Tryign to find the right career?

Question

A few questions so this might be somewhat of a read:

I am a 23 year old History major upon the eve of graduation. I absolutely love studying history, society, civilization, politics, economics, education, and class systems. I am a very people oriented person. To date, I have worked at Blockbuster as a Store Manager, Chili’s as a QA/Expo and Shift Manager, and I am thinking of taking a job at GameStop as an Assistant Manager (just for info on my resume). I have a 3.4 GPA, and I will be completing with approx a 3.6.

I believe my interests are that I love researching, working on realistic and practical topics, working alongside groups and people of like and different mind, engaging in intellectual and challenging tasks, and doing scholarly work.

I have been considering careers in Law (lawyer, paralegal), nursing (returning to school) education (kindergarten), politics (political scientist) and Public History. I don’t really know where I should go, and I have very little experience in all of these. The paralegal field is something that I would enjoy. I love researching things and fact finding missions. Research papers for my courses were always an enjoyable task.

I’m also considering joining my schools honor society and the historical society in order to buffer my CV/Resume. I am considering graduate studies, and furthering my education if necessary.

What I don’t want to do is be stuck in a “chained” job such as Blockbuster or Chili’s. I don’t want to work in retail or food service. I want to utilize my degree and research skills into a job that can lead to meaning. I don’t want an “easy” job, and I want something that provides a challenge. I want to stay away from businesses that utilize me for marketing or sales.

I don’t want to set the world on fire with earning money, just something modest to provide for a family and a few books here and there. I don’t want to change the world, just contribute to society.

I need opinions and information about the above criteria to make an informed decision and give me a direction on where to go.

Answer 1

Do not waste your time or money on paralegal school.  If you want to be a paralegal, get a job in a law office and ask them to give you some paralegal tasks.  There is nothing practical that you are going to learn in paralegal school that you won't get from working for 1 month in a law firm.  Plus, being a paralegal is extremely tedious and not mentally challenging.  Attorneys do the good research and paralegals put together papers and discovery responses.