Am I crazy for wanting to go back for a second degree...?

[Pure Beef]

I am a recent graduate of an undergrad degree, majoring in political science. My plan since I left high school was to get good grades in political science, write my LSAT, and go to law school.

 

Well here I am about to commence on the second part of that part, and well I can't say I have the same drive for law school anymore; the horror stories, the work atmosphere, the person I would become, all are things I no longer want now that I am more understanding of what it is to be a lawyer.

 

I have a new friend that I recently met, who is an engineer, and I am quite fascinated by his line of work. I feel as though I would be a more balanced, happy person if I was to go back to university and get a second degree in engineering. It is not the workload that I am afraid of (short term, I don't want to work 10 hour days though the rest of my life), it is that I have no real math/science experience since I left high school (did about 12 credit hours in university so far), so I would need to brush up on those classes. Money is not an issue, busting my ass off for law school I did end up getting some good scholarships, so I have managed to pocket a lot of cash that I can use towards the second degree.

 

I will be 24 in a month, is such a turnaround an unrealistic option?

 

***

I should also note that the main reason I originally wanted to become a lawyer was to help people, not for the money or fame, I could care less. The more I read about and talked to lawyers, the more I found out that they simply don't help to the same extent that I imagined.

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[chitown9]

It is not unrealistic to pursue changing your career goals. That is what is known as growing!

[Jeremy21]

This actually might be a good idea, just because the value of a law degree is actually very dicey right now. There's a lot of talk about how the value of a college degree in general is probably going down, but there's even more about how the value of a law degree is going down; there's actually quite a bit of scandal recently because schools are letting in way too many law students, and very few graduates are actually getting jobs; far more degrees are being pumped out than there are jobs, and those jobs are getting cut more and more every day.

 

Plus, if you really don't feel it's your passion anymore, then law school might be a bad idea as you would really need to have a lot of drive and passion for it to truly succeed (in job hunting or just getting good grades, etc).

 

I'd say think it over, at least.

[RelaxByWater84]

You would have more options as an engineer than a lawyer. It will be easier for those of us in our twenties to go back to school. I will be going back to school in January so obviously I'm going to say go for it!!

[Jetta]

Engineers have a nice lifestyle, I would be one myself if I had the brains for it. I'm more science than Math (I struggle in Math). Maybe take a refresher course to see you do in Calculus. If you survive it then go for the gusto! Best of luck!

[chitown9]

I say follow your heart. I have a B.A. in Sociology with a social welfare option.

I never thought that I would return to college, but I did at the age of 62 years old. I decided I wanted to work in the field of substance abuse so I returned to the very university I graduated from in 1982. I never thought I would go back. That is why the saying: "Never say never". I obtained a certificate in substance abuse last year. Since I married someone from Hawaii I cannot use my certificate from California here in Hawaii, so I am planning to open a sober living home here. I still want to be instrumental in contributing assistance in the field of substance abuse. The wonderful thing about life is that it is always changing. If you think about it there is only one thing that does not change and do you know what it is: change. So go with it, and grow!