Now that we’re a year into distance learning, we’ve all learned something about ourselves: You either love it or hate it. Few students seem to fall in the middle.
Distance learning, or online learning, appeals to some students for fairly obvious reasons: Introverts like it, pajama lovers like it, and those who enjoy a bit more sleep in the mornings like it. You might also appreciate online learning if traffic stresses you out, or if you’re a homebody type in general. Maybe you just really love attending classes with your cat on your lap.
On the other hand, we know that some students have not enjoyed their distance learning experience. Extroverts crave more social interaction, and some teens simply feel depressed and “stuck” at home. Those who enjoy the structure of a morning routine can still do so, but it just isn’t the same at home. And for some, technology hang-ups and interrupting family members have created stress at times.
Whether you love online learning or detest it, we can all agree that the past year has been a time of growth and introspection. Considering the predictions that many jobs will continue to be performed from a distance well into the future, online learning might have offered you a taste of the future job market. However you feel about online learning will probably carry over into your career in the future.
So, this might give you something to consider. Do you prefer a job with greater remote-work potential, or would you rather pursue a career that offers more “on site” experience? This consideration might become part of your overall career plan for the future.
For those of you who love distance learning, jobs with greater location flexibility include those in technology, marketing, computer, management, administrative, financial, and engineering fields.
Those of you who prefer site-based careers might wish to focus on healthcare, manufacturing, construction, retail, food, and others that require a physical presence of workers in order to operate.
Of course, these rules are not absolute. But if the possibility of remote work (or the promise that you’ll never have to work remotely) is important to you, it doesn’t hurt to keep that in mind as you consider future college majors and careers.