Other universities would give you the credit hours for the basic course that would count toward graduation. I’d accumulated enough AP credits to be considered a sophomore when I entered college, if the school I chose allowed both.
Oklahoma worked on a sliding scale. If your score was a three, you might or might not get any credits. But for a class like calculus, if I scored a four or five, it would count as two math classes. USC only accepted scores of four or better, and each score only counted for one course.
Grace looked me directly in the eye to make sure she had my full attention. I sensed Brook squirm next to me. My guess was she’d been under this scrutiny before. If I hadn’t known that Grace was in my corner, I might have been nervous.
“You need to get your head out of your butt and decide what you’re going to do in college. If I have it figured right, you will start your major classes when you start college because you’ll have gotten credit for most of the basic requirements. Am I correct in that assumption?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Given that advice is free and you don’t have to take it, would you want my advice on what you should do?” Grace asked.
I nodded. That was why I was here.
“I suggest you do a 3/2 program and get your BA/MBA at the same school. In your case, that could actually be a 2/2 program if you took a heavy load during summer school. My recommendation is that you minor in marketing or marketing management,” Grace said.
“I was toying with the idea of getting my law degree after my undergraduate,” I said.
“I really don’t see the need. It’s not the right career for you. I see you hiring lawyers when they’re required,” Grace said and then smiled. “Look, you’re too nice a guy to be a lawyer. You have a lot of advantages most young lawyers don’t. You have the resources and connections to make a go of it.
“But consider what a lawyer does. He helps people either protect their butts or go after other people’s butts. It wears on you after a while, and you may often be compelled to do something that creates bad karma. You can only crawl in the mud so many times before it sticks to you.”
“My thought was maybe to use it for politics,” I admitted.
The job of a lawyer never really appealed to me. I’ll admit that I liked the sound of it more than I really wanted to be one.
“The last thing we need is another lawyer-politician,” Grace said.
I smiled because that made sense to me, and that was what Brook had said she wanted to do.
“Now do Brook,” I said.
“What did I do to you?” Brook complained.
“You said I was socially awkward and had unfortunate looks. Besides, I would like to hear your grandmother’s take on your college plans.”
“Fine.”
“I had my staff do a little research. Did you know that no current sitting governor has a public policy major?” Grace asked. “In fact, if you’re planning on running for office, the data supports a political science major. More sitting governors have that undergraduate degree than any other.”
“Interesting,” I said, sitting forward to watch the show.
“You stay out of this,” Brook warned me.
“Would you agree that your primary focus is on the politics and the people side of government?” Grace asked.
Brook nodded her assent.
“In my opinion, getting a political science degree is the old-school approach. And, if you should choose to practice law, it won’t be of any help to you. If your focus is on politics and people, then sociology and history are two majors I suggest you consider,” Grace said.
“Why those? I’m not interested in social work.” Brook asked.
“I said sociology, not social work. Sociology is the study of the development, structure, and functioning of human society, and sometimes the study of social problems.
“As for history, it’s something you might consider for at least three reasons. First, it may be where your particular intellectual strengths lie. Economics might be another option for you, but my impression is that the field doesn’t play to your strengths.
“If I’m wrong, then it would be worth considering, especially if you approached it from a historical perspective. The fact is that a lot of different government policies will work well enough for the country to function. The hard part is lining up people behind any one set of policies and getting them enacted and implemented, instead of legislators and executives just dithering.”
Warming to her response, Grace continued.
“A second reason is that exploring history, when done in conjunction with more focused graduate work on the political or policy side, would make you more well-rounded. It would also give some depth to your work in the political field.”
“A final reason is personal to me, but one I feel strongly about. I really do believe that those who do not know history are condemned to repeat it. Their historical illiteracy is usually combined with arrogance and not thinking through the consequences of their actions.
