As finals are winding down and the season of overeating and family visits begins, I find myself mentally preparing for the on-slot of questions about college. As an English and women's and gender studies major, these questions are particularly painful. When the inevitable "So what are you majoring in?" comes, I am on the automatic defense, too familiar with the looks of confusion, judgement, and surprise that often accompanies my response.
When I first started college I entered as Undecided, feeling content in my indecision, because what 17 year old really knows what she wants to do for the rest of her life? With questions flying at me about my interests, in an attempt to give me some direction, I felt a lot of pressure to find a major during that first year. When I finally made a decision on my majors, I was relieved to know that the harassment would come to an end. It was in this naive assumption that I lacked an understanding of the hierarchy of majors that exists.
Because English and women's and gender studies, along with many others do not have defined career paths, they tend to fall under the "useless" category in the hierarchy of majors. So as the holiday season approaches and you head home for the break, prepare yourselves fellow "useless" majors for the family visits and high school classmate run-ins that are guaranteed to hold a plethora of frustrating misguided questions.
1. "Are you going to teach?"
Ah, yes. A personal favorite of mine. Having a "useless" major you are guaranteed to receive this gem. While teaching is a great profession to pursue and one I am considering myself, this is one of the most frustrating questions because it is always an automatic assumption. When you receive this question, try to remind yourself that it merely stems from others lacking an understanding of your field. Their ignorance is no cause to feel doubt in the path you have chosen for yourself.
2."What are you going to do with that?"
This question is a great way for people to check if you have really thought through and done your research on this major life decision. You may know exactly what you want to do. You may just have a list of careers that you want to explore. You may not have one single clue as to what your future will hold. Every one of these is OK. No one has it completely figured out.
If you find yourself trying to justify your choices to the mother of an old classmate in the parking lot of Walmart, take a moment to ask yourself if it is really worth it. As long as you are happy with what you are doing, there is no need to justify your choices by laying out some grand plan of your future. Judgments will be passed no matter what you say, so ignore those nosey neighbors and enjoy pursuing what you love.
