Sorry I just have to say...
"I don't mean to be a pessimist, but I'm going to be very honest with you. Right now, in the US, the economy is horrendous"
This is a very good point, the problem is global. In the UK unemployment in the youth is higher than ever before. This is what makes education by far the most important decision in a young persons life. The UK and USA are very similar and the facts I have linked to below make me so angry with Watchtower and its underhanded lies about higher education.
Average UK graduate salary is £25,000 ($41000) at age 21!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/8504999.
Uk graduates earn on average £12,000 ($19,500) more than non graduates of same age.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-12983928
The state gains ten times what it puts into higher education as it is so economically beneficial to all.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-18353539
" I have a college degree and it's been difficult finding a job."
This is a huge misconception, with the greatest respect...if you are finding it hard, how hard do you think it is for people with no higher education or specalised knowledge/training. JW's are trying to survive on window cleaning wages, some with families. at some point their health will give out. Will the WT start supporting them? Even work such as joinery and plumbing etc, all very useful to the society and its property portfolio. These jobs do not keep people afloat, you are self employed in a recession and again if your health takes a hit, your family and your home is sunk. Obviously there are degress with risks. But still, it is statistically and logially the smarter decision. I have so much respect for the person digging the hole in the road, fixing pipes under the floors, cleaning the windows in the wind...... but I want more for my family and children. I want them to be in a happy secure profession they enjoy. Not once has the Watchtower ever suggested a good degree in medicine or law or dentistry. You could easily work part time, have a significant wage and still do WT activity. So why dont they? They want worker ants for their business and they dont want you getting smart.
But above all, the point I am making is that college/university is important. Besides a degree is 3 years, the same length of time as a course in plumbing, joinery, brick laying etc etc... So to pretend it is more of a comitment than a tech college is a lie. As the fantastic comedian Louis CK says "Tech college.... where dreams are narrowed down!"
"The medical profession is very "iffy" right now. Many doctors and med students fear that they will not make the same amount of money once Obamacare takes effect. Obviously, you seem intelligent and drawn to the sciences. Have you considered a career in research?"
My I ask in what way id healthcare "iffy" ? Medicine pays enough so you can focuson your patients and not your phone bill. But people dont choose medicine for the money. If you are smart enough to do medicine, you are smart enough to study economics and make real money looking after hedge funds of super rich companies such as Watchtower! It is a huge misconception that medicine is about money. Either way, it pays fantastically.
In the UK we get paid less than the USA but it is sinificantly more than a plumber!
UK: First two years on the job as a Jnr Doctor approx £30,000 (with over time) approx $50,000
Doctor £70,000 or $113,000
Consultant £100,000 or $162,000
http://www.nhscareers.nhs.uk/explore-by-career/doctors/pay-for-doctors/
USA: The doctors in the USA are doing just fine too http://mdsalaries.blogspot.co.uk/
As for obamacare, dont believe the hype. In the UK we have a full free healthcare system (many ignorant americans call it communist as they struggle to pay for their healthcare ) and doctors get paid plenty as you can see above. Also bare in mind these are all wages if you work for the countries health system. You can go private and make a lot , lot, more !
So medicine is never going to be a bad option or "iffy" with the greatest respect. I have no doubt that every medical student and doctor is content with the future ahead, believe me the effort it takes to get to be a doctor is significant enough, that feeling "iffy" is enough to stop you dong it.
As for research... this is a wonderful thing to do for mankind. But it is a difficult way to survive with a family, paticularly financially. You spend your life chasing research grants. It is a scary existance. I am a medical inventor as well as a medical student. My research is due to begin this year for my medical invention. I am surrounded by researchers that we have hired for the hospital trials. It is a scary existance ! But their motives are good. If you get lucky and get into an institution you can do ok, but mostly, its moving from university, to univeristy or hospital to hospital... chasing research funding.
For me it would still be far better than window cleaning etc. But each to their own.
Dariokehl , I am sincerely sorry to hear you are struggling to find work, so many people are now. May I ask what degree you did? I mean no offence but, a degree by itself is not enough, though it is an advantage. It is important to choose the right one, I'm sure you agree. For example the rate of employment with a medical degree is over 99% and the few that dont are people going abroad.
