MBA Admissions Consultant
Joined: 26 Dec 2008
Posts: 2457
Given Kudos: 2
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Re: Advise needed!
[#permalink]
06 May 2010, 11:04
It's fine to plan ahead a little, but avoid living in the future.
Take it a step at a time.
3-5 years time is an ETERNITY for someone who is still in college. You will change more than you anticipate and in ways you won't expect. In 3-5 years' time, anything can happen - you may or will experience something that may change your career priorities forever -- something happens to you or you experience something that will inspire you to become a doctor (so you go back to med school). You get a girl pregnant, and you manage your career around your impending role as a father. Or it can simply be a change of heart after being a few years in the real world for the first time, and realizing what it is you really want isn't what you thought you wanted when you were in college.
Forget about what will look good post-MBA -- because that's really like 5 steps ahead.
Focus on what's immediately in front of you. Getting through school - it's your present tense, don't take it for granted and go into "cruise control" because if you do, you won't really get the most out of what you're doing right now.
And then beyond that, with the jobs, take the one that you feel in your gut you're a better fit for based on your personality, your interests, and the kinds of people you want to work with and learn from - that is entirely a subjective thing, but at the same time choosing the one that is the best fit for your individual needs is what will allow you to make the most out of your work experience - again, some will choose the software job, others will choose the consulting job - and either will likely end up being a valuable experience for them assuming they chose the one they felt was the best personal/individual fit for them.
Your career path and life isn't "plug and play" where you're following some predetermined script you set for yourself. The more plug and play it is, the less dynamic you will be.
Again, take stuff a step at a time.