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What helped you pick your college major? If undecided, what is helping you factor into that decision?
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5 answers
Gloria Ortiz
Instructional Designer
850
Answers
Irving, Texas
Updated
Gloria’s Answer
I actually knew my major when I went to college at 18. I did not graduate with that major. I wanted to write so I chose Journalism as a major. I even chose my university based on that major. However, I did not consider how competitive a project like that would be. So when you look at majors, learn as much as you can about what having that major entails. Consider majors that appeal to you. Unless the job that you want would benefit from a specific college, I would say choose a college based on its overall benefits, not just based on a major.
Since you are just starting your college experience, you should not feel a lot of pressure to decide on a major just yet. Most of your major work is done during your junior and senior year. I would suggest that you work hard on the general courses that you need to take at your university – English, History, Math, etc. I would also recommend that you challenge yourself with the elective courses that you take. If you do not really know what you want to major in, you should start to look in places where you have never looked. Take the elective that you don’t even know what it is. That will expose you to new experiences that may catch your attention. Or you may find that something you don’t think would be a good major is actually what you want to do. You should not be afraid of majors where you are not quite sure what you will do with it as a job. I ended up graduating with what is the equivalent of a Liberal Arts degree at a lot of universities. And what do I do? I am an Instructional Designer.
Since you are just starting your college experience, you should not feel a lot of pressure to decide on a major just yet. Most of your major work is done during your junior and senior year. I would suggest that you work hard on the general courses that you need to take at your university – English, History, Math, etc. I would also recommend that you challenge yourself with the elective courses that you take. If you do not really know what you want to major in, you should start to look in places where you have never looked. Take the elective that you don’t even know what it is. That will expose you to new experiences that may catch your attention. Or you may find that something you don’t think would be a good major is actually what you want to do. You should not be afraid of majors where you are not quite sure what you will do with it as a job. I ended up graduating with what is the equivalent of a Liberal Arts degree at a lot of universities. And what do I do? I am an Instructional Designer.
Will Balson
Business Systems Engineer
4
Answers
Half Moon Bay, California
Updated
Will’s Answer
I found it helpful to read the other answers above! My personal experience was that I was without a major until the middle of my sophomore year. A friend of mine recommended that I take the 101 class in Linguistics, because he thought I would enjoy it -- It turns out I loved it, so I declared my major just from the 101 class. In hindsight, I could have put in more preparation and research, but I knew I enjoyed the subject overall. Now, I work with computers for a living, but I find that my Linguistics education helped me develop a lot of soft skills that I use almost every day, even with a technical career.
Overall, I think most liberal arts degrees can yield useful soft skills that you will use throughout your life. And if you're lucky enough to have a specific passion or enjoyment for a technical or scientific subject, you should go for it! Just be aware of the amount of work it takes, and what further work, money, time investments, etc. usually come along with those topics.
And remember that if you don't pick your major perfectly, you won't be "locked" into that for your lifetime. Most people don't go into a career based on their major!
Good luck
Overall, I think most liberal arts degrees can yield useful soft skills that you will use throughout your life. And if you're lucky enough to have a specific passion or enjoyment for a technical or scientific subject, you should go for it! Just be aware of the amount of work it takes, and what further work, money, time investments, etc. usually come along with those topics.
And remember that if you don't pick your major perfectly, you won't be "locked" into that for your lifetime. Most people don't go into a career based on their major!
Good luck
Alexandra Fels
Creative Director
3
Answers
New York, New York
Updated
Alexandra’s Answer
Note: This answer combines input from a group of marketers with more than 50 years’ combined experience - all currently working at a global tech company. We answered this question as a group. We hope you find it helpful and wish you the best in all of your endeavors.
Some perspectives & tips:
• I graduated high school in 2011 when the economy was still terrible. I went to community college for two years (liberal arts) then transferred to a SUNY school for accounting. Community colleges and state schools are a great option – don’t let people make you think that they are not any less valuable than an ivy league school. My parents told me I had to go to school for something I can make good money in, but I hated accounting. I bumped business to my minor and made geography my major. In majoring in geography, I ended up learning a lot of technical skills which actually translates to what I work in now – project management – and makes me love working on very technical projects. I ended up with a double major and a double minor.
• If you are undecided, major in computer science. It helps you in everything you want to do going forward. Just because you major in something doesn’t mean you will get a job or need to get a job in that field. Some majors give you a wider breadth of experience and knowledge than others.
Be thoughtful about your electives. My roommates picked the easiest electives while I picked the most practical and interesting ones that would challenge me and add to my major, not be a waste of money and time. It’s a good way to introduce yourself to other things if you are undecided in your major.
• Start with the end – if you know what is important to you and what you want to come out of college doing, then what it is that during college (majors, extra curriculums, etc) can be building blocks for that.
• College is about discovery – some people want to enter college anchored in a major, but you can also enter it with a discovery mindset. Follow your gut on that and know what works best for you.
• If you want, consider a gap year and get jobs, try different things.
Some perspectives & tips:
• I graduated high school in 2011 when the economy was still terrible. I went to community college for two years (liberal arts) then transferred to a SUNY school for accounting. Community colleges and state schools are a great option – don’t let people make you think that they are not any less valuable than an ivy league school. My parents told me I had to go to school for something I can make good money in, but I hated accounting. I bumped business to my minor and made geography my major. In majoring in geography, I ended up learning a lot of technical skills which actually translates to what I work in now – project management – and makes me love working on very technical projects. I ended up with a double major and a double minor.
• If you are undecided, major in computer science. It helps you in everything you want to do going forward. Just because you major in something doesn’t mean you will get a job or need to get a job in that field. Some majors give you a wider breadth of experience and knowledge than others.
Be thoughtful about your electives. My roommates picked the easiest electives while I picked the most practical and interesting ones that would challenge me and add to my major, not be a waste of money and time. It’s a good way to introduce yourself to other things if you are undecided in your major.
• Start with the end – if you know what is important to you and what you want to come out of college doing, then what it is that during college (majors, extra curriculums, etc) can be building blocks for that.
• College is about discovery – some people want to enter college anchored in a major, but you can also enter it with a discovery mindset. Follow your gut on that and know what works best for you.
• If you want, consider a gap year and get jobs, try different things.
Emily Z
Marketing
4
Answers
New York, New York
Updated
Emily’s Answer
There’s no right answer to choosing a major. For us, it took trial and error to find the right major. It’s always ok to make a switch! Sometimes it takes trying to know if it’s the right fit.
A way to help shorten the process is to learn the different curriculums to see what major piques your interests most. Another piece of advice for those undecided students would be to focus on a major that focuses on soft skills that don’t limit future career opportunities.
For example, if you aren’t positive you want to be a doctor, it’s probably best not to get a degree in medicine. But if you’re interested in a variety of industries, but know you have a knack for writing, maybe Journalism, English, or Communications could be a good fit. All of these majors could lead to a wide array of careers where writing is important, rather than something specific.
If you have something you’re super passionate about but maybe aren’t sure that could lead to a career, think about a minor!
This answer combines input from a group of marketers with more than 50 years’ experience - all currently working at a global tech company. We hope you find it helpful and wish you the best in all of your endeavors.
A way to help shorten the process is to learn the different curriculums to see what major piques your interests most. Another piece of advice for those undecided students would be to focus on a major that focuses on soft skills that don’t limit future career opportunities.
For example, if you aren’t positive you want to be a doctor, it’s probably best not to get a degree in medicine. But if you’re interested in a variety of industries, but know you have a knack for writing, maybe Journalism, English, or Communications could be a good fit. All of these majors could lead to a wide array of careers where writing is important, rather than something specific.
If you have something you’re super passionate about but maybe aren’t sure that could lead to a career, think about a minor!
This answer combines input from a group of marketers with more than 50 years’ experience - all currently working at a global tech company. We hope you find it helpful and wish you the best in all of your endeavors.
Yasemin G.
Aspiring physician
635
Answers
Updated
Yasemin’s Answer
Hi! What helped me pick my major was that I always like Psychology! It was always interesting me and therefore I picked that major. I was a premed student as well, so I also ended up minoring in Chemistry. Being a specific major is having information about it and the career choices it entails. If you are undecided general education classes can also help as well; they are classes that each student must take regardless if they are decided in their major or not. The colleges you are interested can also have a workbook/pamphlet for the majors and careers they offer, so definitely check that out!
Best of luck!
Best of luck!