Grad School?

post by eggman · 2012-02-27T11:49:18.743Z · LW · GW · Legacy · 0 comments

**Previous article:** [Which college major?](http://lesswrong.com/lw/9tp/which_college_major)

Building on my last post, I've concluded to pursue either a major or a double major in one or two of the following areas for my undergraduate degree:

1. Economics; 2. Computer Science; 3. Cognitive Science/Psychology/Behavioural Neuroscience; 4. Mathematics/Statistcs; 5. Biotechonology; 6. Engineering. Engineering would be another 5 years for me and I don't know what the job prospects are like. Is it worth it? I may also possibly do a minor in philosphy/mathematics/physics.

 

Grad school appeals to me. Current considerations are in [neuroeconomics](http://www.neuroeconomicstudies.org/) or some other neuroscience, economics, or some hard science (still undecided). The only graduate degree in the humanities I would pursue would be in Philosophy or in Philosophy of Science. Professional programs that I might consider going into are medicine (least likely), M.B.A., Law, healthcare (e.g., physiotherapy/OT; nursing practitioner, etc.), teaching (preferred but unlikely).

Foreseeable problems with grad work:

1) It takes a long time to publish in peer-reviewed journals in academia Instead, if I really turn out to be some sort of prodigy, I will have a greater intellectual and ethical impact by just becoming a better rationalist and publishing well-written and well-researched blog posts, like SIAI, FHI, and Overcoming Bias do. And then making some fat cash on the side and donating it to the most effective causes. Which career for me would lead to this I don't know.

2) [80,000 hours](http://80000hours.org/blog) pointed out in one blog post (I forget which one) that grad or professional schooling can be more time/effort/work than it's worth. This would be especially true if I'm saddled with debt and cannot find employment with high renumeration.

3) The potential jobs that I would pursue could be outsourced, or have humans being replaced by robots/computers. This would make all that extra school a waste of time, obviously.

4) Having a graduate degree somehow makes my resume look less attractive than just having an undergrad. I don't understand the rationale behind this phenomenon, but I've heard it exists in some fields.

Do you have any recommendations/advice? Specifically:

What is a waste of time? What is a great use of my time?

What kinds of university programs (in which countries) will play me for a sucker?

Which professional fields aren't worth pursuing, considering that the jobs will be lost to computers/robots inside of 20 years?

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