Picture this: you’re starting your freshman year of college, and you know that your major was meant for you. Ever since you were a kid, people have told you that this was what you wanted, what you were good at, and what you were meant to do.
Then you get to college, and it makes you miserable. So despite that major being all you ever knew, you switch to something totally different, and it makes all the difference.
Of course, not everyone’s story is the same. But that’s exactly what went down the first semester of my freshman year. I was always good at my English classes, I was good at writing essays, and everyone always told me that I should major in English when I eventually get to college. And when I did get to college? I realized that I actually hate reading these boring books and writing essays on them. It meant nothing to me. On a whim, I changed my major to Linguistics, and now I enjoy my classes so much more and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for me in this new career path!
Like I said, it isn’t always that easy. But here are some things to consider if the thought of changing your major ever comes to mind.
- If you were totally, completely, 100% happy with your major, you wouldn’t be considering changing it in the first place. Everyone has their doubts, but if you’re having serious thoughts and feeling restless and useless, it might be time to look at what you’re doing with your education. It should not feel like boring, useless busywork!
- What do you want to do as a career after college? How will your major help you get to that goal? I want to be a teacher after I graduate, and that is partially how I realized English wasn’t going to get me where I wanted to be, even if it felt like an easy way out because writing essays came easily to me. It’s a long story, but since I specifically want to teach English as a second language, the Linguistics major with the TESOL pathway was more closely related than simply English or Education!
- Consult your academic advisor! Both for working out your plans on how to complete all of your credits on time, and just with general concerns. They are there for a reason, and thinking about a major change is definitely something they can help with.
- Talk to your friends too! They can offer a perspective that’s very different from a professional’s, and sometimes that’s needed. Friends can read your feelings and perhaps provide a different side to what you’ve been seeing.
- Think about what you might want to change your major to. Is there something specific that has piqued your interest? Are you just unhappy with your current major? If so, what about your current major don’t you enjoy?
- Consider a minor if you’re really unsure! A minor requires much less work and credits, and it’s an opportunity to try something out without a bigger commitment. Plus, you can always change your minor to your major later on if you do end up liking it–that’s what I did!
Lastly, I will leave you with this reminder. It’s normal to change your major, especially as you grow up and change throughout your college years. I know people who have changed their major more times than they can count on their fingers, people who have dropped out of college because it wasn’t for them, people who changed their major once and it was a perfect fit. I only know two people that have stuck to their original majors thus far, and I’m still a freshman.
It can be really hard and scary to make such a big decision, especially when the thought first pops into your head. But if you consult your advisors, it’s an easy thing to work through, and there’s always the back-up net of going back to your original plan if you end up liking that better. Life is too short to be stuck with something that will only make you miserable!