For college students today, there is a fine line as we try to navigate between our passions and marketable skills. Every academic decision we make leads us down a new path with different opportunities. However, sometimes it's hard to see what those opportunities can include, especially in a growing world where market shifts mean less available jobs.

As a result, we try to compromise by taking classes and changing majors to something that maybe we don’t love, but will give us a comfortable life. I’ve known a few people who have thought that making money exceeds everything else. There’s nothing wrong with wanting a comfortable and secure lifestyle, but there is something to be said about having a job that makes you want to wake up in the morning-- a job that leaves you feeling energetic rather than exhausted-- a job that doesn’t seem like work.

My goal is to do something that cultivates my curiosity and excites me, whether it makes me money or not. In my opinion, curiosity is one of the best traits a person can have since it is the basis for passion and hobbies. Without curiosity there wouldn’t be creativity or learning of any kind-- curiosity is an overall driving factor. I’ve always grown up with the idea that liking your career will give you greater incentive to work harder and make a name for yourself.

I’m a double major in biology and English, yet whenever people hear that I’m pursuing English at all they do a double take and ask what could come from that. It’s disheartening to think that people don’t believe a degree in English can give you much satisfaction or go farther than just teaching. However, there are so many possibilities for an English major and a lot of other humanities majors. Not everyone wants to go down the pre-med/health track or become a future investment banker or engineer. As long as you’re interested in the field, then whatever the job or hobby, it’s already worth it. This is the decision we have to make in college as we choose the road(s) to our futures: a life filled with experiences and passion or a life dictated by our earning potential.

Working two unpaid internships over the summer has been tough, especially as I see a lot of friends who have paid jobs. Despite this, I’m gaining experiences and insights into both the biology and English fields, which will help me in the future to land paid internships and fellowships.

The takeaway? A lot can be gained from any kind of experience.