Where Would The Ladies Of 'Mad Men' Be In 2015?

The end is near for AMC's groundbreaking series, Mad Men , and as the finale inches closer and closer, fans have been reflecting on the plights of their favorite characters. Centering on a period of monumental change known as the 1960s, the past seven seasons of Mad Men have superbly captured the successes and struggles of its female leads. Since its debut in 2007, fans have watched Joan (Christina Hendricks) and Peggy (Elizabeth Moss) rise to every challenge and face various oppositions as two driven women in the workforce. Joan's tenacity was apparent from Season 1, but her promotion from Office Manager to Partner at SC&P came at the price of sleeping with client, Herb Rennet. Peggy faced her own heartaches and trajectories both during and outside of work, but her unyielding ambition (portrayed brilliantly by Moss) aided her in overcoming obstacles to advance her way to a position as Copy Chief.

One character who remains content in her secretarial work is this season's scene stealer — and much-enjoyed source of comic relief — Meredith. Meredith (played by Stephanie Drake) was only lightly peppered into the show's fabric in Season 5, but in Season 7 she has become much more present as Don's adorably ditzy secretary. Unlike Joan and Peggy, Meredith seems unwaveringly content to stay in her clerical position. While catching up with Drake, however, she notes that "There weren't too many options back then," and believes that in 2015, "Meredith would have a different career."

"She would definitely go to college and maybe major in Psychology," Drake tells me. "She’s very good at telling people what she really thinks and she’s good at taking notes. One thing I know for sure is that she is a hard worker, which would get her very far in whatever she decided to do...Quirky girls are so 'in' these days, everyone would love her!" As for Joan and Peggy, Drake believes the duo "would be running their own agency, definitely."

For all her quirkiness, Meredith appears to be the least ruffled by tensions occurring in the office, even when one incident caused her — along with an innocent model airplane — to be the undeserving recipient of a particularly heated outburst from Joan. Meredith rebounded quickly from the incident, proving she can keep herself on an even keel. Perhaps psychology really would be her forte!

As a working actress in Los Angeles, Drake goes on to note the parallels between herself and Meredith when it comes to ethic and ambition. "We're both very hard workers — you have to be in this city. Nothing is ever handed you and [both myself and Meredith] thrive when given more responsibility."

Mad Men airs Sundays on AMC at 10 p.m. EST.

Image: AMC