Fish Posted October 24, 2016 Share Posted October 24, 2016 Life is full of events where you will say to yourself - "If only I had chosen THIS path." I believe there are no wrong decisions. There are times when you might face a point where you question the path, but you'll find that as soon as that predicament comes up, something will change where you suddenly find that life aligns and everything is good. The only advice I can offer is try not to fear making a decision. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soccerguy315 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 I think you are 100% correct that you would be setting yourself back on the career side by not taking the internship. What you have to decide, is whether or not that setback is worth it to you. Are you looking at the career track where you go to work for 2 years, then go back to school for an MBA? If so, the setback might not be that great. However, if the first job will be a 5-10+ year job, and the Big 4 offers more money each year for 5-10 years, you are looking at a decision that comes with a 6 figure dollar amount that you are likely giving up by marching drum corps. I wouldn't count on the drum corps experience getting you anywhere in the business world. I'm sure once you get into the interviews and into the workforce, you will be able to leverage drum corps skills, but having drum corps on your resume is not going to open similar doors to having a big 4 internship on your resume, not even close. So you applied for an internship, went through the process, got the offer, and don't know whether to accept it? These are things you should have thought through Before you applied for the internship. Harsh? Perhaps. But words you need to hear. eh... disagree. Before you have the offer, the question about which to do is only hypothetical. If you don't have a choice of 2 options, then your decision is easy :) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoveKathyG Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 "I wish I had spent more time on my career," said no one on their death bed ever. : ) 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ibexpercussion Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 This is the last time you can march. You can do life, and be an adult the rest of your time here on Earth. I'd do the age-out year, but that's just my opinion. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fran Haring Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 My opinion... pursue the internship. Drum corps is a cool thing... but it does not pay the bills. Honestly... as much as I have enjoyed being involved in drum corps, there are times when I've regretted not putting the "real world" first on the priority list. If I had to do it over again, corps would have been placed on the back burner on several occasions. Again, just my opinion. Obviously not shared by many others here. LOL 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fran Haring Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 This is the last time you can march. You can do life, and be an adult the rest of your time here on Earth. I'd do the age-out year, but that's just my opinion.In DCI, yes.I spent my age-out year (1979...the Stone Age...LOL) with a DCA corps, after an opportunity to be with a DCI corps (Blue Stars) fell through. Two years earlier, I joined that DCA corps for 1977 after my plan to join the Garfield Cadets was derailed by my parents insisting that I needed to work that summer and not go on tour. LOL It would have been so cool to march with the Cadets and make DCI Finals that summer... but the corps with whom I ended up marching (DCA's Long Island Sunrisers) won the DCA championship that summer, and again in 1978 and '82 during my time there, so that eased the pain quite a bit. LOL I know DCA is not a viable option for many, if there are no corps within a reasonable distance...and yes, I am fully aware that DCI is the top level of drum corps and it's a great experience ... but I guess my point is, there is life after DCI if one chooses to pursue that option. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clutchtow Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 So, I am on the engineering side, but here's my experience. I auditioned for SCV going into my freshman year but didn't end up making the final cut at the call-back. The year after my freshman year I didn't reaudition do to other circumstances. The next summer I did an internship at a mid sized company (Silicon Labs) and now this next semester and summer I will be working for one of the big 3 tech companies. Here's my perspective, I will probably regret never doing one summer of drum corps, but at the same time, I still had an amazing time at Silicon Labs. You meet a lot of people and make a good number of friends, learn a ton, and have some pretty cool experiences, and get to do some impactful work. Plus you make good money, and it really does help propel your career early on. I can't speak for the drum corps experience, but an internship isn't just a corporate grind, it's also a unique experience in itself. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.Holland Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 (edited) I had the option to take an internship, or march my age out. I marched, I don't regret it. But I also work in entertainment. My point is, you only have so many years to march DCI. DCA is not the same, and does not provide the same experience. Sorry DCA friends, its just not. It is my experience that jobs will come and go. The average employment now, to raise your worth, changes every 2.5 years. I won't tell many people to march many years, but I will always recommend that they march at least their age out. Edited October 25, 2016 by C.Holland Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fran Haring Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 (edited) I had the option to take an internship, or march my age out. I marched, I don't regret it. But I also work in entertainment. My point is, you only have so many years to march DCI. DCA is not the same, and does not provide the same experience. Sorry DCA friends, its just not. I completely agree.. but there are times when "marching in drum corps" doesn't add any weight to a resume'. Maybe more times than we would care to think. My last years at Gannett/USA Today, late 1990s, I was in a management position. The company was implementing a new interviewing/hiring system which put nearly 100 percent emphasis on skills /experience needed for a specific position, and for the candidate to provide specific examples of that related experience. So... if I were to interview a candidate, seeing "I marched in a DCI finalist corps"... or heck, "I spent my summers as a lifeguard on the French Riviera" or whatever... held virtually no weight whatsoever, unless that "life experience" included something related to the job for which the candidate was interviewing. For example, "I marched in a DCI corps, and I also was a writer/editor for the corps' website and here are examples of what I did"... for someone interviewing for an editorial position. Geez... I almost sound like a Sally Soul-Smasher here...."Don't pursue your dreams, kid. Work 100 hours a week in a dimly-lit office instead, and never go out anywhere." I don't mean it to come across that way. Again, my opinion... do DCI/drum corps if you can, but if you can't... so be it. Not the end of the world, by any means. Don't let drum corps ever get in the way of real life. To the OP, along the lines of what a previous poster said... as long as you make a decision, and whatever decision you make, I wish you well, and perhaps I'll be cheering for your corps someday. Edited October 25, 2016 by Fran Haring 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyDad Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 What do your parents think? Their opinion matters 1000x more than anything you read here 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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