations dream of a chance at making enough money to not have to worry about struggling anymore.

 

[EternalShadow]

It's basic programming language, != is almost universally "does not equal".

I don't use that language then

 

[Pine]

Anyway, as I said before the OP before I wasted my time.

You can either think things clearly and carefully, or you can go full "follow your dreams d'awwww" while I ride away in my unicorn and we all eat magic donuts made of pieces of rainbow.

Hearing advice from people isn't always easy, specially when it's not a pat in the back. But being mature is necessary to understand that.

Also, @Touchfuzzy please don't use exagerations like "financial disaster" from now on. That doesn't exist, there is only black and white.

 

[Galenmereth]

There is no such thing as black and white. It's all shades of grey (before that book ruined that expression).

 

[nio kasgami]

I will try to add my own little salt!

I am 18 years old so I am still young,

for myself nothing never passionate my life other I don't see myself to doing "men" works like lumberjack or something like that. I was more attracted to writing and drawing...I beginned to draw in 2008 and every moment my  teachers and parents was : arts is not something who pay you should at least change of style manga are hard to do you are under pay for that ect...

but this stopped me? nope not really because I love so much making comics and arts I didn't want to stop even my teacher was : manga are not popular blabla.

but they changed of opinion when I won third places in a the High School Comics Contest who was given in all Quebec...(more then 500 participants I think?) was the time I felt I was done for doing comics even if the comics was a hard road and I will almost starving for doing the life I love ...Simply it's what I want to for my whole life! 

I don't do that for the money or the recognition I just want to share my stories with the people!

For the moment , I will do 3D animation classes simply because I love learning art and this help me to improve + now my familly totally support me in doing because they believe in me!

for explain my point, don't stop yourself to the money  or the opinion of the other people  even our opinion here is...somewhat to take with pinch of salt it's better to do what you love but...take also in consideration of maybe it will maybe takes a lots of works and patience for be able to do what you really want!

 

[Athryl]

A lot of good advice from both sides already - the only thing I would add is it might depend at what level of education you're already at with your Engineering. Are you currently seeking a Bachelor's degree? More than half way? If so, I'd get the degree and use some of your electives to explore Paleontology then see about getting your Master's/Ph.D in Paleontology if that's what really excites you still. Sure you will probably still have to play some catch up in core undergraduate classes, but I highly doubt the degree in engineering will go to waste and I know a lot of graduate programs don't require your undergrad degree necessarily be in the same exact field.

 

[nio kasgami]

Anyway, as I said before the OP before I wasted my time.

You can either think things clearly and carefully, or you can go full "follow your dreams d'awwww" while I ride away in my unicorn and we all eat magic donuts made of pieces of rainbow.

Hearing advice from people isn't always easy, specially when it's not a pat in the back. But being mature is necessary to understand that.

Also, @Touchfuzzy please don't use exagerations like "financial disaster" from now on. That doesn't exist, there is only black and white.

Personally it's nothing bad to follow our "dream" like I said before it's better to not always thinking about money because generally it's can provoke mental problem in long term (I mean like depression or such)

I approve! some part with your message maybe we should at least be realist to we all need money for lives that's for sure

but saying people who follow their dream  dream about unicorn.....no no no ....first of all my world is composed of cats and pixies :3!

on a more serious note I don't argue with you I approve some part of your opinion 

I can't just approve the fact following a dream is like be unrealistic...

I mean I decide to follow the Mangaka ways is not live in a "dream" more...I decide to do some sacrifice I know I will cry a lots hits a lots of bad moment but it's like that in the life haha

but like the proverb say : we only have one life~ let's not waste it

A lot of good advice from both sides already - the only thing I would add is it might depend at what level of education you're already at with your Engineering. Are you currently seeking a Bachelor's degree? More than half way? If so, I'd get the degree and use some of your electives to explore Paleontology then see about getting your Master's/Ph.D in Paleontology if that's what really excites you still. Sure you will probably still have to play some catch up in core undergraduate classes, but I highly doubt the degree in engineering will go to waste and I know a lot of graduate programs don't require your undergrad degree necessarily be in the same exact field.

I totally Agree I forgot to mention that...if you already spend some money and times just finish your classes and...after return learn what you like!

 

[Lunarea]

Count me as another person that votes for practical and sensible (i.e. engineering)

You can always work on getting a job that incorporates your passion in some way. An example that can bring engineering and palaeontology together is animatronic engineers. They would be creating mechanical dinosaurs, and probably work very hard on making them as realistic as possible. This means you'd need a lot of good knowledge of dinosaurs, which would bring the element of passion to that practical job.

 

[nio kasgami]

Count me as another person that votes for practical and sensible (i.e. engineering)

You can always work on getting a job that incorporates your passion in some way. An example that can bring engineering and palaeontology together is animatronic engineers. They would be creating mechanical dinosaurs, and probably work very hard on making them as realistic as possible. This means you'd need a lot of good knowledge of dinosaurs, which would bring the element of passion to that practical job.

lol I never knew they still doing mechanical dinosaur ! I always tought they do all via computer now !

(where my jobs go "3D animation") 

 

[Lunarea]

They still have them for amusement parks, museums, and so on. Computer graphics don't work in those situations.

 

[nio kasgami]

They still have them for amusement parks, museums, and so on. Computer graphics don't work in those situations.

yeah you have right! tought Amusement parks in quebec don't use a lots of electronic we don't have a lots of "park" I would love to see a true themed park someday 

but let's not be off topic D: 

I think in a way lunarea suggestion is a good suggestion to took haha

 

[hian]

Anyway, as I said before the OP before I wasted my time.


You can either think things clearly and carefully, or you can go full "follow your dreams d'awwww" while I ride away in my unicorn and we all eat magic donuts made of pieces of rainbow.


Hearing advice from people isn't always easy, specially when it's not a pat in the back. But being mature is necessary to understand that.


Also, @Touchfuzzy please don't use exagerations like "financial disaster" from now on. That doesn't exist, there is only black and white.

The irony here, is that you're the one who's arguing in black and whites here when you set up the false


dichotomy of


A.) either thinking things clearly and carefully, or


B.) going full "follow your dreams d'awwww"


Setting up following your dreams as being the road to "financial disaster" is the black-white perspective,


not the other way around.


The fact that you now call it an "exaggeration", after I did you the courtesy of interpreting like such


(I.E as meaning poor, or lower class, rather than 100% bankrupt) which you then replied to in a way


as if to suggest that was wrong of me, you're now being disingenuous - but whatever, right?


As was patently obvious by my post, seeing as I did qualify my position several times over -


If you don't have much to lose, then taking a "big risk" is not a big risk at all.


I agree with the gist of the majority in this thread - which is that for 99% of people, taking the


stable route is advisable - however, to pretend as if the OP following his dreams granted that


he doesn't have ****-loads of student loan debts, or a family to support, is going to automatically


lead him to financial ruin is absurd, and since this isn't the case,


I don't see the point of you raising that concern to begin with.


Sum sumarum, unless you meant to imply that ditching the engineer degree now, or


willy-nilly dream chasing will lead to financial disaster, what was the point?


I'm the one making the grey argument here - namely that financial disaster is the blackest of black


alternatives here, and that you don't inherently end up there just because you ditch a useful


university degree. The fact that you fool yourself into thinking otherwise, is very telling.


But then again, you're apparently the kind of guy that instead of making an actual reply addressing this


point, makes an indirect, snarky and passive aggressive comment about it whilst addressing someone else,


so I am not going to expect reasonable positions or dialogue from you on this matter.


Cheers,

 

[sabao]

I majored in biology for a good three years and work in an indie game studio now. I believe it's safe to say my parents are extremely disappointed in me. It was a tough market looking for a job fresh out of college and this was the best option available at the time. It's great on most days, but careers like these generally don't make a lot of money.

As Fuzzy's pointed out, money doesn't necessarily make you happy, but a lack of it sure does make you sad. I make about as much as I need in a month for my food and bills. I do freelance work on the side so I have money to spend on luxuries like video games (oh irony), or maybe save for emergencies like medical bills and the like. It's pretty tiring. I love my job, honestly. Hell, I know most people here wish they could do the same. As personally fulfilling as it is, I'm afraid it's not making me nearly enough to reach my other goals. Like say, building a family. Or building my own business. Or a better spec'd desktop for work. Or a PS4.

That said, I will have to look into pursuing another career if I want to build a life beyond myself. This is totally fine by me. I love making games and I'd probably still be doing it without getting paid.

 

[Andar]

Pine, Hian, you both got your warnings (for different reasons) and I hide your post here.


Let's return this topic to the point and keep it civilized.