I have 1 semester left. What do I do?
Hey guys, I apologize in advance but this is going to be long.
I initially came to college with the intent of furthering my knowledge in computer science. I had already planned I wished to do something related to software development because I enjoyed coding in high school. I initially graduated high school with four internships (not to brag—I definitely could’ve leveraged them better, but I’m introverted). Three were in software development and the last was in financial management.
That financial management internship, along with a program I did in high school, made me want to pursue CS + Business. My long-term goal was and still is to build a financial literacy app for minorities and low-income households that could use technology to help break the cycle of poverty.
Unfortunately, college didn’t exactly go according to plan. I dealt with a lot of issues in my CS department, including racism/discrimination, and by junior year I was burnt out and couldn’t afford to keep going down that path. I ended up switching to Philosophy while continuing to code because I genuinely enjoy it.
I worked three jobs over the summer to afford my senior year, but now I’m struggling to find a job. The problem is that I’m kind of stuck in an awkward middle ground: I don’t have all the core CS knowledge employers expect, but I also don’t have the background or articulation you’d expect from someone pursuing philosophy/AI ethics.
I’m finishing my Philosophy degree now, and I’m trying to figure out what the hell I should actually do with my career. I want something I’m genuinely interested in, has room for growth, pays well enough to eventually help my family financially, and ideally lets me combine technology, business, ethics, or some combination of the three.
What would you do in my position?