A Crisis of Quantum States

There are few things I love doing more than putting together a class schedule.  And I have been doing that a lot this past week, but its made me realize that I need to figure out what the hell I am going to do with my life as far as school is concerned.

I can take both Calculus II and Physics I this summer which would put me back on track for both those subjects.  It would be a bitch of a summer, with two classes (9 Cr), being in class from 10:00-12:30 & 6:30-9:00 Mondays through Thursdays.  I can pull it off, but I wont be having much fun.

Which brings me to my choices....

Primus:  The Ivory Tower of Academia

I figured out a schedule that will allow me to get a double major in Chemistry and Physics.  I graduate in Spring of 2015, and class-wise I'm not taking more than 16 credits a semester at most.  This makes me a superstar for going to Grad school for a PhD in Astrophysics/Cosmochemistry.  Now, there is no guarantee that I will even get in to Grad school, but I would still walk out with two Bachelors degrees.  Also, if there is no Grad school, then no one gets to call me Dr. Kuzava.  I stay in school for the next 10 years or so and avoid the real world for as long as I can, but I get to study something I love.  Debt is certainly racked up, but as is my plan, I will be dead of old age before I even get to the principle on my loans.  I beat the system that way.

Secundus: The Off-White Tower of Academia

I stick with my current plan of getting a B.S in Chemistry with a double minor in Physics & Applied Mathematics.  Still graduate in the Spring of 2015.  Still an excellent candidate for Grad school, just with fewer Physics classes, and more Math classes.  Everything else is about the same.

Tertius: The Real World

I could, if I wanted, just get the B.S. in Chemistry but with a concentration in Chemical Education.  I can graduate in two years (Spring of 2014) with a lot less debt, and a reduced class load.  There are 3-4 Chemistry classes I don't have to take (Research oriented) if I take this concentration.  I graduate a lot earlier, I have a lot less debt, I can get other funding since I'm on a teacher track, and I would re-join the rest of the world and get a job.  Teaching High School Chemistry.  On the down side, I give up the dream of the PhD.


I have about two months to figure this out.  Because if I take the teacher track I have to start my MSED (Math/Science Education) classes in the fall.

I am really in a funk about this whole thing.