__________________________________________________________________
The question “What do you want to be when you grow up?” sits in the mind of most teenagers. Next year I will either attend Harvard Law School or The University of California Santa Barbara to study how to become either a lawyer or a marine biologist. Marine Biologists work with the things happening in the water. That includes oceans, rivers, lakes, etc. They work to keep the water clean and make sure all the living things are healthy. Lawyers are the ones that defend/prosecute people in court. They work in the courts working on cases of all topics and making sure everything is just and fair for people.
I chose these two occupations because I have always been interested in the ocean as well as law. My uncle is a lawyer so I have learned a lot of things from him about what it’s like to work in this profession. I have always loved to swim and learn more about the different animals in the water. I am super interested in both of these careers. In order to become a marine biologist I would need 4-10 years in college ( 4 years for a bachelor's degree, an (optional) master’s degree or PhD). In order to become a lawyer I would need 7-8 years in college (4 years for a bachelor's degree;following that is law school for 3-4 years).
College is extremely expensive. The cost of Harvard Law in 2015-2016 was $57,200. The cost of Harvard Law in 2016-2017 was $59,550. The tuition percent increase is 4%. After going to school for four years, the cost would be $263691.43. The cost of University of California Santa Barbara in 2015-2016 was 24,708. The cost of University of California Santa Barbara in 2016-2017 was $26,682. The tuition percent increase is 8% After going to this school for 4 years the total amount of money I would be paying would be $192,254.87
Reference Data | |
| Beginning Balance | $263,691.43 |
| APR | 5 |
| Annual Salary | $74,880.00 |
| Annual Payment | $22,464.00 |
Year
|
Beginning Balance
|
Payment
|
Interest Rate
|
Interest Paid
|
Principal Paid
|
Ending Balance
|
1
|
$263,691.43
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$13,184.57
|
$9,279.43
|
$254,412.00
|
2
|
$254,412.00
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$12,720.60
|
$9,743.40
|
$244,668.60
|
3
|
$244,668.60
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$12,233.43
|
$10,230.57
|
$234,438.03
|
4
|
$234,438.03
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$11,721.90
|
$10,742.10
|
$223,695.93
|
5
|
$223,695.93
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$11,184.80
|
$11,279.20
|
$212,416.73
|
6
|
$212,416.73
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$10,620.84
|
$11,843.16
|
$200,573.56
|
7
|
$200,573.56
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$10,028.68
|
$12,435.32
|
$188,138.24
|
8
|
$188,138.24
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$9,406.91
|
$13,057.09
|
$175,081.15
|
9
|
$175,081.15
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$8,754.06
|
$13,709.94
|
$161,371.21
|
10
|
$161,371.21
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$8,068.56
|
$14,395.44
|
$146,975.77
|
11
|
$146,975.77
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$7,348.79
|
$15,115.21
|
$131,860.56
|
12
|
$131,860.56
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$6,593.03
|
$15,870.97
|
$115,989.59
|
13
|
$115,989.59
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$5,799.48
|
$16,664.52
|
$99,325.07
|
14
|
$99,325.07
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$4,966.25
|
$17,497.75
|
$81,827.32
|
15
|
$81,827.32
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$4,091.37
|
$18,372.63
|
$63,454.68
|
16
|
$63,454.68
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$3,172.73
|
$19,291.27
|
$44,163.42
|
17
|
$44,163.42
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$2,208.17
|
$20,255.83
|
$23,907.59
|
18
|
$23,907.59
|
$22,464.00
|
5.00%
|
$1,195.38
|
$21,268.62
|
$2,638.97
|
19
|
$2,638.97
|
$2,770.92
|
5.00%
|
$131.95
|
$2,638.97
|
$0.00
|
20
|
$0.00
|
$0.00
|
5.00%
|
$0.00
|
$0.00
|
$0.00
|
21
|
$0.00
|
$0.00
|
5.00%
|
$0.00
|
$0.00
|
$0.00
|
True Cost of College
|
$143,431.49
|
$407,122.92
|
| Reference Data | |
| Beginning Balance | $129,817.30 |
| APR | 5 |
| Annual Salary | $39,700.00 |
| Annual Payment | $11,910.00 |
| Year | Beginning Balance | Payment | Interest Rate | Interest Paid | Principal Paid | Ending Balance |
| 1 | $129,817.30 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $6,490.87 | $5,419.13 | $124,398.17 |
| 2 | $124,398.17 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $6,219.91 | $5,690.09 | $118,708.07 |
| 3 | $118,708.07 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $5,935.40 | $5,974.60 | $112,733.48 |
| 4 | $112,733.48 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $5,636.67 | $6,273.33 | $106,460.15 |
| 5 | $106,460.15 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $5,323.01 | $6,586.99 | $99,873.16 |
| 6 | $99,873.16 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $4,993.66 | $6,916.34 | $92,956.82 |
| 7 | $92,956.82 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $4,647.84 | $7,262.16 | $85,694.66 |
| 8 | $85,694.66 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $4,284.73 | $7,625.27 | $78,069.39 |
| 9 | $78,069.39 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $3,903.47 | $8,006.53 | $70,062.86 |
| 10 | $70,062.86 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $3,503.14 | $8,406.86 | $61,656.00 |
| 11 | $61,656.00 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $3,082.80 | $8,827.20 | $52,828.80 |
| 12 | $52,828.80 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $2,641.44 | $9,268.56 | $43,560.24 |
| 13 | $43,560.24 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $2,178.01 | $9,731.99 | $33,828.25 |
| 14 | $33,828.25 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $1,691.41 | $10,218.59 | $23,609.67 |
| 15 | $23,609.67 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $1,180.48 | $10,729.52 | $12,880.15 |
| 16 | $12,880.15 | $11,910.00 | 5.00% | $644.01 | $11,265.99 | $1,614.16 |
| 17 | $1,614.16 | $1,694.87 | 5.00% | $80.71 | $1,614.16 | $0.00 |
| 18 | $0.00 | $0.00 | 5.00% | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| 19 | $0.00 | $0.00 | 5.00% | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| 20 | $0.00 | $0.00 | 5.00% | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| 21 | $0.00 | $0.00 | 5.00% | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| True Cost of College | $62,437.57 | $192,254.87 |
M.Biology (2016)
For a career in marine biology, it would take me 17 years to pay off all of my student loans. The true cost of my college education would be $192,254.87. I would have paid $62,437.57 in interest. For a career in law, it would take me 19 years to pay off all my student loans. The true cost of my college education would be $264,926.04. I would have paid $143,431.49 in interest (see the charts above).
For a career in marine biology, the salary ranges. The minimum salary is $39,700 the max is $124,680 and the median is $70,800. For a career as a lawyer the minimum salary is $74,880 the max is $187,199 and the median is $130,880. By the time I retire, if I am to go into marine biology, I would make $3,874,552. If I go into law, I would make $6,512,444. For marine biology, I would be paying my student loans back one year less than if I went into law but I would be paying more interest. Right now there are 1,300,705 lawyers in the U.S. and only 18,523 marine biologists. The outlook rate is going up for both with lawyers leading with a 10% increase rate and marine biology having a 7% increase.
| Reference Data | |
| Entry-level Salary | $74,880 |
| Mid-level Salary | $130,880 |
| Senior-level Salary | $187,199 |
| Annual Raise (%) | 3.00% |
Career Level
|
# of Working Year
|
Year
|
Annual Salary
|
Entry
|
1
|
2021
|
$39,760
|
Entry
|
2
|
2022
|
$39,772
|
Entry
|
3
|
2023
|
$39,783
|
Entry
|
4
|
2024
|
$39,795=
|
Entry
|
5
|
2025
|
$39,807
|
Mid
|
6
|
2026
|
$71,013
|
Mid
|
7
|
2027
|
$71,034
|
Mid
|
8
|
2028
|
$71,055
|
Mid
|
9
|
2029
|
$71,077
|
Mid
|
10
|
2030
|
$71,098
|
Mid
|
11
|
2031
|
$71,119
|
Mid
|
12
|
2032
|
$71,141
|
Mid
|
13
|
2033
|
$71,162
|
Mid
|
14
|
2034
|
$71,183
|
Mid
|
15
|
2035
|
$71,205
|
Mid
|
16
|
2036
|
$71,226
|
Mid
|
17
|
2037
|
$71,247
|
Mid
|
18
|
2038
|
$71,269
|
Mid
|
19
|
2039
|
$71,290
|
Mid
|
20
|
2040
|
$71,312
|
Mid
|
21
|
2041
|
$71,333
|
Mid
|
22
|
2042
|
$71,354
|
Mid
|
23
|
2043
|
$71,376
|
Mid
|
24
|
2044
|
$71,397
|
Mid
|
25
|
2045
|
$71,419
|
Mid
|
26
|
2046
|
$71,440
|
Mid
|
27
|
2047
|
$71,461
|
Mid
|
28
|
2048
|
$71,483
|
Mid
|
29
|
2049
|
$71,504
|
Mid
|
30
|
2050
|
$71,526
|
Senior
|
31
|
2051
|
$125,996
|
Senior
|
32
|
2052
|
$126,034
|
Senior
|
33
|
2053
|
$126,071
|
Senior
|
34
|
2054
|
$126,109
|
Senior
|
35
|
2055
|
$126,147
|
Senior
|
36
|
2056
|
$126,185
|
Senior
|
37
|
2057
|
$126,223
|
Senior
|
38
|
2058
|
$126,261
|
Senior
|
39
|
2059
|
$126,299
|
Senior
|
40
|
2060
|
$126,336
|
Senior
|
41
|
2061
|
$126,374
|
Senior
|
42
|
2062
|
$126,412
|
Senior
|
43
|
2063
|
$126,450
|
Senior
|
44
|
2064
|
$126,488
|
Senior
|
45
|
2065
|
$126,526
|
Total Lifetime earnings
|
$3,874,552
|
M. Biology (2016)
| Reference Data | |
| Entry-level Salary | $39,700 |
| Mid-level Salary | $70,800 |
| Senior-level Salary | $124,680 |
| Annual Raise (%) | 3.00% |
Career Level
|
# of Working Year
|
Year
|
Annual Salary
|
Entry
|
1
|
2021
|
$74,992
|
Entry
|
2
|
2022
|
$75,015
|
Entry
|
3
|
2023
|
$75,037
|
Entry
|
4
|
2024
|
$75,060
|
Entry
|
5
|
2025
|
$75,082
|
Mid
|
6
|
2026
|
$131,273
|
Mid
|
7
|
2027
|
$131,313
|
Mid
|
8
|
2028
|
$131,352
|
Mid
|
9
|
2029
|
$131,391
|
Mid
|
10
|
2030
|
$131,431
|
Mid
|
11
|
2031
|
$131,470
|
Mid
|
12
|
2032
|
$131,510
|
Mid
|
13
|
2033
|
$131,549
|
Mid
|
14
|
2034
|
$131,589
|
Mid
|
15
|
2035
|
$131,628
|
Mid
|
16
|
2036
|
$131,668
|
Mid
|
17
|
2037
|
$131,707
|
Mid
|
18
|
2038
|
$131,747
|
Mid
|
19
|
2039
|
$131,786
|
Mid
|
20
|
2040
|
$131,826
|
Mid
|
21
|
2041
|
$131,865
|
Mid
|
22
|
2042
|
$131,905
|
Mid
|
23
|
2043
|
$131,944
|
Mid
|
24
|
2044
|
$131,984
|
Mid
|
25
|
2045
|
$132,023
|
Mid
|
26
|
2046
|
$132,063
|
Mid
|
27
|
2047
|
$132,103
|
Mid
|
28
|
2048
|
$132,142
|
Mid
|
29
|
2049
|
$132,182
|
Mid
|
30
|
2050
|
$132,222
|
Senior
|
31
|
2051
|
$189,175
|
Senior
|
32
|
2052
|
$189,231
|
Senior
|
33
|
2053
|
$189,288
|
Senior
|
34
|
2054
|
$189,345
|
Senior
|
35
|
2055
|
$189,402
|
Senior
|
36
|
2056
|
$189,459
|
Senior
|
37
|
2057
|
$189,515
|
Senior
|
38
|
2058
|
$189,572
|
Senior
|
39
|
2059
|
$189,629
|
Senior
|
40
|
2060
|
$189,686
|
Senior
|
41
|
2061
|
$189,743
|
Senior
|
42
|
2062
|
$189,800
|
Senior
|
43
|
2063
|
$189,857
|
Senior
|
44
|
2064
|
$189,914
|
Senior
|
45
|
2065
|
$189,971
|
Total Lifetime earnings
|
$6,512,444
|
Law (2016)
 |
| Supply and Demand MB (2016) |
 |
| Supply and Demand Law (2016) |
I would be in the law industry and the science industry. The future outlook for lawyers is about 10% (projected to grow 6% by 2024). The future outlook for marine biologists is 7% (projected to grow 1.3% each year from 2010-2020). Currently, there is a 0.7% population change in the U.S. Lawyers continue to be needed so there isn’t a drop in that field. The demand for marine biologists has been increasing lately especially for female marine biologists since there are not that many female scientists out there currently. There is an option for both careers for advanced degrees. For law, once you obtain a bachelor’s degree at the 4-year college, you move on to law school and that can range from 3-4 extra years. For marine biology, after the bachelor’s, you can get a PhD or a master’s degree.
Some benefits from these two jobs are:
-Great job
-Something I am super passionate about
-Lots of money
-Great job outlook
-Prestigious colleges
I have decided that it would be most beneficial for me to become a lawyer. Some assumptions I made were that I would get into the school of my choice, get into the law program since it is very competitive, and that I would be able to get a job right out of college. When looking at lawyer, I figured that the mastery I would gain throughout my many years of schooling would make getting the job so much more satisfying because it opens a lot of doors to work with different people on different cases that I am passionate and care a lot about. I realized that a dollar today is worth more tomorrow because the interest rates for paying back students loans changed the price so quickly in just a matter of days. Interest is something that came into play a lot with this project. Based on my graphs, I really had to think about which choice I would be willing to pay for. Another thing that I realized was that Throughout this job search, I realized I really a passionate about a lot of things and the ocean is just one of them and by being a lawyer, I would be able to work on cases for all of the things I am interested in. Interest rates change the price you have to pay back very drastically. College is also extremely expensive but student loans help out with that even though they are a pain to pay back.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Sources:
American Bar Association. "Briefs: Lawyer Demographics, Detroit ADR." Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation Alt High Cost Litig 4.11 (1986): 6-7. American Bar Association, 2015. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.
Sources:
American Bar Association. "Briefs: Lawyer Demographics, Detroit ADR." Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation Alt High Cost Litig 4.11 (1986): 6-7. American Bar Association, 2015. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.
Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Summary." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 17 Dec. 2015. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.
"Careers in Marine Biology." - SWFSC. Southwest Fisheries Science Center, 6 Nov. 2015. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.
"Cost of Attendance." - UCSB Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships. University of California, 2015. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.
@exciteonlineedu. "How to Become A Lawyer, Becoming A Lawyer." Excite Education. Mindspark, 2001. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.
"How to Become a Marine Biologist." How to Become a Marine Biologist. N.p., 2016. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.
Mahuron, Sara. "Is It Hard to Find a Job as a Marine Biologist?" Our Everyday Life. StudioD, 2016. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.
"How to Become a Marine Biologist." How to Become a Marine Biologist. N.p., 2016. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.
Mahuron, Sara. "Is It Hard to Find a Job as a Marine Biologist?" Our Everyday Life. StudioD, 2016. Web. 27 Sept. 2016.
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