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Hey guys,
after school, I chose the save option and started studying chemistry, aiming to either become an M Sc. and do some real science, or, failing that, become a 'high school' teacher. The latter has to seem unappealing for someone living in the US, but Germany's equivalent of high school is a bit different, because not nearly as many students (only about 40%) go there and teachers are well paid.
I never thought about chemistry as my passion, it's just the save road. I'm okay at it, my marks have been around 1.3 on average, but I find it often tedious and only rarely really fascinating. I'm also only my second semester, so I don't expect things to go that smoothly when the subject matter becomes more advanced.
Now here's the problem:
The things I AM passionate about make it hard to make a living around.
I love history, I love literature and I love, love, love music.
So here's my dilemma:
My brain tells me I should stick to chemistry, become a teacher, make a comfortable living, have brilliant benefits and long holidays.
My heart tells me I should drop chemistry, get two Bachelors in English and history.
Then again, my heart is an idiot and I don't want to end up selling coffee to those who stuck to what their brain told them for the rest of my life.
Obviously I could still become a teacher with English and history, but it's much more competitive than chemistry. If I finish my education in the latter, I can have my pick of high schools throughout Germany (rare combination of subjects, my university is considered the best German uni in the field of chemistry and the state guarantees an entry position for those who finish their education).
Anyway, thanks for reading, maybe some of you have been in a similar situation and tell me how they clean toilets for a living now.
Cheers boners!
 
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United States24637 Posts
You didn't address why you would want to become a teacher, other than that the job in your country is appealing. Even though I don't know exactly what it's like being a 'high school' teacher in your country, I strongly recommend nobody go into teaching unless that is a passion they have. It is bad to treat teaching as some type of safety or fallback.
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To be a good teacher you must love to teach. its that simple.
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I like teaching, I have done loads of private tutoring and I have worked at a school for two weeks to get a glimpse of the teacher's life. It's easy to say you have to "love to teach", but the sad truth is that the first real teaching experience comes when you're already four or five semesters in and take a semester off to work at an actual school.
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My mother's been a high school chemistry teacher (in America) for 40 years. She loves it, although as she gets older and has to put up with more political/ administrative bullshit, she's getting a little jaded. She loves the teaching aspects though, and obviously the content.
Find some compromise between your Heart and Head. That's the only way (I can see) that you won't be regretting your major life decisions. And maybe ten years down the road, you can switch professions anyway. Choosing any combination of chemistry, teaching, English, or history doesn't mean you need to kick the others out of your life for good.
And as an (American math) educator, I find that there is far more to value with education that just making money 
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Hey dude, not sure how far you are through your chem education, but have you done any original research yet? I was fairly content with chemistry until I started doing some research on top of my undergrad classes in my 4th semester, and have since developed a bit of a passion for it. Studying science in a classroom setting is totally different to actually doing it, so maybe immerse yourself a little more and see how you like it.
On November 09 2013 23:43 micronesia wrote:
You didn't address why you would want to become a teacher, other than that the job in your country is appealing. Even though I don't know exactly what it's like being a 'high school' teacher in your country, I strongly recommend nobody go into teaching unless that is a passion they have. It is bad to treat teaching as some type of safety or fallback.
Teaching is a safe, stable job (at least in Australia), and you don't need to have a passion for something to excel at it. Teaching thus seems like a great fallback if research (a very competitive, volatile career path) doesn't pan out.
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The education you're currently undergoing is meant to prepare you for a career within chemistry. Only a small percentage of what you learn now will be directly useful in any future job you may get. When you do get a job within chemistry, passion for what you are trying to achieve will naturally come. I took a MSc in molecular biology because I initially found it really interesting. The more I learned, the more I wanted to learn, up to the point where I was satisfied with my knowledge in the field. Now I'm doing research of my own (PhD) and although I cannot say I feel really passionate about molecular biology, I love my job. Lessons I've learned:
1. Any job you get after higher education will include wonderful co-workers, colleagues and working environment
2. Interaction with the above people is the major factor that decides whether you like your job/being at work
3. Taking a master/bachelor degree can be boring and include much detailed knowledge, but its first and foremost goal is to prepare you to be able to THINK and become a resourceful employee in whatever field of specialization
4. Your job gets you money. Money, weekends, holidays and everyday free time can be used for your passions. Whether that be music, literature, Starcraft, kitesurfing or travelling.
5. You'd be amazed by the kinds of jobs you are eligible for when having a master degree in any kind of natural science at your resume. You can still be a mailman, bureaucrat, specialist journalist, consultant or work with mass spectrometry analyses at a hospital. You've learned to think rationally, find and use relevant information (typically in English anyways), cooperate with people and communicate using terminology and concepts that you understand (molar, entropy, isomer etc). Private companies hire people that know their stuff, can think of their own and are productive.
6. A degree in something practical like chemistry can give you a corporate career = wealth
7. Wealth matters when you decide you want a house and a car some day
Hope this may help more than it confuses
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go with your heart, if you follow your brain you resign yourself to the path of mediocrity
if you follow your brain, maybe you'll fail but you also have a shot of becoming great doing something you love
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Follow your passions and turn it into a well paying career by being good at what you do
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all you need for the chemistry teaching job is a BA?
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Nope, you either go for the traditional teacher's degree, or you get two bachelors in the subjects you're trying to teach and add a Master of Education. Just depends on what state you live in, but both take five years, one year of actual teaching etc.
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The things that you love doing. Save those for hobbies. As for your job, you can do something that is rewarding (like teaching), and gives you stable income. I love music myself (I play guitar) and I think its a great hobby to have. If you are into making music...you can do that as a hobby while working as well.
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Hmm, that does sound sensible, but I still don't think I can stand teaching chemistry for the rest of my life.
I think I'll go the double-bachelor-master-of-education route, in subjects that I enjoy more.
That gives me another two years (at least) and one semester of teaching to decide what Master I'll pursue.
Depending on the economy in the next years, even getting a Master of Education with a focus on German as a second language seems good, you might laugh at the notion, but I don't find it inconceivable that foreigners should want to learn German.
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Russian Federation3631 Posts
keep in mind that an undergraduate level degree in chemistry is near-useless (at least in the United States, not sure if its different elsewhere)
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Your loves become hobbies, your passions become priorities. If you don't have the desire to make one of your loves a priority then leave it for what it is. A hobby you enjoy in your spare time. There's nothing wrong with taking the stable route while you get your passions straightened out.
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do what you love
who gives a shit what kind of money you're going to make
work you love isn't work
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If you make decent money in a job that doesn't absorb all your free time, that you don't mind with good chance of success, you will be able to end up using said free time and dollars to persue and do what you love and even enhance your hobby (like say, buying a collection of awesome original works and building yourself a sick personal library that you couldn't get with chump change).
Worked for me anyway. Became a doctor for safe dollars. Now going to ski a season without having to worry about money at all.
I think until you can afford everything you want in life money does = happiness to a degree.
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I'm on the actuary road, which is quite some safe dollars - but I practice 5-6 hours of piano a day, and sometimes up to 10 lol
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EPT
