All throughout high school, I knew I wanted to major in dance and minor (or double major) in business administration because I dream of opening a dance studio. While many people struggle with knowing what they—without a doubt—want to study, I luckily did not have this problem.
As a current high school senior, my biggest struggle has been deciding where I should attend college and whether that decision would even be the best choice for me, considering my career goals. I'm pretty ill-informed on a lot of things, no matter how many college-related google searches I've done by now. Heck, I still hardly know what actually constitutes a “unit.”
Then I realized: does anyone even REALLY tell you everything you need to know about college?
By the time I reached my senior year, I was scrambling to sort everything out, since I realized I was running out of time. Unsure of whether I wanted to start off in community college or head directly for a university, I registered to take the ACT test just to be safe (spoiler alert: my composite score of 22 didn't look so hot).
After that, I applied for universities like San Diego State University and University of California Irvine, but still did not have my heart set on where to go. Overall, I just felt rushed to make such a major decision that would inevitably impact my entire education experience. I mean, I have no one to guide me in the right direction.
My parents are older than most and were not exposed to some of the newer operations inside colleges, or they forgot most of what they went through. I am an only child and do not have older siblings or many older friends to help guide me either, for that matter. Sure, I've talked to college counselors, but they can only tell me so much in regards to my specific major, as it is not a very common one. Half the time, my mind goes blank when I sit down in a counselor office.
By this point in the game, I have pretty much decided for myself that I will start off in community college. Whether that is truly the best choice, I can't say for certain. However, I feel (with what little knowledge I have) that it might be the best choice for now.
San Diego Mesa college offers a larger and more versatile array of dance classes than some universities like SDSU, even. At least I got something in my life halfway sorted out, right?
Even then, community college does not allow you to get started on both a major and a minor or a double major because you will wind up with too many credits in order to transfer into a university. So frustrating. It is obstacles like this that make me second guess whether it was a good idea to go ahead with community college instead of a four-year university.
I know it would be a couple years down the road, but I am still at a loss for which university I'd like to transfer to after community college. If I were to move out of the San Diego area, I know I would NOT be a fan of the dorm life. However, on the other hand, having the financial means to move out into an apartment anytime soon, especially in California, is extremely questionable.
While it is not absolutely imperative at this time to know exactly where I'd transfer, it would be extremely helpful to have some idea of where I could go. This way I can speak with a counselor in order to ensure that I take the right classes that the university will require out of their transfer students.
I would hate to wind up taking classes geared towards UC Irvine, for example, and then realize that Colorado State University is where I really want to go. A scenario like this would only further complicate things, and that is why I'm afraid.
I'm afraid of the fact that I'm essentially blindly embarking on this whole college thing all by myself, with no significant guidance.
Perhaps I'm just over-thinking it, but I feel like this is a pretty major decision that is possibly worth “over-thinking.” I've come to the conclusion that all I can really do is play it by ear and research all that I can.
Maybe after watching about fifty videos entitled “10 Things You Should Know About College,” I will have a better grasp on things. Who knows?
