In America, it is a common idea that college costs more than it is worth. Yet, holding a college degree, according to the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center, is associated with higher pay. While a college degree is something that takes anywhere from two to eight years to complete, many citizens are starting to find ways to make a living without a college degree in Missouri. Various midwesterners find joy and comfort in not only finding a job but also finding an occupation to support themselves and their growing family. And noticeably degree-carrying jobs tend to pay more. 

We especially see in Missouri that a financially supported family is truly the traditional American dream. But without a degree, many people unknowingly could qualify for a career that is way beyond tradition. Your body could ultimately be stopping you from a job that could make you anywhere from $50,000 to $90,000 a year, according to Surrogate.com. This occupation only requires you to have constant beadrest, doctor appointments and hopefully a joy for babies. Gestational surrogacy is one of the many undiscovered career paths that is more than obtainable. Surrogacy has been groundbreaking for not only helping infertile couples but also helping surrogate mothers make an increasingly high salary as well.

The Virgin Mary, often considered the first surrogate, dates back to the first century BCE. Her story arguably laid the groundwork for the marketable trend of gestational surrogacy that came centuries later. Besides this exceptional religious leader. Famous movies like Baby Mama, the TV show The New Normal and even the classic novel The Handmaid’s Tale all feature surrogacy in some way. These common ideas of gestational surrogacy show the immediate public that surrogacy is somewhat achievable: This is ultimately true.

Gestational surrogacy is where a woman carries a child to term with the use of IVF and gives the child to the intended parents; the child is not biologically related to the surrogate whatsoever. Many couples choose the surrogacy route if they are unable to carry a child safely or at all, whether due to same sex partners or infertility. Infertility and same sex marriages are very common in Missouri. According to spectrum local new.com Missouri holds the highest percent of same sex couples in the country, with infertile couples following quickly behind. 128,259 women in Missouri also struggle with infertility according to MCRM Fertility.

These citizens are the ones choosing to take the surrogacy route in order to create families of their own. Which opens a substantial number of possibilities for potential surrogate mothers to begin work.

Yet being a surrogate is all but simple. You must qualify for the many credentials that are necessary to become a safe surrogate mother. According to Hatch.com, a fertility company based in Missouri, you must meet the following requirements. You must be between the ages of 21 and 42, hold U.S citizenship, have proof of atleast one healthy pregnancy, a healthy BMI and living in a safe and healthy enviornment. These are the many credentials you must meet to even set foot in the highly competitive world of Missouri Surrogacies. After meeting the said criteria, you will be called back by an interested couple and hopefully will begin the IVF medical process needed to begin your pregnancy. Soon, your medical expenses, maternity clothes, and partial allowance will be covered, along with the start of your incoming salary.

​Although the comfort many women experience throughout their traditional pregnancies might open up the possibility of being a surrogate mother as an untraditional career path. It is important to understand all the responsibilities and factors that come with carrying a child for another person.

Gestational surrogacy may seem easy to some women who tend to enjoy living a life of bliss through their nine months of pregnancy, but carrying a child for the benefit of another couple could easily lead to attachment difficulties or possible unsuccessful implantation of the embryo, causing both the surrogate mother and couple to have an unsuccessful pregnancy.  When the implantation of the embryo does not take, any incoming salary for the surrogate is no longer available. 

But beyond the risks many surrogate mothers take every day, surrogates find pride in their work to allow other couples the ability to start a family. Surrogates truly are making the world a larger, much better place, one baby at a time.

Amy Smith, an intended surrogate mother in Missouri said “ I have had four normal pregnancies of my own and enjoyed being pregnant; I always said if a couple who struggled with infertility needed a surrogate I would gladly be one.”