Many students enter college with a chosen major in mind; however, very few ACTUALLY end up graduating and earning a degree in their original major choice. People have this AWFUL assumption that if you change your major, you will be labeled as a quitter or appear not smart enough to stick it through. HOWEVER, if you do not love what you are studying, why on earth would you think that you would like working in a field designed to best suit that terrible major??? I have changed my major four times, and I am still on track to graduate EARLY.
When I began applying for colleges, I was unsure what major to choose because I always assumed that the first major that I chose would be the ONLY major I went into. I put so much pressure on my Highschool-senior-self to make this life-long decision. Upon arriving at LSU Orientation, I decided on pre-pharmacy. Once I got to the ballroom at LSU to sign in to orientation, I had a sudden change of heart and jumped into the line to change my major. For some CRAZY reason, I chose to switch my major from pre-pharmacy to chemical engineering (The hardest major on LSU Campus). Why did I do this you may ask? I am not sure. But, here I was, an engineer major.
One year down, I finally realized that science and math were NOT my strong suits and that this was the absolute worst idea I had ever had. I was not sure, however, that I wanted to switch my major now that I was a year into this degree path. Was I going to be behind? Was I going to disappoint people who knew I was an engineering major? Was I going to regret my decision to change and should I just stick it out until graduation? Upon LOTS of communication with family and friends, reassurance from others, and many tears later, I decided to go ahead and switch my major to something that I KNEW I was good at: English.
So, I just knew that major number three was going to be good for me. I have always excelled at English and I figured this would be a much easier course load than my engineering classes. I had changed my life plan and focused my energy on going to law school with an English undergraduate degree. For the semester, I worked in a legal office as a legal assistant and soon discovered that even though I excelled in this area, I HATED what I was doing every day. This was a very confusing time. I WAS GOOD AT THIS. Why could that be a bad thing?
Another semester down, and I was almost halfway through my four years of undergraduate school at LSU. How was I supposed to change my major AGAIN when I was almost halfway done with school?? It was almost time to take the LSAT and I was contemplating my life choices AGAIN?? I am the type of person who always likes to have a set goal, and rarely deviates from the plan. So you can imagine my disappointment in myself and confusion when I was debating whether or not to change my major for the fourth time. But, I did it.
While I was an English major, I had to take a psychology elective course. In that course, I realized how interested and invested I became while learning the material. I realized that psychology opened up a lot of choices for future plans. I could go into research, go to medical school, go to law school, or open my own practice after graduate school. Thus, I changed my major to psychology.
It is important not to stress yourself out about choosing a major right away. It can always be altered, changed, or added to. Life is not set in stone, and it is impossible to plan out the rest of your life when you are a senior in high school. I have changed my major four times, and I am still on track to graduate from LSU's undergraduate program a whole year early. I now go to school every day and love what I am studying.
I WANT to go to class.
I WANT to read the books.
I WANT to continue my education and obtain a job in this field.
It is true what they say: If you do what you love, you will never work a day in your life.
If you are on the edge and contemplating whether or not you want to change your major, I urge you to think about if you are truly happy with what you are studying. If you do not LOVE what you are doing, make the change. It will not hurt you, but only help you in the long run. Do not be miserable doing something that does not excite you. Make the change. Be happy.
