I failed miserably at life. What do I do?
Earlier this year I graduated from a rank ~30 (semi-target) school with a 2.2 GPA in a hard science. I was a premed and did premed things all throughout college. I work as a waiter and take care of my 2 little siblings(parents died my freshman year). I don't need any sympathy, just help with what to do with my life.
Realistic advice: Self-learn financial modelling. Need not be the expensive stuff, just go through macabacus.com and learn the basics. All the while, keep shooting out emails to people in the industry - alumni, people in your hometown, boutiques in your hometown, the like. Ask them for a chance to connect over coffee. Explain your circumstances - don't mention the parents part unless they actually ask you about it, or if they criticize your poor GPA. Focus on how much you've prepped your financial modelling skills also, but mainly talk about THEM THEM THEM. Their background, their work, their experience, everything them. At the end, make the ask - ask them if they might be able to advance your profile for an internship. As expected, focus on boutique banks and consulting firms in your area - maybe healthcare sector. Why? Because these industries are the two industries with the least barriers for entry for a premed student.
Dang I thought my life was hard, this really puts things in perspective :(
In all honest,y how old are you and what are you trying to get into? For pre-med, I guess a post-bach would be helpful? For finance, start networking with local firms maybe? Not sure if your GPA is high enough. In that case, a MSF would be useful
You could get some experience in the military, demonstrate leadership skills, have a good story for grad school, use the 9/11 GI bill to pay for grad school and BAH to pay for housing and go from there.
That is, if you want to serve.
Also, I know you probably want to be close to your siblings, but depending on how much school they have left, you could consider writing to boarding schools for a need based scholarship.
I'm sure you would get their attention. If they could get into one of the good schools in the NE, they have good ties to the Ivys.
What grades are they in?
If you can communicate well with others, get into B2B sales. No need for any silly courses or post-bach shit and you can make solid money sooner.
came in here to post that.
pharma or biotech sales
/thread
I agree with this. If you know the medical field then stick to that. There are many sales positions for blood labs, biotech, pharma sales. I knew someone who did B2B Sales in one of those topics and they clear $350k a year. Good luck to you.
Blame others and become a victim of oppression also
Troll better.
Trolling is gay.
You got that right. When we blame others it does keep us down. That's what the MAN wants. I stopped blaming others and took responsibility for my own problems and actions. It gave me control over my own mind, body and soul. Now I feel like I am capable of anything. I feel free.
Don't base your success/failure at life solely based on the career you hold down. It's a very American mindset(work work work) to do that and it's how corporations keep people reliant on them and obsessed w/ getting a job there. I would advise getting into B2B sales just as someone else said here, possibly with something medical related given your background. You can always transition into private wealth management or similar down the road after you have a strong sales base. Being a good waiter takes interpersonal skills and you shouldn't have too much trouble getting a sales gig given that skill you likely have.
Hang in there, brother. Keep your head up!
I would also suggest sales, maybe financial sales. Since you wrote on WSO, im not sure if you just want the advice of the finance professionals on here for general life advice, or if you are leaning towards finance. Here is a couple quick hitters that I would advice to you.
-you are going through hard times, so I'm sure you are hungry, and money is most definitely a factor. With your GPA, medical school, and any good or decent MBA or masters program is out of the question. Fuck em, you don't need them to make money, so just consider that door closed and move on.
-traditional "entry level programs" are most likely out of the question.
-You would be surprised how many firms just want you to have one year of work/corporate/business formal experience, and voila, you are now qualified for much more jobs since they dont necessarily consider you fresh out of school.
-PWM and internal wholesalers are a good fund are realistic choices. You can take the series 63 without working at a company, and that would open the door for you.
-after you get a solid job that isn't being a waiter, the CFA route could help as well.
God Bless!!
Kill the GMAT. Get into an MSF for a GPA reset. Break into finance and then target MBA down the line. Your premed background will help you in pharma M&A. God speed.
you didn't fail at life. had a buddy lose both parents in college as well, it's an unbelievably hard experience that very few will experience at such a young age. life is more than your job, your income, and your title. you helped your family through a tough time, no need to hang your head low.
since you didn't specifically mention you want to do finance, I'll assume you aren't sold on that notion. if you want to enter the medical field, I'd network with people from your UG to get their thoughts. would it make sense to audit some classes over again while you work as a scribe at a hospital? would it make sense to get EMT certified while you apply for MCAT? I agree that traditional med school is out of the question given your GPA but if you're a diverse candidate and can get that GPA up somehow, perhaps some smaller schools may hear you out.
short of someone just giving you a chance based on your story, what you need is a re-brand and some confidence. figure out what you want to do first, your post was very vague on that front.
to add onto this...i know a decent # of people in the fields of medicine. since you did pre-med it means you've done a lot of pre-reqs, and if i were you i'd seriously look into nursing schools or even physical therapist (pharmacy may take too long). I think you can make 6-figures out of nursing schools a year or two out of the program with pretty decent lifestyle (better than say a surgeon) unless you work in ICU. RNs are in demand still and will continue to be in demand...
Rule of thumb in life. If there's a will, there is a way. If there is no motivation, then there is no drive.
Figure out what drives you at this point. Do not let the negativity consume your thoughts.
I would take things slowly and not rush to judgment.
"I failed miserably at life". No, you haven't. You're not 80. You're a young guy, and have a full life ahead of you. Think plainly, there is no permanence to failure. It is a mere state of mind. Get on Simple Habit. You will have a much more success-oriented mindset. Clean your outlook before you take any career action. Otherwise you won't give the full 100% to the job hunt, always saying to yourself: "Why should I even bother? It won't work anyway. I'm a failure." Bullshit. When you have the "success" mentality going the world becomes filled with endless possibilities, unlike the barren, dark world you lived in before...
If finance is your inclination, go for the self-paced financial modeling training. Your aim should be to show the contacts and employers that you're committed to this, and that you've got the skill to hit the ground running. You can land a healthcare internship that way and work your way up from that.
Also, don't feel bad about working as a waiter. We've all done it. It took me several years to land a full-time gig while dealing with massive student loans. Everybody's having shit time with employment. But I've always believed that the world is what we make of it... Get with the "success" mentality and be open to possibility. Everything falls into place, often in times and ways we least expect.
Nice post. +1 Silver Banana to you.
I think at this point the young man needs to find what is driving him. Nothing else no one can do at this point. I wish him all the best.
So you took a couple of fast-balls right in the sack, one after the other. School suffered yes, but you got yourself through the tragedy and somehow were able to take care of your siblings as well. You can't do things like that without grit. So take that grit and channel it towards finding your new path. One great way to reset is to take the GMAT, nail it and get yourself an MBA from the MBA business schools">M7. Another is to use your medical background right away and work in pharma sales or business development or sales/trading. All that to say this: you didn't fail at life, you just proved you have what it takes to live it. Good luck.
Well what do you want to do? You don't need good grades to break-in. Figure out what you would like to do and network your ass off to get into a MM/BB or convince a boutique to hire you.
If you go the boutique route, get your 2 years experience and lateral into a bigger shop if that is what is appealing for you.
Don't have any advice, but I hope you can break into banking.
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