During young adulthood we make decisions that will affect the rest of our lives such as electing a career

path or personal relationships. These very same decisions must be taken in this stage in life when most young people do not feel comfortable taking such responsibilities. In this stage in our lives we are not prepared to hear stories on how difficult it is to obtain a career or the responsibility of keeping a job; but rather one realizes things as we live through them and this helps appreciate the good things in life and thus make an effort on attaining the things that we dream about. The first event in the decision making path is choosing a career. Countless young adults give up at the middle of a career degree because that's not what they really wanted to do, or because they had a different concept of such career. A career path is something with which we are going to deal with throughout our lives and thus is necessary to make a good election. Therefore certain internal and external factors weigh on this decision. Internal factors are interests, personality, ability and motivations as an individual and then we have the external factors such as social surroundings, family and both economical and cultural factors. In my case there were various factors that prompted me to make that decision to study medicine at seventeen years old. First of all I had to start studying immediately as soon as I finished high school. Although I had to wait six months, it was an immediate decision. This is due to my parents were always pressuring me to study. It was very important to them for me to finish a career as soon as possible and begin working. In one survey oftraditional college students,40% of freshmen indicatedthat the main reason that they entered college immediately after high school graduationwas that their parents wanted them to (Chronicle ofHigher Education,1997). Most of the time seventeen year olds are not prepared one hundred percent to decide what to do the rest of their lives that's why parent support is quite important as a guide; this is why parents must not be overprotective or authoritarians but rather serve as a source of security so that children can make major decisions and not be placed under unnecessary stress that may interfere in their professional performance.

Entre otrosfactoresqueinfluenciaron en la laeleccion de unacarrerauniversitaria a tantempranaedadfueronmisinteresesenfocados en gran parte hacia la ramade la medicina y el cuidado de salud. Lo mas possible esqueestamismaeleccionhayatenido gran relacion a mi generofemenino, teniendo en centaqelasmujeressiempretenemos la tendencia a escojerestetipo de carreras, One-third ofall working women hold clericaljobs;another quarter are in health care,teaching,or domestic service .Piensoqueesmuycomunver mas mujeresestudiandoramas de la medicina y cuidado d e saludque hombres yaquedesde el punto de vista social lasmujerestienen el estereotipo de "sermshumanistasque los hombres" entoncespara el trato con otras personas la mujerescomoqueest "mejor vista" , lo mismoocurre con psicologa (dondeseguro larelacinmujer/hombre es mayor) y lo opuesto a lo queunoesperara en ingeniera y carreras exactas. Esuntemaconsecuente de la liberacinfemenina. En mi casositienemucharelacion con el elhecho de serhumanista, teniendo en cuentaque soy bastante sensible a estetipo de situacionesrelacionadas a el cuidado de pacientes y todo

lo queestoenvuelve,perotambien ; apesar de ser tanjoven con tan solo 17 anos, fuecuestion de saber relamentecual era mi vocacion, estabsegura de misconvicciones y sientoque en la actualidadestas ideas no hancambiado.

Among other factors that influenced in the determination for choosing a college career at a young age were my interests focused in great part to the medicine branch and health care. It is very possible that the same choice has had a great relationship with my female gender, taking into account that women always have the tendency to choose this type of career, "One-third of allclerical jobs are held by working women, another quarter work in healthcare, teaching, or domestic service. Lifespan development page 421 I think it's very common to see more women studying branches of medicine and health care than men and that from the social point of view women have the stereotype of being "more human thanmen, "thus for others dealing withwomen is "better perceived", so does psychology (where surely the female / male ratio is higher) and the opposite of what one would expect careers in engineering and computer science. It is a consistent theme of women's liberation. In my case it has a lot relationship with the fact to be humane, considering I'm pretty sensitive to this kind of situations related to patient care and all that this involves, but also, in spite of being so young with only 17 years,it was a matter of knowing what was really my vocation, I was sure of my convictions and I feel that at present these ideas have not changed.

Encuanto al tipo de personalidad, en mi casoinvestigativa lo consideretambien un factor primordial por el cualmedecidiera a escojerunacarreracomomedicina , yaquedesdepequenasiempretenia mucho amorpor la biologia y la investigacion,ysobretododemostrarque podia con un gran retocomo lo esestacarrea,recuerdo mi participacion en grupos de ecologia y laboratorios de investigacionparaunaenfermedadqueesfrecuente en Colombia conocidacomo el chagas, tambienrecuerdo mi gran amorporlas morgues y ramascomo la patologia, la mayoria de lasveces me gustabatrabajar sola y me gustabamantenercalendarios con ordenpreciso de fechas y actividadesrelacionadas, llorabasi un diateniaquefaltar a unaclase y perderme un detalle(creoque con el tiempocambie mucho en estadisciplina). As for the type of personality, in my investigative case , I considered it a primary factor by which I decided to choose a career as medicine, because since I was little I had always much love for biology and investigation, and above all I wanted to show that I could accomplish this major challenge such as the medicine field, I remember my participation in ecology groups and research laboratories for a disease that is common in Colombia, which it is known as Chagas disease , I also remember my great love for the morgues and fields such as pathology, most of the time I liked to work alone, and I liked to keep schedules with precise order of dates and activities, I used to cry if one day I had to miss a class and miss a detail (I think over time I changed much in this regard).

Acorde al libro el tipo de personalidad investigative, Oriented toward thinking (particularly abstract thinking), organizing, and plan-ning; prefer ambiguous, challenging tasks, but are low in social skills; are often scientists or engineers .Elegiruna Carrera con un nivel tan alto de resposabilidadesfuerzo y dedicacioncomoesmedicinaa, esuna decision que se debetomarcon enteraconfianza possible. Para ello se debe star seguro de quienesunomismo y de loque se quiere y poseerconocimienti en lashabilidadespropias, esdecirquesi no se esbuenopara la memorizacion de granescantidades de terminosesta no es la mejoropcion; en mi casofueuan decision de gransatisfacionyaqueibamuy a la par con todosmisgustosespectativas y habilidades de apredizaje.

According to the book lifespan development , Investigative personality type, "Oriented Toward thinking (Particularly abstract thinking), Organizing, and planning; prefer ambiguous, challenging tasks, But are low in social skills; Are often scientists or engineers. " Choose a career with such a high level of effort and dedication as medicine is a decision to be taken with confidence. This requires to besure about yourself and what you want and have the knowledge about yourownabilities,it means that if one is not good for the memorization of large quantities of terms,then this is not the best option, in my case it was a was decision of great satisfaction, because it was very on par with all my tastes and learning abilities. Por ultimo otroaspectopor el queescoji la medicinacomocarrerafuepor un estudiominuciososobrelassalidaslaboralesqueestatenia. A pesar de estarentrando en mi tempranaadultez, y de no tener idea de lo que son asumirretos de trabajo y posteiromentetenerque responder por mi vida y susutentacion, era muyconciente de quequeriaestudiaralgo en lo que me fueraposiblelaborar y no despueslamentarme y vivir de misfrusraciones. En algunoscasosesconvenienteelejirunaopcionqueaun no siendo la ideal paranosotros, sinosagrade y sea mas viable de ejrcerposteriomente Profesor de linguisticaEdwarArzuza.

Finally another aspect for which I chose medicine as a career was after conducting thorough study about the labor opportunities it had. Despite being into my early adulthood, and having no idea about assuming work challengesand then to have to no idea for workchallenges and sustentation, I was very aware that I wanted to study something that it was possible for me to get a job andnot latter to regret the rest of my live with frustrations. Thus,"In some cases it is desirable to choose an option that while not ideal for us, whether we like it more viable and subsequently be to do" EdwarArzuza Professor of Linguistics

En muchasocasiones no essuficiente consaber siuna Carrera esbuena, sinotambiensi satisfice a el estidandiante. Porlo general losadultosjovenescasinuncaestansatisfecho con susprofesiones, pues a tempranaedadapenasestanlaborandotrabajosdondeprentendenganarexperiencia, por lo querecibensueldosque no llenansusexpectativasporello el estudiantedebe no solo escojerunacarreraquemuestre Buena proyeccionsinoquetambiendebebuscardesenvolverse en mediosdondepuedahaceramistadesquepsoteriormentepeudanayudarle en al bsuqueda de trabajsobienpagados. In many cases it is not enough to know if a career is good, but also if it satisfies the student. Usually young adults are rarely satisfied with their professions, it is due to that at that early age they are just workingjobs where theyintend to gain experience, they receive salaries that do not meet their expectations, so the student must not only choose a career that shows good projection, but also they have to look for careers where they can thrivein environments where they can make friendships that help them latter in the networking of very well paid jobs.

Finalmente, cuandounoveuna persona mas jovenqueuno en el comienzo de sucarrera , uno se enfoncapensando en la aprte positive de lo queposbliemnte sera suvida en psoteiroresanos, perosiprofundizamosnosdamoscuentauetodos los quepasamosporestaetapatuvimosqueatravezarunaserie de procesos y toma de decisionesquepsiblemente no fueron del todofacil. Para miaforutunadamente y a pesar de laspresiones de mispadrea, pudehacerunaeleccion de la que me sentisegura y satisfecha y aunque no hayapodidollegar al fin, aun conserve esesueno y lo revivo en estepaisextranjeropara mi, con un nuevodeseo de servir a la comunidad. Lo esencialparaescogerunacarreraesbuscaralgoquenosgusta y quedisfrutemoshacerparaseguirhacindolodurantetoda la vida. Esuna de lasdecisiones mas difciles de nuestrasvida y que hay quetratar de hacerla lo msacertadaposible; sin embargo, el hacerunaeleccinerrneaesbastantecomn y porencima de todoestnuestrafelicidad, asque no hay queangustiarsedemasiadoporeso Maria Paz Diaz estudiante d epsicologia Universidad aurtonoma d ebucaramanga. Finally, when one sees a younger person at the start of his or her career, one focuses thinking in the positive aspect of what possibly will be his or her life in coming years, but if we dig deeper we ll notice that we all went through a stage where we had to go through a series of processes and decisions that perhaps were not that easy. Fortunately for me and despite my father s pressures I was able to make a decision from what I felt comfortable and satisfied even though I have not reached my goal I still retain that dream and I am trying to keep it alive here in this country that is foreign to me with a renewed desire to serve the community where I live. Thus, the essential aspect to choosing a career is finding something that we like and that we enjoy and continue doing it the rest of our lives. It is one of those most difficult decisions in our lives thus we need to make it as accurate as possible. Nevertheless, making the wrong decision is quite common and above it all this is our happiness, thus

it is important not to worry so much Maria Paz Diaz, psychology student, Bucaramanga Autonomous University