The rest of my life?, What do i do now? Options

[cnelson]

Hey guys, for any of you who have seen be around the forums, probably know that i am 18 year old senior in high school. The last couple of months I've been weighing my options heavily about what to do for college. For the first month or so I really only had like two ideas.

The first was go to community college for two years figure out what i wanted to do, or go to Rutgers and get a degree in business management. I was also considering maybe becoming a teacher. I am an avid golfer and have been playing now for about 3 years, I have also been on varsity for school for the past 3 years. I am not as great as some players my age but i can hold my own. Thats when i was looking one day and found a couple interesting schools.

I found, PGCC (Professional Golfers Career College) and SDGA (San Diego Golf Academy) . Now don't jump to any concussions. These are not school that claim they will turn me into a professional golfer. I would get an associates degree in Professional Golf Management. I have a passion for golf that i don't believe most people will ever share with me. Thats what made me so interested in these two schools.

Over Dec. I went and visited both campus's that they have in South Carolina. One is in Myrtle Beach (SDGA) and the other in Hilton Head (PGCC). I quickly did not like Professional Golfer's Career College, however i felt differently about SDGA. It seemed like a great school, very small class's but everything else seemed really good. I got accepted on the spot to both schools just waiting for my letters in the mail.

I just don't know if this is the path that i should peruse. I do have a love for golf and would love working in the industry. However I live in NJ and its not like i could come home every weekend to visit. I have a girlfriend who i've been with for about a year and half, I have two best friends that i've known for 14 years. I have my parents here. Theres just a lot of things that are in the back of my mind. There are some days that i feel strongly about going to school there and other days that seem like it wouldn't be a good idea.

Some of you probably don't know, but the amount of jobs in the golf industry is very good and the school has a 85 to 95% job placement rating. She showed me the website that the students get access to before and after they graduate and it lists all the jobs, by state. I saw a whole bunch in NJ. I would like to become either an Asst. Pro, or a Head Pro. at a course. (Thats someone who you would go and take lesson's from) Asst. Pro's start around 35,000$ to 45,000$ and once your a head pro, if you're working at a good country club you could be making anywhere from 60k to a 6 figure salary.

But I still have no idea what i should.. If anyone has any opinions i'd great appreciate them. Thanks.

[GriffGirl]

What degree would you get from SDGA? I'm quite a bit older than you so I've got experience in the job market and can maybe offer some insight.

It looks to me like what you're interested in is business management - specifically, you'd like to apply business mgmt. in the golf industry. There are a NUMBER of ways you can do this - by working for a club, or a manufacturer of golf equipment (like Ping or Calloway, someone the specifically only does golf, not like Nike), there's publishing... etc. There's lots of stuff out there that has to do with golf, it's a HUGE industry and yes, you're right - a HUGE money maker.

If I were your parent or someone else to you that had a vested interest in your career persuits, I would advise STRONGLY that you persue (not PERUSE - that means to browse!) a degree in business management at Rutgers. It will give you a much broader scope of business and management that can be applied in any number of industries. If you limit yourself to something as specific as SDGA, I think you will not only limit your career potential, you will limit your salary potential. An education from a lesser-known very specific place like this will totally brand you. They may know golf, but how well do they know BUSINESS? A Rutger's degree will get you in WAY more doors than this SDGA place.

Lastly, if your HS GPA is less than stellar and you're concerned about being admitted to Rutgers, or if your SATs suck (mine sure as hell did, I actually got a 950 but still got into NYU and Fordham, among a few others), go to community college your first 2 years. In the real world, no one really gives a sh*t where you spent your first 2 years of college. Get your cores out of the way, (it's WAY less expensive this route too), get good grades and transfer to Rutgers for your major. Be sure you stay in touch w/Rutgers along the way though so you meet all the transfer requirements and don't have to repeat classes. And if you REALLY want to rake in a lot and open up your career options even more, continue on for an MBA. It is hands-down among the best ways to maintain a competitive edge in business management. And it's a great way to secure that 6-figure salary. 30-45k is a nice starting salary, but it won't go far, especially on the east coast, and you don't want to cap out at 60 because you don't have the accreditation. It'll be worth it in the long run!