My friends like to describe me as the most indecisive person ever. I’ve changed my mind on what my major will be at least five times. From marketing to architecture, and from animal science to chemistry, I have been set on a major so many times that nobody ever believes me when I say I’ve made a decision. Right now, my heart is set on both journalism and biology, but who is to say that I won’t change my mind tomorrow.
A lot of our peers enter college with their lives planned out. “I’m pre-med, I’m pre-law, I’m going to be an engineer.” These people stress me out! I can barely decide if I want chicken or steak in my burrito, meanwhile there are people who have known what they want to do with their lives from the time they were eight.
For all of us indecisive people who have no idea what we want to do with our lives, it's OK! We may get a lot of pressure at family gatherings when everyone wants to know what our careers will be, but it is totally alright if we are still figuring it out. That is what college is for!
I think the best part about college classes is to be able to explore so many different topics. Gen-Ed requirements exist for the indecisive people like you and me. You will never know if your passion is until you try it. Maybe you’ll find your calling in the random philosophy class you only took to fulfill a Gen-Ed, or maybe you’ll realize engineering really isn’t for you. It is OK to change your mind. No matter what happens, college is the time to figure out what your goals and passions are and to get an education. There is no need to put so much pressure on yourself to plan out your entire life when you are only 18 to 22 years old.
A recent study shows that 32 percent of college graduates never even work in the field related to their degree. That means one in three of us won’t even use this degree that we are paying so much for. This doesn’t mean the degree is totally worthless; an education is an incredibly smart investment, but it does put the importance of choosing your major into perspective.
One major importance of getting a degree, that is often overlooked, is to grow as an individual. Just taking the time to learn something that will allow you to grow is a step in the right direction. This will eventually help you to figure out what to do with the rest of your life, even if you have absolutely no idea right now.
College isn’t just about deciding what to do with our lives, it is also about enjoying this extremely exciting time. We’ve all heard so many times -- “college is the best four (or more) years of your life!” We don’t want to look back on our time in college and think about how stressed out we were about making a decision. So sit back, figure out what your passions are, and enjoy the ride.
