I have dillema.  Should I choose a Respiratory Therapy major or other major such as computer, teacher, MLT, etc?  Because I'm not sure if Respiratory Therapy is the right career for me.  Respiratory Therapy has great pay, but high risks such as catch a disease from patient, get fired and/or get sued.\nAny idea, suggestions?\nThanks
129236
well i cant choose for you but in my opinion even tho teachers dont get paid that much its a good and fun job. the kids are great. but what you have to do is see what fits you the most you cant plan your hole life day by day cuz you never know what will happen you cant prepare for every mistake that might happen  because if you do you will be depprest the rest of your life you just have to take it day by day and see what happens things always have a way of working themselves out \n\n\ngood luck and all the best
284452
East coast fl...I am a Surgical Tech but my aunt is head of the Radiography department. X-ray techs are a vital part of the healthcare industry. It is a reliable and growing field. Ask a local hospital if you can do a "shadow" of the department. Tell them you are going to be entering the program and would like to see how and what is envolved. You can also specialize in areas such as ultra sound tech to. YOu can do both and be more valuable. Try payscale.com for pay. Realize though that you have to consider the type of place, Hospital, or private practice, and many times you can get job placement through school. I hope that you really check on this it is a great area of healthcare.
447787
Go to your nearest community college, get a copy of the curriculum offered and ask to make an appointment w/an career advisor.  They can give you a test to help determine your best academic field and interests.  Hopefully, you'll find a health care profession interesting to you as there are openings in the health care field all over the country.  Vet tech is another field that is growing with a wide range of possibilities.  Good luck!
356439
Physical therapy is an excellent choice for a career (not that I am biased -  I am a PT).  A good PT school program would require taking a kinesiology class as well as many other sciences.  I find it extremely rewarding (more so than some of my friends who have desk jobs), intellectually challenging, and even physically demanding.\n\nThere are many different areas in which you can practice.  Neurology, orthopaedics, acute care, rehab, skilled nursing facilities, pediatrics, etc.  Pay depends upon where you are and which field you go into.  Check www.salary.com to see if it will give you an estimate on salary.  Not to mention, it is very much in demand right now.  Many companies are offering to pay for part of your education and giving signing bonuses.\n\nThe American Physical Therapy Association is the professional organization for PTs.  The website is: www.apta.org and you can find information on many aspects of PT on that website.
604721
If anatomy and/or physiology is an available major, take that. Otherwise go with a biology major, and maybe minor in business.
173935
if you think that you are capable to handle medical school then you should go for it. its a worthwhile job becasue you save people and get paid a lot. nursing is alright but if you know you have the potential of becoming a doctor just do it, yeah it may take years but the outcome it worth it. others might disagree with me but i know someone in medical school and they love it there.
21804
Go for science. For one thing, you can make more money and there are many more opportunities. I was a chemist for about six years before going on for more education and the pay was good, the hours good and the people wonderfully intelligent and fun to work with. You're too young to limit yourself by foregoing serious education for something like massage. While that may be a good career choice if you've tried more intellectual pursuits and found you didn't like them, I wouldn't start there. Keep it as a backup if the science thing doesn't work out for you. Plus, the hours, working conditions and pay are much less for massage therapists than folks with a science background. (I have a friend who teaches at a massage therapy school, so I'm familiar with the lifestyle.) Good luck.
344684
I've been thinking about other things that i can do to fall back on and two majors that stand out to me is liberal studies and women studies. they both have many things that you can do with either degree and for the moment you don't have to use it right away so i think that they can be good. personally I've chosen many different things to fall back on that i want to go to school for like event planning, interior design and different languages to go along with my teaching degree. it's all about options. look around and choose a degree that you will enjoy and that in being a stay-at-home-mom can do to help your children. when you are at home you can work from there doing interior design or event planning by having your own business. you can go to school for teaching as you will be teaching your children in some way shape or form even if they go to school. like i said, think of something you enjoy and then find out from a counselor if you can major in it or something similar. good luck and have fun!
539575
I am an anesthesiologist, and wouldn't trade my job for anybody's.  Congratulations on making a smart choice!\n\nResidency sucks, no matter what specialty you choose.  It is the price you pay for becoming a trained doctor.  We all did it. \n\nAnesthesiology is great.  You really do make a difference in people's lives.  You can be their comfort in times of stress.  And you NEVER have to find them a nursing home, tell them they have cancer, or that their baby is dead.  We get out of a lot of the crappy things that go with medicine.\n\nYou alleviate pain.  You reassure them that they'll do just fine with the surgery.  You will make hundreds of friends on the obstetrics ward - laboring women with functional epidurals are among the most grateful people in the world.\n\nWhen patients ask if you are the one who is going to put them to sleep, tell them, "yes, and keep you alive and wake you up again.  Anybody can put you to sleep, but the other two things are a bit trickier!"  Be excellent at what you do, be friendly, be caring... patients will start asking your name if you do these things.\n\nYour life *will* get better.  I am the mother of 3 kids (2 were residency babies - kept me out of the ortho rooms while I was pregnant!) and now I DO have time to run them to dance class, help with homework and go to their school band concerts.\n\nYour career can be anything you want it to be once residency ends.  I haven't been on call since 2001.\n\nHang in there.  Life will get better!
257188
It seems like most of your careers are geared towards Law with the exception of a veterinarian. I would go in the Law direction because you have more choices in a field you seem interested in. I was going to become a Vet and worked at several clinics over several years and decided it wasn't the job for me. Maybe try getting a Vet assistant job for awhile and see if you enjoy it. Then try and get a job in a law office and see how it works. Then you can make a better decision for college. I would also recommend starting at a two year junior college and take classes in each of those fields so you don't spend a lot of money going to a four year college and deciding you don't like it. The demand for Veterinarians is very low, and starting pay isnt great. The field of Law has a much higher demand.
42235
Um, yeah, that last guy is just a jerk.  There's no shame in wanting to be a surgical tech or a nurse.  Spending loads of money and several years to become a doctor isn't a trade-off everyone is willing to make.  Anyway, you could always put off nursing school and see how you like the field first.  My dad used to be an OR tech and loved it.  The hours are great and the pay could be worse.
13233
If you like computers, then any of the computer fields would be good.\nIf you have any interest in medicine, the medical field is always good. How about a radiological technologist (x-ray tech)?
124501
As a parent of children with chronic health care needs, I was approached about being part of a program called "Family Faculty."  It is designed for residents, but the idea is this:  Doctors learn from people who deal with the medical world in a real-life day to day basis.  In our case, that is pretty much our life.\n\nIf you are serious about becoming a physician, you should hang out with people who can help you be the best physician you can possibly be... patients.  I would try to hook up with the Child Life Specialists at your local hospital and see if you can volunteer as part of the team.  Or, volunteer at the local Adult Day Care.  Or, try going to the Social Services Department and asking them if there is a way you could participate in improving patient life while you are pre-pre med.\n\nSeriously, you could really improve your vision and your patient understanding by being with those people you hope to one day help.\n\nGood luck.  I really hope you dig in and find something that inspires you.  I wish you the best in your educational pursuits.
510369
Ok, you wanna serious answer? Computer info tech. Working for any company in their IT dept makes great money. I would apply at any and all large companies around. Even if right now you have to start with something small, go for it and work your way up. I know the hospital I work for pays their IT people top dollar. They make more than a lot of RNs there. Congrats, and screw these other guys, you'll never have to worry about money again.
475614
I'm assuming that you are just heading into college?....It seems like the best thing to think about when deciding on a career path is just think about the things that intrigue you and you are truly curious about.  Then branch out from there.  I have found it so valuable to get out there are work in your field to get a feel for things.  Even if you are at the lowest wrung on the ladder you can get a sense for if those environments will make you happy.  What I realized is those jobs that I thought were going to be sooooo great and rewarding were not at all after working there for a little while.
452482
Medical billing is a great choice if you want to work in the medical field without having an allied health position (i.e. nurse, x-ray tech, etc).  Every hospital and medical office needs people to do the billing coding. I worked as an RN and after discovering what a truly horrible job that is (forced overtime, understaffing, getting looked down upon by the doctors, etc) I considered getting into medical billing too. I ended up getting a degree in physical therapy, but I still think billing/coding is a fine choice.\n\nGood luck and I think you will find it an enjoyable position!
448294
Wrong focus.  It's not like it's med school.  Just get into a convenient and decent nursing program.  It's what you do after getting your nursing degree and passing the boards that makes you a great nurse, or not.