Non Target School, Humanities major with less than stellar GPA. (Advice Needed)

Hello everyone, I'm going into my third and last year at the University of Washington. I'm a philosophy major, and my GPA is sitting at 2.8. This doesn't include the 90 credits from my associate’s degree that I earned the same year I graduated from high school with a GPA 3.5. I'm concerned that having a 2.8 and the fact that I'm a philosophy major might destroy me in the job market. I have one more year of school left so I'm going to make an attempt to increase my UW GPA, and complete some more math and econ courses (I have completed calculus 1- 3 and econ up to 300). I'm taking Econ 301 and a stats course next quarter.

I've been working at a pizza hut as a delivery driver for almost a year now, and have been working 30 hours a week at two different jobs through the duration of my sophomore year at university to be able to support myself. I have a couple previous employers that I've worked for almost two year, so I have no doubt in my ability to work. Last year my mom was diagnosed with oral cancer and I had to drop out winter quarter to make sure she was adequately cared for. I also had to save my ex- girlfriend's life when she attempted suicide three different times in a sitting when I was at work the year prior (my first year of college). I had to ask my manager to drive me home to clean her up and call law enforcement. It was an eventful day to say the least.

I know I might be coming from a weird place academically (GPA), and culturally (first generation college student), and stress wise (every year someone's almost died that was close to me during school). Does anyone have any recommendations as to how I should handle my current academic setup? I feel like every day I'm attending university it's a waste considering the opportunity I had and how much I've screwed up so far. My main goal is to work for a policy center doing research, or at a management consulting firm such as Deloitte. I'm not sure how to fix my current situation besides making one last attempt to bring my university GPA up. I just want a job that will make full use of my mind. I've had jobs where I've worked 67.5 hour weeks standing outside directing traffic. I just have a fear that my abilities will keep going to waste if I don't come up with a straightforward plan to follow from here on out. Thank you in advanced for any advice.

5 Comments
 

My school doesn't actually have a business, or an economics minor. I'll have all the core requirements completed for the economics major after next quarter, but the avg GPA being accepted into the department is (X>3.5). The issue I have is explaining how philosophy is relevant. I have 15 credits left in my major, and some space for electives. If I declare a second major then I can stay for an additional year. I'm hoping to jump into economics, and focusing on math so I can be ready for a future grad program in quantitative finance, or economics.

 

I don't know any public school that would hire a philosophy teacher. Philosophy majors tend to get higher GRE and LSAT scores than a lot of other majors, but I'm not too sure how employers would look at my degree. I usually see a business related degree required as a qualification for most analyst positions.

 

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