1. Brainstorm what you're interested in learning.
Most people are interested in multiple disciplines, like Spanish and Psychology or Chemistry and Theater Arts. Despite how different your interests may be, I recommend writing all of them down on a blank piece of paper and start listing everything that you enjoyed learning about.
If this is a difficult question to answer, think about classes that you've taken from different disciplines during your high school and/or your first year of college. Which classes had you engaged in the subject matter and you found yourself putting in extra effort? What classes have you done well in previously?
If this is a difficult question to answer, think about classes that you've taken from different disciplines during your high school and/or your first year of college. Which classes had you engaged in the subject matter and you found yourself putting in extra effort? What classes have you done well in previously?
2. Research career opportunities associated with those majors
Most colleges and universities have a career services department, with staff members to help you learn about the fields. There are various online personality inventories, which will allow you to see which career fields work well for your personality type, like Myers-Brigg.
Additionally, there are multiple online resources for each discipline. I recommend starting with Bureau of Labor Statistic's Occupational Handbook and then searching for professional organizations in those fields.
3. Interview people, who have pursued those majors
This person could be a faculty member/teacher, upperclassmen student about to graduate, alumni of your University, or anyone else that you know. The interview could be in the form of a simple conversation over coffee or lunch, where you learn about their experiences and see if that's something you can see yourself doing. Utilize this as an opportunity to gain inside knowledge and learn about the realities of pursuing a particular major. Make sure to find out about the benefits, disadvantages, and career opportunities associated with that field.
4. Take major specific courses
Some majors sound good in theory, until you get to the class and realize it's different than what you expected. This last step will help you learn first hand if the major is something that you can truly study for the next 4 years. It's important to pay attention to whether you can do well in that course so you don't negatively impact your GPA. If you're repeatedly doing bad in courses in that specific field after you sought out academic help, it may not be a good fit for you. Please let me assure you, that's OK. Everyone has different academic strengths and weaknesses. You want to make sure that your major is in one of your academic strengths, but it still challenges you.
Selecting a major can be a daunting task when you're unclear about what you want to do. However, these four steps are made to help you reflect and determine which major would be a good fit for you. Feel free to share about your experience in the comment section below.
Most colleges and universities have a career services department, with staff members to help you learn about the fields. There are various online personality inventories, which will allow you to see which career fields work well for your personality type, like Myers-Brigg.
Additionally, there are multiple online resources for each discipline. I recommend starting with Bureau of Labor Statistic's Occupational Handbook and then searching for professional organizations in those fields.
3. Interview people, who have pursued those majors
This person could be a faculty member/teacher, upperclassmen student about to graduate, alumni of your University, or anyone else that you know. The interview could be in the form of a simple conversation over coffee or lunch, where you learn about their experiences and see if that's something you can see yourself doing. Utilize this as an opportunity to gain inside knowledge and learn about the realities of pursuing a particular major. Make sure to find out about the benefits, disadvantages, and career opportunities associated with that field.
4. Take major specific courses
Some majors sound good in theory, until you get to the class and realize it's different than what you expected. This last step will help you learn first hand if the major is something that you can truly study for the next 4 years. It's important to pay attention to whether you can do well in that course so you don't negatively impact your GPA. If you're repeatedly doing bad in courses in that specific field after you sought out academic help, it may not be a good fit for you. Please let me assure you, that's OK. Everyone has different academic strengths and weaknesses. You want to make sure that your major is in one of your academic strengths, but it still challenges you.
Selecting a major can be a daunting task when you're unclear about what you want to do. However, these four steps are made to help you reflect and determine which major would be a good fit for you. Feel free to share about your experience in the comment section below.
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