Halfway through my University degree, I've realized I hate my major. What should I do?

Question

I hate the courses. I hate the jobs that appear to be available to me (my major is physics). Yet at the same time, I don't know what else I WOULD want to do, should I change my program. I don't really have any interests, or at least any interests that I would want to turn into careers, so don't advise me to "do what I like", because I don't know what that is. I guess what I'm asking is, should I complete the 2 years of classes (+ 4 paid co-op work terms), or should I do something else?

Answer 1

Y'know what? I changed my major when I was a semester away from getting my B.A. I majored in music for 3 1/2 years, b/c I love to sing and play the piano...but I didn't want any of the jobs that came with it. I was unhappy the whole time I majored in music. Then I finally came to my senses and changed over to elementary education, which was where my heart was (in teaching)...and it all worked out fine. And no, I didn't want to teach music. However, just because you don't like your courses and the jobs that you THINK may be available to you, doesn't mean you should change your major. You're only halfway through. What made you major in physics in the first place? There had to have been something about it that really appealed to you. Something that excited you. Perhaps you're just into the long, hard, tedium that comes with any major...doing all the hard work...and maybe you've lost sight of the big picture. Even after I changed majors, there was still a measure of drudgery...I didn't "love" every single course I had to take for elem. ed.--in fact, some of them were downright boring. Anyway if it were me, I think I'd probably stick with it a little longer and see if you feel any differently toward the end of this semester/quarter. Maybe you just need a breather; take a semester off, or something, if you can do that. Try to regain sight of the whole picture; of what you're trying to accomplish. If after taking a break and regrouping, and you still feel the same a year down the road, then maybe it would then be time to switch. It's never too late; as per my story above! If nothing else, you'll have quite a bit of knowledge under your belt; and you'll still get paid for those work terms! Good luck!

Answer 2

Doing something you hate is the worst. You have a lot of credits built up, you can salvage them. You will lose the specialized courses though. It's just how it is when you change majors.

You could put college on pause for a short while if you're NOT a procrastinator. During the time off, figure out what it is you like and scan the list of careers that fit those interests.

Are you creative? Maybe you might like advertising.
Are you mathematical? Maybe a statistician for business.
Do you like to be the leader? Try business. Get an MBA.
Are you a good speaker and writer? Try law.

Open your mind up to careers you've previously rejected.

You could also chose a different major but minor in math. You've got a lot of math courses completed, so those could be salvaged with a minor.

Ex: Major/Minor
computer science/statistics
computer science/analysis
business/statistics
chemistry/physics
geology/physics
economics/mathematics
engineering/mathematics

Answer 3

I had almost the same thing happen to me. I was a history major and then just randomly decided to switch. I ended up double majoring in Sociology & Psychology. I hated Sociology with a passion, but I did enjoy my work in Psychology. At my 4th year, I ended up regretting not doing History.

My suggestion is that you change majors to something more broad and more general. Something that you know won't keep you in college for another quarter/semester/year, and you should at least minor in Physics, since you have all the lower division done. Keep in mind that all Social Science degrees pay off the same way, and it is a matter of having a diploma, not the major, that matters to employers.

Good luck.

Answer 4

Hi, I suggest that you either find another major that you at least would enjoy a bit more (regardless of the available jobs) just to get your degree - make sure you can transfer all of your existing credits. OR, stick with your major and by the time you are out in the working world you will figure out a career pretty quickly (process of elimination) and then either go back to grad school or get a second undergrad degree.

Answer 5

Finish off this semester and drop out of college for a full year with the purpose of trying out different jobs and giving it some good hard thought about what degree you want.

Switching to another degree when you only know what you DON'T want to do is counter productive. You have to find out what you DO want to do, or at least what you can TOLERATE doing every day for the next 10-20 years of your life.

Take the year off. You'll be glad you did.

Answer 6

forhgt about educating yourself for a career. you have discovered why this is crap. just study what you like and forget how you can use it in a job. careerism is destroying education. if you follow your heart you will eventually make a contribution and be rewarded with satisfaction and fulfillment.
if you now lnow ho much pain is caused by studying things for the wrong reason imagine what it is like to live a life of work in doing things you hate or do not care about. you can make money or get a good job without any degree so dont worry about it. college is for learning about life and the world and youself, not getting ready to be a corporate employee or rich nusinessman. many of the billionaires of today never finished college, such as bill gates. you can make money without education trust me. but you cannot fully savor life when you are stupid and uneducated . so study to learn, not to work. surely you can find SOMETIHING you enjoy to study. never lmd graduating. just learn you fool learn
soon you will e old and wonder where the time went and why you are such a fool. never stop learning. yoiuth is the ideal time to enjoy education and the college scene. dig it while you can. worry about work alaer. there is plenty of work to do.
you may get a million dollar idea while studying what you like.

Answer 7

I was in the same boat, However not as hard as your major. I major in social work in undergraduate and hated it. But i continued with it cause the classes were easy. Unfortunately you can not make any money in social work unless you get a masters. so i went to graduate school. Not to earn a masters in something i am not interested in, but infact to earn a masters. It does not matter what your degree is in (unless it law or medical) just as long as you have the degree. you can switch to another field once you graduate, People change jobs and areas of interest everyday. The is to get that piece of paper. That is the bottom line. It does not make you any smarter than someone else w/o one, it doesn't make you better than them either, it just gives you a better situation than not having one. Get the degree

Answer 8

Definitely go directly to an academic advisor and your dean. You need help to find out what credits are transferable to which majors. I did the same thing about half way through my college career -- I did have to put in some time at summer school as well as an extra semester, but it was worth it.

Answer 9

I had the same thing happen to me when I was in college, and when I was finished and started my job in the field, I fell in love with it. I think you should finish your courses and at least get the degree, you can always go back to school later once you have made up your mind. You can never have too much education. Good luck!

Answer 10

Use your "electives" to try out a variety of subjects. I did the same thing. I started off in Marine Biology and in my third year I switched to Sociology...so it's never too late. The only thing is that you may need to take a couple of courses over the summer to make up your credits. Good luck!