Kaz hasn’t talked much about his career aspirations yet. As we learn here, he hasn’t gone to college. Kaz says that he isn’t sure what he wants to do, but is that really true? It’s hard to answer honestly when you feel like you’re being put on the spot.
In the US, or at least when I was in my teens/early 20s, there’s generally an expectation that you go to college after high school. I went to college myself, but it’s not the path for everyone. There are a lot of paths toward whatever career goals you have. I wish that we, as a culture, were more understanding of that.
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Page transcript:
Kaz, narrating: Alex was deep in conversation, so I went to go mingle.
Girl with glasses: Great to meet you! Are you a student too?
Kaz: Oh no, not yet, anyway.
Guy with beard: What’s your major?
Kaz: Uh, I’m not in school.
Guy with beard: Oh gotcha. What d’you think you’ll study when you go?
Kaz: I dunno…
Kaz, narrating: To add insult to injury, no one got my name right…
Dark-haired person: Your name is Katz? Is that your last name or something?
Brian: Oh! Hey again, dude! This is Alex’s boyfriend, Chaz.
Brown-haired girl: Hi Chaz!
Kaz, narrating: And as if the awkward questions weren’t bad enough, the conversations I overheard were even worse.
Unknown speaker 1: So what do you think will be on the Russian final?
Unknown speaker 2: I think the professor mentioned something about the ablative case…
Unknown speaker 3: I heard Sarah got accepted to study in Taiwan next year!
Unknown speaker 4: Oh wow! Good for her!
Unknown speaker 3: I’m hoping I can study abroad next year too. My parents already offered to help pay for it!
Nowadays college isn’t even the best route to a great career. Even if you choose a field that’s in demand NOW, things are changing so fast it likely won’t be in demand five to ten years down the line and you’ll be obsolete. And that’s if you get lucky, and your field of study isn’t out of date before you even graduate!
I’d be advising my kids to take a good hard look at technical work. Electrician, plumber, car mechanic, machinist, welder, that sort of thing. Faster to learn, the coursework is largely practical, and it might even be taught by paid apprenticeship. Even better from a job security standpoint, most of the people in America doing these jobs are in their fifties and older. They’re either looking to retire or HAVE retired already, leaving a HUGE gap between ‘need’ and ‘supply’.
Absolutely! There are a ton of opportunities in the trades, and it’s good money. You make a great point too with a lot of people aging out of the professions – we definitely need younger folks to pursue those jobs for that reason too. Tradespeople keep things functioning and are crucial jobs in society.
I didn’t end up really even using my degrees – I got a Bachelors and a Masters – but I did walk away with a ton of debt. In hindsight, I wish I had taken some time off to work before college, or had pursued a different field. Most of the jobs I’ve had don’t really even require a degree.
One I don’t like is how Alex just ditche him. I get it he’s mingling with his friend but you just leave you’re boyfriend with people he doesn’t know and doesn’t even notice how uncomfortable he is
Fair, yeah, Alex should’ve checked on him by now, but Kaz wandered off on his own too. He probably could’ve joined the conversation between Alex and Zaheen.