I’m 20 right now studying engineering, and I’m constantly thinking about how to make money. I come from a financial somewhat struggling background, and it feels like my parents are lowkey struggling (still can get food tho, just not stable). So, I often worry that if I only think and take action on this topic when I graduate, if suddenly there’s any medical urgency or emergency situations where need a whole lot of money. How can I handle it if I’m earning that low salary as a fresh grad.
All my peers around me just seems enjoying and chilling, but ik that my family is waiting for me. So, it triggers me to take action asap. Not only focus in my academics, but also do smtg scalable at my free time. Part time jobs are cool but they don’t get me anywhere far.
I love to further study for masters overseas in the future, and dive deep on a topic. To achieve that, I think I need to solve this responsibility first some way.
So I hope to get some advice from yall. Do you guys worry these in the past? Am I worrying too early?
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It’s not too early to plan for your future but obsessing over money isn’t going to help you. Do you feel responsible for providing money for your parents? If grad school is truly what you aspire to, you’d probably be best served right now by making sure you are getting good grades, staying active with your professors and their department, and exploring opportunities for scholarships. The goal would be to get to grad school with as many grants and scholarships as possible.
As a student, the single greatest concern you should have right now is finishing your degree with as good of grades as possible, limiting student debt, and trying to get internships.
All other concerns are secondary. You need to focus on maximizing your earning potential and job security, and nothing else.
If you are worried about finances, your masters is the last thing you should be considering. That is a sure fire way to push your earning date further out, all for a negligible increase in pay if at all. Get your bachelors, find a job in a good industry, and get to work.
As for the emergency situation you mentioned: Once you graduate and start working, you continue to live like a student for 1-2 years and save every penny you can to build a good size emergency fund. Likely $10-20k. You put this money behind a glass case with the label “Break in case of emergency”, then forget about it only to even look at it if you have a major emergency. That’s how you “self insure” against unplanned emergencies. You also have adequate traditional insurance in all areas of life.
Hey! 35+ here, coming from extreme poverty in eastern europe (not exaggerating, was living with no tap water and wooden stove in an apartment, buying new shoes was a planned expense with 2 month saving).
For me, going for a masters and PhD in EU was the game changer. Education was for free for me. PhDs in Europe are paid and salary is well above average. After you enter a niche but well paid job market and once you land a job in a multinational, your life becomes very pleasant.
Stick to technical professions, but no IT. Pharma, chemistry, physics are all door-opener diplomas. Avoid at any cost humanitarian junk.
> and it feels like my parents are lowkey struggling (still can get food tho, just not stable).
Help your parents — ain’t nothin wrong with that. But if you want to go big, you have to leave them behind and move forward. Hopefully you can make it work before long and help them sooner rather than later.
Also, why a Master’s? are you trying to go into an industry that requires a graduate degree?