“What do you want to be when you grow up?”
Throughout the years, I have given many different answers to this question. The answers included but are not limited to veterinarian, doctor, teacher, and lawyer. No one answer has ever truly stuck, and to be honest, I still have no idea. While I have definitely ruled certain fields out, I am still exploring what I want to do with the rest of my life. After all, how am I supposed to know? I’m only nineteen.
When I was applying to college, I was in a panic. Not only was I trying to decide what college I wanted to attend, but I was also trying to choose what major to apply for. Did I want to be a lawyer, a doctor, a businesswoman? I had no idea. I felt utterly trapped and stressed. I wished I was one of those people that just felt called to a certain profession, but I am not. I decided this was not the result of me being indecisive, rather I just had many interests. I didn’t completely love any school subject, but I liked pretty much everything a moderate amount. I had no idea if I would rather pursue a life of writing stories or a life of crunching numbers. I thought I was crazy for not knowing what I wanted to do with my life, but I have come to realize that there was absolutely nothing wrong with that.
However, I did not come to that realization until recently. In fact, I spent the vast majority of freshman year stressing out that there was something wrong with me. My confusion on what my major should be did not end with my college acceptance. In fact, the major I applied for, biology, was not even my major when I showed up on campus in August. During the summer before freshman year, I panicked and realized I was not interested in biology. Not knowing what else to do, I switched majors to Applied Math, which I thought I genuinely could have liked. Two weeks into the first semester, I knew that I would need to change my major yet again. To say I was stressed was an understatement. I had no idea what I wanted to study let alone what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. While people stressed about the career fair, I stressed about what career I wanted in general. I felt so lost.
During second semester, I switched majors yet again to Economics, which I genuinely liked; however, I felt called to apply to the Mendoza College of Business over the summer. I worked so hard on the application, hoping that I would finally find the right major for me. With my acceptance to the Mendoza College of Business, I had officially been a student in three colleges: the College of Science, the College of Arts and Letters, and now the Mendoza College of Business.
Although it was a long journey, I now feel very happy with where I am now, and I am finally confident that I am in the right place. I am optimistic about the future, and I know that I will find my way.
I wish that freshmen knew that it was totally ok to switch majors like this. So if you are a freshman reading this and you cannot figure out what major you want to pursue, just know that it is going to be ok. There is nothing wrong with you. Keep pushing and you will find your way. Not everyone is as sure as they seem and you will end up exactly where you are supposed to be.
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