If you're a college student like myself, odds are that you have been asked, "What are you studying in school?" As an undeclared major, this question terrifies me but it's such a regular question that cannot be avoid. I never want to say that I'm undeclared but I always start off my response with "I'm undeclared but I'm thinking of..." I didn't complete the sentence just now because quite often I change my answer. I tend to give this response because I know if I just tell the person that I'm not sure about my major, they'll then ask me if I have any idea. In reality, I don't have any idea. I'm probably the most indecisive person you'll ever meet.
1) When someone tells you "It's best to be undeclared."
Those who usually say this to me are declared. They were never undeclared so how can they even attest to this?! Yes, a perk of being undeclared is you can pick around and take classes that you're interested in. That's great and all but what about those credits that won't count toward your future major? Talk about unlucky.
2) When your advisor says "Don't worry, you have time!"
It definitely doesn't feel like it! It seems like all your friends have their college careers figured out. They love what they're studying and know what their profession will be after college but here you are. Stuck. That isn't always the case though. It's rather common that people change their majors more than once throughout their time in college.
3) Friends and Family: "You still haven't decided?"
Nope. Still haven't. Let me sleep on it.
4) Wondering if you'll finish school on time
Not only do you have your future major's requirements, but you have your school's general ed requirements. For instance, at Simmons we have the PLAN to fulfill. No worries, the goal is to finish school and for all current undeclared majors like myself, we will! Maybe earlier than we imagined, exactly when we imagined, or after we imagined but we'll still finish.
5) How relieved you'll feel when you finally declare
Patience is key! One day you'll finally declare your major and you can happy dance. Until then, don't give up! One class will interest you and you'll just know from there to keep taking more like it. Everything will fall into place and you'll never have to talk about being undeclared ever again.
Majors are a bit overrated though. There is still a big emphasis placed on them but I hope that in the future, there won't be as much emphasis on it. It would definitely relieve some of the stress that college brings. In most cases, your major definitely doesn't limit what you can do with your degree after college. You aren't limited at all. Always keep that in mind when you're struggling to make a (major) decision.
