My peers look down on me. At least that’s how it can feel most of the time.
I am pursuing a degree in advertising—not anything related to science, but that doesn’t make me any less intelligent than my peers, and it definitely doesn’t make me any less ambitious or driven.
Complete transparency? I was convinced that I wanted to be a doctor for most of my life. It’s what I was fed when I was growing up. “You’re smart, so you should go to medical school, become an engineer, maybe even a judge!” I was hardwired to think that being categorized as a “smart kid,” I should be taking the STEM route for a career, that that’s just what I was supposed to do. Since, then, I’ve come to really appreciate the intelligence required to pursue a career that taps into your right brain functionalities (creativity, intuition, spacial reasoning, holistic thinking).
All my life, I’ve known that I’m a creative soul. I grew up in a room with four walls, each a different color: purple, blue, pink, and green. Creativity, vibrance, and childhood wonder were highly present, so it is no surprise that I grew up to value poetry, romance, love, music, and nature. It’s only fitting that I chose to pursue a career in the communications field.
Whether it be public relations, advertising, radio, television and film, or journalism, the main preface in the communications field is to connect with human society. Because of this, it can be disheartening when you hear fellow students insult the career you love, diminishing its importance and impact solely because it isn’t science or math. The reality is that communication makes the world go round, there is no society where doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc. can work efficiently without communication. It brings every surface of the job market together, and in my opinion, that is extremely powerful.
It isn’t the greatest feeling when colleagues and equals blatantly disrespect you. It’s sad. But it’s also important to note that, although it’s okay when not everyone respects your career, it is never okay to accept disrespectful treatment. Keep your head up and move forward, because at the end of the day, it is your life, and no one should have that much of an opinion on what you do with it.