Nichole
Will I know if the major I choose is not the right one right away?
College is expensive, I will graduate with over 35 college credits and most of my generals done. I do not want to take a bunch of classes and not enjoy any of them but also have to pay for them. #college #financial-aid #college-major #academic-advising
3 answers
Venisha Ortiz
Venisha’s Answer
Hope all is well! It is unfortunate that there may be times where you will be enrolled in a class that you are not interested in, especially if they pertain to your major. Remember, some colleges do offer the option of auditing a class! This means you can sit through a class that will not require you to do the assignments or tests. Although there is a fee for such an option, it usually cost less than tuition itself. This may be an option for you to consider when trying to understand if a certain major is a good fit for you.
Additionally, having a mentor can also help you when it pertains to choosing a major and enrolling in classes. A mentor can provide you with some insight on what certain majors and courses entail, in addition to providing other useful advice. Some colleges do have mentorship programs for incoming freshman to help them successfully transition academically, socially, and professionally during their time in higher education. If your institution does not offer such a program, there are also numerous non-profit mentorship organizations around the nation that may be available in your area.
Overall, it does suck that there may be some costly trail and error in your life when picking a major in college, but that is okay for you want to make sure you are doing something you are passionate about. Your happiness should always be prioritized!
Best of luck and I hope this helped!
G. Mark Stewart
G. Mark’s Answer
No, you likely won't. Because college is different from the workplace. I say this because of several reasons.
1) College is usually an individual-contributor situation. Most workplaces are not -- either because they are working on a larger project than one person can do, or because they need to interface with support functions in the form of co-workers, suppliers, customers, etc..
2) I often recommend Personality Assessment Survey tests. The reason is that those, an example being RIASEC, don't test you on your skills in a particular field necessarily, but try to match your personality type with those of folks who are successful and happy in many fields, and see which ones will likely be a good fit.
So my message is, why just hope you make the right choice and guess about what your career will actually entail, or, for that matter, interview a lot of people and hope they give you a good overview? Take the methodical approach and find out which career is a likely fit for you by using this tool, the PAS.
Easy and fun and maybe surprising!
Ed Poggi
Ed’s Answer
I can't promise that you will know right away. However, if you put enough effort into the subject matter you start with the answer will prevent itself soon enough.
I believe if you choose a major and don't put your best foot forward in that space, it will take longer to understand if you are truly inspired and interested by that subject.