When we graduate from high school, we're under the constant pressure of having to figure out exactly what we want to do with our lives. We're asked questions like, "What will your major be?" "What're you going to do with that?" "Why don't you know?" and we're supposed to know what our lives will look like in twenty years when we're only 18 years old. The pressures of knowing and of planning are stressful for students and can be harmful to their mental health.
One of the worst questions I got asked near the end of high school was, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" For years, I knew: I definitely wanted to be a teacher. However, when I felt my passion for leading a classroom dwindle, I wanted to avoid this question whenever possible because I literally had no idea what else I wanted to do. Trying to figure out who I was before graduating with the pressure of knowing who I wanted to be years into the future was not something I should have been stressed about. But, because of the societal pressures to know, I didn't know how to react to or answer this question.
My favorite thing about coming to college is realizing that there really isn't one path to take. I've been in classes with people who don't fit the "traditional" college student, and I've been in classes with people just like me, those who graduated from high school and knew immediately that they wanted to pursue higher education. Society pushes the idea that you should graduate high school, go straight to college, know exactly what you want to study, graduate from undergrad in 4 years, and then go to graduate school if it's a requirement for your career path. For many, this path is not true or applicable, and I wish that we could become more aware of this.
We need to start being more considerate of people's experiences when they talk about what career they want to pursue or what kind of path they want to take. We need to come to the realization that not everyone is going to follow a linear path, and that's okay. One of my favorite things about college is that there are opportunities everywhere. You may find yourself in an unlikely place, and, oddly enough, you feel alright with it. There's always going to be the students that have a major or career in mind and stick to it. However, there's also going to be a large handful of students that don't really know.
If I could go back to my freshman year and give myself a piece of advice, I'd say, "You're not alone." This applies to so many things, but especially being unclear about a career path. Now, as a junior in college, I can honestly say that I'm still unsure of my path. I'm tired of hearing that there's only one path or that I need to decide on a path because this is simply not true. I can take the time that I need to figure out my interests and how these align with my career goals because, after all, I will be dedicating years of my life to this profession. The path to the end isn't always straight; there's going to be curves, unexpected stops, and times where you may even need to go in reverse. However, what matters is that you make it to the end, doing something you're truly passionate about.
