I knew a guy who worked as a programmer for EA and other big names. Bit of a sell out. Excellent poker player though.

I have a sibling in the industry, and another that made music on their own for a couple of decades. I would say both make music for themselves than others though, and even the one in the industry didn't sell out (actually declined a Sony contract).

Still, the one in the industry has done a couple of questionable things imo, and so too their spouse. I wouldn't say being in a Jared Leto video is on the up and up. Especially when it's your church choir. So that sibling is either clueless, star-struck, or complicit.

Oh, as for me, I dropped out of science and law (full ride to law school too). I quickly saw in both fields that if I wanted to advance into the upper echelons, I'd have to do things that didn't agree with me. I'd say moreso for law than science...but science is proliferated by some questionable people, mainly from Ivy League schools. From what I've seen, many are not good instructors, and instead lord their knowledge and education over people.

I was lucky...my research director in grad school went to University of Texas and played on their golf team and shit...the two guys above him on the team became really good pros...Tom Kite being one, and I'm blanking on the other. And even then, I got put on a ridiculously hard research project and gave it a go, but it was beyond my capabilities. A guy worked on it for seven years straight before me and failed, so after a year I noped out.

I consider going to grad and law school still worth it, because I certainly learned a lot.