I'm now in my senior year of college, which is scary to think about. I get asked this question probably five times a day, "What do you want to do after graduation?" and the answer is always the same. "I know I want to go into HR (Human Resources) or I/O psychology (Industrial Organizational), but I don't know where or for what company or nonprofit". My potential career has changed a lot over the years. Let's take a trip down memory lane and start with what I first wanted to be.

I don't really remember much of elementary school, but according to my mom, I wanted to be a teacher or veterinarian. I for the life of me cannot remember why I wanted to be a teacher, which is funny, because I also wanted to be a teacher a few years down the road. I remember wanting to be a vet for many years because I love animals and always have. However, my dreams were quickly dashed when I realized this meant I'd have to do surgeries and care for animals other than the cute fuzzy ones. Snakes and birds gross me out and scare me. Plus, I'm allergic to cats and a few other furry animals, so that would not be fun to try and take care of them. From vet I moved on to a vastly different career in a whole new field.

In middle school and pretty much all of high school, I wanted to be a writer or editor. I think at some point in there I also briefly thought about teaching English in high school or being an elementary school teacher. Middle school, much like elementary school, I don't remember much about. I do know I loved writing. Still do. Writing was my passion in middle school and on and off in high school. I mostly wrote diaries and short stories. At some point in middle school, I hated everything and wanted to do nothing. No matter how I was feeling, I remember writing was my constant in middle school. I had this one journal I carried with me around my house and at school that I wrote in constantly. Does any middle school student truly know what they want to do or major in, or have any idea of their future plans? Looking back, it was silly of me to try and map out essentially the rest of my life at age 12.

In high school, I still loved to write, though I switched to short stories and novels, then senior year, poetry. My favorite subject in high school (besides lunch!) was English. Like so many others, I thought the only careers someone could do with an English degree were teacher or writer. One of my high school English teachers opened my eyes and horizons to many other careers with an English or similar degree. I've always loved reading and wanted to write the next most popular YA Fiction novel. Oh how my views and interests have changed.

Entering college, I still wanted to major in English. I met with several of the English faculty and learned as much as I could about my school's creative writing and English program. I discovered the many literary magazines students put together. Senior year of high school and into my sophomore year of college, I wanted to be an editor or proofreader. I'm a fast reader, but I still read carefully. I was constantly finding mistakes in books and online articles I was reading. One specific class at my school, History of English Literature, affectionately nicknamed HEL, was hard. That class taught me that if you enjoy doing something, like writing, you don't have to major in it. At that same time, I was taking a psychology class and loved it. My professor told my class about a brand new major called Organizational Science, and it sounded interesting enough. Organizational Science or Industrial Organizational Psychology is essentially psychology applied to the workforce or research. At the same time I was losing my English major and editor dreams, I started slowly falling in love with psychology. Two years later, and I am proud to say I found a major I love and am passionate about. I'm learning useful skills and knowledge in my classes.

I know I've forgotten some careers, but I'm sure my mom will enlighten me. These are all the ones I remember the most and spent the most time researching or reading about. Your interests and skills will change over the years, and nobody needs to figure out their life in middle school, high school, or even in college.