*Hint* it has nothing to do with friends or partying!
If you’re anything like me, you went into college with an idea of exactly what your next four years were going to be like. The dorms, clubs, job, and classes were all laid out. It seemed so foolproof, my plan, until it didn’t feel quite right anymore.
I came to ISU as an English education major at the high school level. Needless to say, I am not an English Ed major anymore. I could lie and say some magical shift happened in the middle of the night, or one day I woke up to all signs pointing to changing majors, but it wasn’t like that at all. In fact, it’s extremely difficult and scary to make that leap and do a complete 360 on what you thought you wanted to do for so long. I took education classes in high school and loved them. My teacher was everything I wanted to be, and education felt like a place I could make my mark, and thrive. It wasn’t until I got to college and joined different RSOs than the ones I planned, and got board positions I never thought I’d get, that I started to question if English Ed was going to give me everything I wanted out of a career. I loved writing, I still love writing, and that was my major push to go into English Ed versus some other subject. When I really sat with that, I started to question if that was enough, and then I determined it really wasn’t.
As the first semester was coming to a close, I had no clue what to change my major to, but I knew English education wasn’t the right fit for me. I think had I started in English Ed, I wouldn’t have been so excited to tackle my classes and to look at future jobs. I may always wonder what kind of teacher I would have been, and how I could have impacted students’ lives, but the outlook for teachers just didn’t seem like the best fit for me at this point in my life.
Then, in early February, I did it. I’m now officially a marketing major here at ISU! Once I changed, I never looked back. Marketing, and everything it has to offer career, skill, and creativity wise just fits me. Although toxic to my wallet, I love what it means to be a consumer, what makes things so appealing to people, and being the creative mind behind different types of design. I also love working with people. I know I may not land my dream job right out of college, but taking that leap to do what I believe I will love and be successful at is something I don’t see myself regretting.
There is a big stigma about changing majors, unfortunately. It felt like my own advisor thought I was crazy—but only you know if your major doesn’t feel right. I’m glad I honored those feelings instead of letting my ego or shame get in my way. If we are going to work for the next 45 (or more) years, we might as well figure out where we belong while we can. Try new things, figure out what makes you happy, find out what makes you feel successful, and do that thing! You’ll never regret being happy.