We’ve all had dreams. Careers we wanted as kids. Princess, doctor, or in my case: astronaut. I thought I wanted this more than anything in the world, but the truth is—well—my passions didn’t align with the job description. My dilemma is not unique, and it’s one that most college students have. I think we all came to college starstruck by at least one idea or another. The thought of changing these dreams? Scary.
Figuring out what you want to do is hard enough when you’re surrounded by your friends and classes are in person. For those of us who had to do this during a pandemic, forget it. Trying to pinpoint what you didn’t like was impossible. Is it the fact that I was forced to trade in my friends for my parents and whiny siblings? Is it the fact that I’m trying to do a three-hour lab on zoom? Is it the constant string of bad news, such as the earth dying and rent never being affordable? I know I’m not the only one who struggled with these thoughts.
For me, it turned out that I wasn’t just done with zoom. I was done with the class material, the labs, all of it. I had changed a lot over the course of the pandemic, and I’m willing to bet you did too. I realized that I didn’t want the major I thought I did anymore—and it was okay. It was okay that my goals and ideas of a good life had changed, and it’s okay if you changed too. What isn’t okay? Forcing yourself to follow dreams that aren’t serving your best interests anymore.
The truth is, you shouldn’t stay in any situation that forces you to compromise yourself. You shouldn’t stick with something that doesn’t make you happy anymore! It’s much better to follow your passions, even if they end up changing your dreams. Changing your course is possible at any stage, but if there’s any time when you should play around with what you like, it’s college.