There is always some tension between differing majors on a college campus. It is often noted that STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) majors struggle the most because of the rigorous classes they have to take. That being said, there is now a certain archetype that has been bestowed upon STEM majors. This archetype normally consists of expecting the individual to be extremely smart, devote all of their time to their studies, and have little to no free time. Although this description may hold some truth, it also creates some unrealistic standards.
Starting with the off-the-wall intelligence– this specific characteristic may not necessarily be all that demonizing. For a STEM major to succeed, you will need to know or be good at what you want to study; otherwise, all your hard work will be wasted.Ā However, there are those who expect STEM majors to have a 4.0 GPA and excel in all of their courses. This is where the unrealistic standard comes in. Being “super smart” will ultimately entail some struggle in courses. Of course, there are those who really are just naturally brilliant and will absorb knowledge easier than the rest– but not everyone will be like this. It can be especially difficult when someone comes into an undergraduate general chemistry class after only taking a chemistry class in high school that was poorly funded. Students who major in STEM come from diverse backgrounds that may not prepare them well for STEM coursework.
Following into the next couple of characteristics: devoting any time to studying and having little to no free time. It should be said that yes– if anyone wants to succeed, putting in the work to study is ideal. It should also be taken into consideration that these students are also in college and that free time is essential to them, especially students in STEM. If one spends too much time constantly looking at the same material, it induces burn-out much faster. Feeling burnt out is sincerely not fun and no one wants to go through that. It seems as if free time is not emphasized within this community. Breathing and taking the time to yourself is just as important as studying your material.
Now, I also wanted to bring the STEM archetype where these specific students may take it too far. What I mean by this is those who are aware of what comes with being a STEM major, but also being obnoxious about it. These specific people will uphold themselves above all college majors because they are aware of the rigor. They will sometimes demean other majors and claim that being a STEM major is much worse than any other major because of all the hard work they put in. Now, who’s to say they are lying? The problem, though, is that they are invalidating the hard work Non-STEM majors put in. Any college degree, any college major involves hard work and no one should feel like what they do is rudimentary.
With all of this, I want to emphasize that we should work on reducing the STEM major stigma. It creates unnecessary stress and unrealistic guidelines. Not to say that anyone can be a STEM major, but that those who want to pursue a career in STEM should not be steered away from it because of the stigma that follows.