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My friend Beth knew her entire life that when she grew up, she wanted to be an elementary school teacher. My friend Kevin daydreamed for years about patrolling the streets in his police car. Even my friend Heather had it down to some type of nurse or doctor. Me? I wanted to sing. I wanted to solve crime. I wanted to report the Five O'clock News. I wanted to teach. I wanted to write. I wanted to prescribe Zoloft.
So I walked onto my college campus with "Liberal Arts" stamped across my forehead. There were tons of us. We crammed into seminars where everyday someone armed with a power point presentation and a tie would tell us why their major was the very best one.
But by the end of the year, I became very concerned. Almost all of my friends I had entered the Liberal Arts program with had made up their minds about what they wanted to pursue. I was still choosing between at least five different majors. Not to mention I, for some reason, felt ashamed when people asked what my major was and my answer was "Liberal Arts." I didn't want people to think I was this miserable person who didn't want to do anything. Because I wanted to do everything! What if I couldn't decide and I ended up making the wrong choice? What if I didn't know I hated my major until I graduated and got a job? That scared me.
Here's what I've learned about stressing less when it comes to the bumpy and uncertain road of changing your college major:
1). Relish in Being Undeclared.
There is nothing wrong with not knowing exactly what you want to do. Nothing to be ashamed of. Not having a declared college major doesn't make you less deserving of attending college. It's a good time to get a lot of general classes out of the way as well as dip into some of the things you might be interested in.
You need to own it! But because I was uncomfortable with being a Liberal Arts major, one night I locked myself in my dorm room and cracked open the college catalogue. I studied each major intently. I wasn't going to leave until I picked something because tomorrow, I would declare some type of major, darn it! I chose English Adolescence Education. Why? Well, I'm not quite sure why except I had been writing my whole life and teaching just seemed the reasonable and logical way to go. High school was fun, so why not?
2). You've Got Time.
There was absolutely no reason for me to make a decision that night. In fact, the majority of colleges don't require students to make a decision until the end of sophomore year. I had another year I could have spent thinking about it. Instead, I walked into the English Department eight hours later and signed myself up. I ignored what I had learned in my Liberal Arts seminar about how most students end up changing their majors at some point in their college careers and that those who wait to declare are more likely to choose something they are happy with. I just wanted a set path so badly. I didn't want to be "confused." I wanted somewhere to go, even if I might be going the wrong way.
I spent my sophomore year of college thinking I was happy with the major I had chosen. My backpack was full of lesson plans and adolescent development books. I would hang on every word my professors said, and when I left the classroom, in my head I was designing what my own classroom would look like. I prided myself on becoming a teacher. It wasn't until first semester of my junior year when I was placed inside a middle school classroom that I realized perhaps teaching wasn't for me. I sat across from the student I was assigned to tutor - his vocabulary test between us. He was slouched in his chair, rolling his eyes. "I'd rather be outside," he said to me. As I looked around the school walls, feeling more like an outsider than ever, I thought, "Me too."
3). Get Up Close And Personal.
The best way to know whether or not you'll enjoy a career is to integrate yourself into it. Teaching English to teenagers looked great to me, but it just didn't fit. That's why you have to try it on for size. Jump into a summer job or an internship that's related to your desired major. Talk to those who posses the careers in which you seek. Research, baby. Only then will you discover what you'll love.
4). Focus On The Career.
The whole reason we spend every penny we own, the whole rationale for those occasional coffee fueled all-nighters, the whole basis for turning pizza into a separate food group is so one day we can get that job we want. In the words of Campus Calm's Career Expert, Lauren Hasson, also known as The Résumé Girl, "It's not about the major; it's about the career." Sometimes, it doesn't matter what you have a degree in. If you have that interest burning inside you, if you have experience, if you have that drive and you have that motivation, the world is your oyster. Not everyone has a career that's linked to their major in college. A major is not an oath. Life can take you anywhere.
After my moment of realization at the middle school, I spent weeks lying awake at night wondering once again what I should major in. What would I do if I won the lottery and didn't have to work? I would write. There was my answer. The same answer I had my freshman year when faced with the same question. So why did I add the education part to my major in the first place? Because I didn't think being a writer seemed reasonable.
5). Follow Your Heart, Follow Your Dreams.
As a current English major and with the hopes of pursuing a Masters in Creative Writing, I have never been happier. Though I am sometimes criticized about the validity of my career choice, I believe your dreams can become your reality. I still want to sing, solve crime, report the Five O'clock News, and prescribe Zoloft. Sometimes I still want to teach. I'm here to tell you to never let those things go. When you do declare a major, or change to a different one, hold on to those interests. Don't ever give them up. What we love makes us who we are. I can still do all of those things in this lifetime because no matter how old we get, it is never too late to follow our dreams.
Like this article on 5 tips to stress less while changing your college major? Let our intern Kristen know. Email kristen@campuscalm.com.
About the author:
Maria Pascucci is the President of Campus Calm –
the award-winning online-community for today’s stressed-out students, and their parents
and educators: www.CampusCalm.com and The International Campus Calm University Association www.CampusCalmU.com. Download your FREE Student Life Stress-Less Kit at www.CampusCalm.com.
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