on the verge of droping out of my degree

juanveron45

im back in college at the age of 29 doing my hons degree in Analytical chemistry with quality management.The last time I was in college was back in 2003 when i did my diploma.I am on the verge of quitting because I only scraped through the other years and my chemistry knowledge is very low and I feel very overwhelmed by the workload and subject matter.I also dont see myself working in a lab for the rest of my life either.I have an interview next week with a bib pharma company and the money will be around 30-35k plus 33percent shift which is not bad.However i do feel i could be making a mistake as I would be finished next may2008 and have a very good qualification but when its comes to the lab work I am well below the other students but thats because I havent been in college for quite some time.I have to admit though I am a bit on the lazy side.advice please

Could you go for the interview and then defer the job until after you graduate? Ignoring what's said about foot in the door and such, having a degree is a great back-up in case you could find yourself unemployed in 20 years time (or something like that).

Alternatively, you should consider possibly taking a year out. Final year is tough. Some of the counselling departments in colleges run study skills exercises, perhaps it would be a good idea to investigate these? Alternatively, go up to the lecturers after each lecture and query something with them. Don't just leave it and assume that you'll pick it up.

juanveron45

I could ask them but I think it will have to be a choice between the job or the degree

PeakOutput

dropping out a semester and a half away from getting your degree is retarded imo

you spent this long doing the hard work just stick out the next few months you will have alot more options after instead of an averagely paid job in an area you are not that interested in....................also having all your questions in the one thread would probably make it easier to get responces

leeroybrown

There are probably guidance counsellors in your college that you could talk this over with. They'll have loads of experience advising people in your position.

My suggestion would be that getting your head down and putting a good seven months into finishing the degree would be a good idea. Having a degree would stand you in good stead in the long run and if you can dig a reasonable result out you'd have the option going back and doing a masters course to further your career or move area later on.

Indecision will get you nowhere. You'll just end conning yourself into thinking that you're not able for something that might be difficult but is far from impossible.

pwee

Having been an avid reader of your posts i would think that you may not have the staying power for the degree but best of luck if you continue.

Eoin

OP - I think you really need to talk to a career guidance councillor and find out what it is you want to do.

If you drop out of the degree, you'll either have to say this in an interview or make up some excuse to explain the gap on your CV. If you're the same person I'm thinking of, this will be another gap in the CV that you have to explain away.

um7y1h83ge06nx

I'm a Software Engineer and like what I do.

I ended up getting a 1.1 in college but particularly in the last year it meant hell on earth in order to achieve good results.

I worked extremely hard and sometimes it seemed that there was no light at the end of the tunnel.

However I pulled through and here I am.

OP, sometimes college is easy, sometimes it's brutal, but if you put the head down and are determined to achieve something you will. It's more about your state of mind than anything else.

Vegeta

Reed Famous Ambassador wrote: »

It's more about your state of mind than anything else.

boom nail on the head right there

its up to you OP, do you want the degree (which involves some hard work) and all the other areas and choices that opens up or do you want to start a job you will not like???

grahamo

you've less than a year to qualify and you want to jack it? Are you mad? All those years down the drain. Finish the course. If you don't like lab work go into management somewhere!

dame

I remember reading all your other threads here in the last year. Just stick with it, pull the finger out, do what you have to do and get the degree. You'd be an idiot to give up now and I bet you'd be back here within months anyway asking more questions about what should you do. A degree, any degree, gives you a lot more options for your future. Now cop yourself on and start working on your chemistry.

Bethany

First of all you deserve a lot of credit for going back to college. Don't drop out. Look for help with your chemistry , if necessary grinds. They have tutors employed to help but ask and ask and remember they don't want people to fail. You're going through a very bad patch and if you were on top of your study would you even think of dropping out? Apart from what you will do in the future, that undergraduare degree will open many more doors than a diploma. So get help fast and hang in there. There are loads of jobs in the science area and you'll have many options next Jun. Best of luck

watna

Juanveron, I've read your other post about becoming a recruitment consultant. I know exactly how you feel. I have a degree in Chemistry. in my final year i was so miserable, but I stayed. I stayed because i knew that i needed a degree. i stayed because I'd put three years in and didn't want to waste it. I've never used my degree, and I've no interest in working in chemistry but i'm glad i stayed. A lot of jobs ask for a third level degree. Most people have them these days and i would reccommend if you've put the work in, stay. I also workin recruitment now and i can tell you it's not easy. If you're going to work in an agency you have to be thick-skinned and pushy. It's not a job where you can sit at a desk all day waiting until 5.30. You need to put in a lot of effort an meet targets or you're gone. I'm not sure if that would suit you or not, but you should think carefully about it. A lot of people don't stick with it. All my college friends work in QA and seem happy enough but i knew it wasn't for me. I am glad that I ahve a chemistry degree on my CV, it does show a certain level of intelligence and dedication. Just because you finish it doesn't mean you ahve to work in that area. There's loads of options. Got see your guidance counsellor in college, mine in Trinity was good about all our options.

Otto Mann

Ask yourself why u went back to do the degree in the first place. You went back to have a better qualification so u wouldn't be stuck in a job u don't like, like the one u have the interview for. Put the head down for the next seven months and get ur degree or u'll regret it!