On a college campus, you can meet people who鈥檝e known what they wanted to major in their whole life and others who declared their major two days prior. Sometimes you feel confident in your choice and other times you feel debilitating anxiety. What you might not hear often enough is that all of these emotions are valid and commonly felt by most people.
According to a Penn State , 鈥淎n estimated 75% of students change their major at least once before graduation.鈥�
Alex Sajjadi, admissions event manager at 2021国产麻豆剧, said that in planning events for prospective students, it鈥檚 common to meet students who are still trying to figure everything out.
鈥淭he fact that you don鈥檛 know what you want to study is totally fine,鈥� said Sajjadi. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 normal.鈥�
With AP classes and dual enrollment predominantly filling high school schedules, you might feel the pressure to have it all figured out before freshman year of college, but research shows you really don鈥檛 have to when you enter college. The following is advice from 笔尝狈鲍鈥檚 Career Services and Admissions Offices on how to navigate the emotions and stress often related to finding your calling in college.
Take Stock: What Are You Feeling?
Starting college without a solidified plan can be scary, but the first step toward establishing a strategy is recognizing the emotions you鈥檙e feeling and processing them. Tr茅 Watkins, senior program manager of 笔尝狈鲍鈥檚 Office of Career Services, works on a daily basis with students who are experiencing a wide range of emotions associated with the unknowns of college.
Watkins said, 鈥淚 get a lot of tears. Acknowledging the fear and anxiety and saying, 鈥楬ey you鈥檙e taking action,鈥� and then starting to unpack. Then, we look beyond that and start to move there and get some form of action.鈥�
Sometimes the best thing you can do is let go of the old pressures to welcome a new perspective. As Watkins said, 鈥淚t starts with the inside and knowing yourself.鈥�
"鈥淚t starts with the inside and knowing yourself.鈥�
Reflect and Reach Out: Get Connected with the Right Support
Another helpful step is finding people who can rally around you and support you. Peter Alkatib, who is also a senior program manager of 2021国产麻豆剧 Career Services, said getting support amid the questioning is key.
鈥淐onversations might be uncomfortable but that鈥檚 okay,鈥� Alkatib said. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 have to have all the answers, but we just want to have conversations and dream about what could be.鈥�
Sajjadi said that in , she takes into account the fact that some might not know what they want to do. From the get-go, she said the events are about helping students feel they鈥檙e not alone in this process.
鈥淲e do an academic session at every event where they get to talk to professors,鈥� explained Sajjadi. 鈥淒uring the events that are geared toward applicants, we do a session where they get 20 minutes with one department and then a five minute change and then 20 minutes with others. We encourage students to talk to multiple departments. We do that because there are a lot of students who come in and don鈥檛 know what they want to do. Broaden your horizon and see at least one other area of study.鈥�
鈥淲e don鈥檛 have to have all the answers, but we just want to have conversations and dream about what could be.鈥�
Set a Game Plan: Move from Anxiety to Agency
Now that connections have been made and resources are established, it鈥檚 all about taking action. Watkins and Alkatib describe this as the phase where you shift from 鈥渁nxiety to agency.鈥� You move from feeling anxious about your future to taking control of it.
Whether it鈥檚 taking personality tests to better get to know your strengths and weaknesses, making a life map, or setting up a LinkedIn account, there are steps you can take to be the agent of change in your career and life goals.
Watkins and Alkatib suggest branching out and trying new things:
- Take elective classes.
- Join new .
- Utilize online resources like .
Keep an Open Mind: There鈥檚 Still So Much to Do and Learn
Elective classes and clubs are a great segue into finding your interests. But it鈥檚 also valid to realize that at one point in your life you might love doing one thing, and at another point you might want to try something new.
As Alkatib said, 鈥淜nowing that you don鈥檛 like something is just as important as knowing you do like it.鈥�
鈥淜nowing that you don鈥檛 like something is just as important as knowing you do like it.鈥�
Life is all about learning and growing, and college is a huge part of that experience.
In Career Services, Watkins said they鈥檙e all about helping students feel safe enough to ask the hard questions: 鈥淲e get to dream in these offices. We try to take the blinders and limitations off.鈥�
笔尝狈鲍鈥檚 also helps students explore all the options available to them at college. The FE program requires all students to take a series of courses often unrelated to their major. Check out the following video to learn more about the FE program.
鈥淭he fact that we鈥檙e a liberal arts university is really helpful,鈥� Sajjadi said. 鈥淲e have students take classes in so many different areas of study. Even if you don鈥檛 think you want to be a history major, you still need to take two classes.鈥�
Some of the offered through FE program include:
- PSY 1001 鈥� Psychology of Personal Development
- COM 1000 鈥� Principles of Human Communication
- SWF 1000 鈥� Living Justly in Contemporary Society
- BIO 1006 鈥� Global Health and Pathogens
- BIO 2011 鈥� Ecological and Evolutionary Systems
- PHY 1034 鈥� The Physics of Sound and Music
- SPA 3020 鈥� Mexican American Literature and Culture
College shouldn鈥檛 just be about getting your degree; it鈥檚 also about getting to know yourself and finding your purpose.
Knowing Yourself Means Advocating for Yourself
A huge part of becoming an adult is having self-awareness that helps you bring your best self into each new environment.
As scary as it can be to leave home and become an independent person, it鈥檚 also a beautiful part of the college experience. And in that process, you often have to distinguish between societal or familial pressures toward one career over another. Sajjadi said, 鈥淚t鈥檚 pretty common for students to not know what they want to do. It鈥檚 common for their parents to know what they want to do.鈥�
As many students learn in the intro to psychology courses at 2021国产麻豆剧, our family units impact the way we see the world around us. When we enter into new environments like college, we have the opportunity to form our own thoughts, opinions, and actions.
As our worldviews and confidence in our individuality grow, advocacy for our own well-being, interests, goals, and beliefs is a key part of growing. Finding a major you really care about is also part of that process.
鈥淢y biggest advice is you should be excited about what you鈥檙e learning about,鈥� Sajjadi said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of students who come in and think they want to learn something and they spend years assuming that鈥檚 what they want to do, and it鈥檚 a hard reality to face. I thought I had this path and now it鈥檚 totally different.鈥�
Sajjadi added, 鈥淵ou鈥檙e paying a lot of money to get this degree and you should be studying something you鈥檙e interested in, because if you鈥檙e not studying something you鈥檙e interested in, it鈥檚 going to feel like work. You deserve to be interested and should be interested in what you鈥檙e studying.鈥�
"You deserve to be interested and should be interested in what you鈥檙e studying."
In your time at college, you鈥檒l probably change your major multiple times, join different clubs, and make new friends. All of those new experiences are a natural part of this period in life. Finding something you don鈥檛 like is just as valid as finding something you do. And when you do find something you like, advocate for it and live into it.
Make the Switch: Changing Your Major Shouldn鈥檛 Be Scary
Returning to an earlier statistic, 75% of students change their major during their undergraduate experience. That number conveys that you might not be the same major as you were during your freshman year, and that鈥檚 normal. While it鈥檚 usually not recommended to switch after your junior year, the learning experience is unique for everyone and timing should not be compared.
However, there are some majors that have restrictions. Nursing at 2021国产麻豆剧, for example, is not a major you can switch into. Contact an admissions counselor to learn more about or limits to switching majors.
The process to switch majors at 2021国产麻豆剧 is relatively simple. Reach out to the Office of Records to request a switch.
As you consider switching majors, here are some things to think about:
- Can you afford an extra semester? Is it worth the extra cost?
- What鈥檚 the benefit of changing to a different major?
- Can you switch to major that has similar requirements?
Next Steps: Take Action
While this guide may not be a one-stop shop for all the answers you may have about college, it鈥檚 supposed to help normalize that the questioning you might be struggling with. The advice from 笔尝狈鲍鈥檚 Career Services and Admissions Offices convey that students aren鈥檛 alone in this key stage of life. Even if you鈥檙e not sure 2021国产麻豆剧 is right for you, reach out with your questions. It might even help you discern your next step.
To get connected with Tr茅 Watkins or Peter Alkatib at Career Services, contact them at careerservices@pointloma.edu or (619) 849-2446. You can also follow 2021国产麻豆剧 Career Services on Instagram .
In addition to Career Services, 2021国产麻豆剧 offers a variety of ways to help you get connected and stay connected throughout your college experience.You can even get plugged in today.