Picking a major to study in college is daunting, extremely stressful and you may end up picking something that you aren’t interested in at all. Trust me, I’ve been there, have done that and it’s OK. If you’re in college currently, a high school senior or even an underclassman still in high school, have you ever heard the phrase “What’s your major?” or “What do you want to major in?” You probably have or have heard some form of that question at least once. There is nothing wrong with that obviously, because choosing a college major IS one of the most important decisions of your life right? Wrong.

Picking a major is made up to be this huge deal starting when you’re a freshman in high school. First of all, that’s ridiculous because freshmen in high school barley know how to divide properly let alone pick what they want to do for the rest of their lives. I’m kidding, but really is deciding your major for COLLEGE that important straight out of middle school? Absolutely not and I’m not sure why it’s forced upon students at such a vulnerable stage in their lives.

As a sophomore in college and a gal who has changed her major on paper and in the back of my head at least seven times, I want to stress the fact that picking a college major is in fact important but it isn’t something that you can force upon yourself. There are millions of careers that one can choose in life but it’s hard to pick just one and that has been my problem. I can’t decide on what I want to study for the next three years and then work in that field for the next 50 years until I retire. If you’re lucky, you will know right off the bat what you want to do for the rest of your life, but not everyone has that kind of luck. In fact, most people change their major at least once and sometimes don’t even find a job after college that’s anywhere related to what they majored in.

Currently, I still have not declared a major and I’m totally fine with that. I say this because I have tried to force myself to like different majors and take classes for them like business and architecture but I have realized by doing so that those career paths aren’t for me. Also, family and friends play a big part in the stress level of picking a major and that’s because they may tell you what THEY think you should major in or even tell you what you have to major in. That is sort of what my family did. No one ever forced any ideas on me but if I mentioned a major I was considering like architecture, I was told by multiple people that I should stick to the sports industry because that’s where THEY could see me in my future career. I appreciate all of the advice and suggestions but picking a major is something that I need to figure out on my own. In fact, I’m finally going to declare this year because I took the time and didn’t stress so that I was able to pick a major that I’m whole-heartedly passionate about. Honestly, that’s what I think everyone in my position should do as well.

Now, what I was trying to get at this whole time is that YOU decide your own destiny so don’t let others influence, change or even bash what you’re passionate about especially when choosing a major in college. If you need time to think about what you want to do, go in to college as undeclared and take exploratory classes to get a feel for a few different majors that you’re interested in to aid the process. Also, take as much time as you need and don’t rush your choice. Most schools allow their students to be undeclared until spring of their sophomore year so take advantage of that time, figure it out and be confident about your decision.

If I could give one piece of advice to anyone stressing about picking a college major it’s to just do you and pursue what you’re passionate about.

Now, a piece of advice for the parents, family and friends of an individual who is struggling to pick a major, please DO NOT force them to make a decision because that will only make things worse. Money will be wasted and it will only cause more unwanted stress to both parties involved. Let them take their time and make the right decision.

I hope this helps because it sure helped me especially during my freshman year of college while choosing a major that will allow me to pursue my dream career.

Good luck!