Wednesday, November 3, 2010

A Three-Way Fork in the Road

There's no doubt that I have or had plenty of goals, things that I wanted to do before I get to a certain age, or before I "kick the bucket". But as I progress through my college life, I find that the three most common goals that I keep thinking about every now and then seem to be so separated from one another that I keep thinking that it's impossible for me to achieve all of them. There's one major related, one minor related, and one that's, well it's cliche, but far-fetched in my opinion (which makes it that much worthwhile to achieve!).

1) Becoming a database manager- Okay, not the most "wow" goal, but yeah, after 3 or so years of college, and like 1.5 years in the Computer Information Systems major, I feel like I have found something that I really enjoy doing, and something that I am really comfortable with: creating databases for other companies and managing them. To me, this is pretty much the safe route in life. It's a decent job with a decent paycheck, and it seems really easy to find a job in this field. Even better is that I can see myself working in this field for a really long time and not be unhappy with following this route. My "path" to this goal is pretty simple: of course, my current major is Computer Information Systems, so I have a lot of options open to me, so all I need to do is get an internship in this field while in college, and get a full time job working for a big (okay, decent size) company after I graduate.This type of job tends to rely more on work experience rather than level of education, so I won't need to get a Masters degree, but I will probably have to take a few certification tests.  

2) Becoming an English teacher....in Japan - My dream used to be "I want to get an IT job in Japan", but lately, I've been wondering if my computer skills and, especially, my Japanese is up to par to be able to work in Japan. This goal allows me to focus mainly on my minor, Japanese. Of course, there are different ways for me to be able to accomplish this goal. The most common and well known is to apply to the JET Program, which hires Americans to go to Japan to teach students, ranging from elementary schools to colleges. (Maybe after being immersed in the culture and language I'll have the confidence to aim for my initial dream) The most difficult aspect about this goal, is that I want it to be a long term thing, and finding people to sponsor you for a VISA is pretty difficult, unless you have the right connections, and I also need to find employment too (JET is a 5 year maximum program I believe). Also, to better my performance as an English teacher, I might have to/should get a Masters diploma in teaching. The reason that I have this goal is because Japan is a place that I absolutely love, and the culture is so different from America. If I don't end up living in Japan, I know that no matter what other route I choose to follow in life, I'll always want to be in Japan.

3) Ruling the worl-Traveling the world: Really cliche, I know, but yeah, I have always wanted to experience, first hand, many different cultures. Of course, at the moment, its more of a dream than a vision. The ways to achieve this goal: get a really great job that involves a lot of traveling or to apply to the Peace Corps. 

3 comments:

  1. Even if the database manager isn't the "wow" job I think most people would argue it is a stable and decent job to have. I really liked your idea of going to Japan and teaching English. I was actually thinking of doing the same but for a different language and country but I didn't know if I have the commitment to do it for a period of time. That's good that you have an idea and know what to do in order to achieve it. I hope things work out for you in the future and good luck with your current and future endeavors.

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  2. Please prove me wrong and get into JET. I heard from a little bird that it was difficult to get into if your... well... Asian. I have friends and friends of friends that have taught in Japan and Korea and the response is always the same. AWESOME. Well worth it if you ever have the chance.

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  3. Going back to Japan and teaching sounds like a good idea and you should definately make that happen. I would also like to travel the world and explore all the different cultures. Nowadays with the ever expanding market place in the business world being able to travel the world is not so difficult anymore because many jobs offer positions that allow you to work in different places so if you really want it you should look for a job like that. Good luck in everything you decide to do.

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