How do you know what you want to major in? Any suggestions?

Question

I can't decide what I want to do in life, but I'm not sure if its the right choice or something I'll enjoy. Anyone have any input? Thanks!

Answer 1

This is what I did when I was in your situation, and it seemed to help me out a lot! Hopefully it will help you too...

*Print out the list of majors that the college you are attending offers (it can found on their website).

*Once you have the list, sit down and cross out the majors that you know for sure you would NOT be interested in, leaving the ones that you are or might be interested untouched. (I was left with about 6-7 majors to look at once I was done.)

*Look into those majors and see what information you can find about them. A good place to look is the college's department website for each major. Another really good website is: http://www.princetonreview.com/college/research/majors/majorSearch.asp
Here, you can look at the different aspects of the major (fun facts, sample curriculum, graduate programs/careers, etc)

*Try taking some intro classes to the ones you are most interested in so that you can get a feel for what it is like and what kinds of things you will be learning.

*Along with looking at the curriculum & requirements for each major, look at other aspects that could help you make your decision, such as: careers associated (Would I like the jobs associated with this major?), job placement (Will it be easy or hard to get a job in this field after college?), average income (How much money would I like or need to make in order to sustain a certain lifestyle?). Also, try interviewing people that currently work in the careers you are interested in to find out what a day in their life is like, how much work they put into it, what the benefits are, what they do/don't like about their job, etc...

*More information on careers can be found in the link above as well (here it is again: http://www.princetonreview.com/college/research/majors/majorSearch.asp) Once you click on the major that you are interested in, if you look on the left and click "graduate programs and careers" it will take you to a list of related careers and when you click on each of them it will give you a wide range of useful information about them that includes the following:
Day in the Life
Quality of Life
Past & Future
Facts & Figures
Majors
Graduate Programs
Internships
Career Search

I hope this helps! Best of luck. : )

Answer 2

What we may identify as being "joyful" at the beginning of our college education may not always be pragmatic.

When students do find their field of interest, they generally show a curiosity beyond levels expressed in other courses/fields. An appreciation for the subject matter develops into a feeling of being "the right choice" and will generally bring enjoyment.

I'm not sure where you are at in your undergraduate education, but if you are a first or second year, fret not. If you truly have NO idea what you would like to do, try visiting your career counselor at your University. Also, try and take a variety of classes that sound interesting to you (read the course catalogs, or have a chat with the professors before enrolling).

Also, evaluate the time you are spending outside of school. For an hour a day, try researching something you think you may be interested in -- job opportunities and descriptions of various fields.

You will begin to notice themes developing in your coursework over time. If you haven't had an 'ah-ha' moment, these themes will generally lead you to some sort of enlightened feeling of knowing.

Best of luck.

Answer 3

Generally, people choose a major for one of several reasons. It may be something which will prepare them for a particular career (engineering or accounting, for example), something which develops a particular talent which they already have (music or theater), something which interests them (history or philosophy), or something which will give them a particular skill which might be useful in a range of directions which they might take in life (languages or math). You shouldn't do something you absolutely hate, but realize that no work is 100% wonderful. Even the person with the most wonderful job has to give up other things s/he might be doing to go to work and occasionally has to deal with horrible people. If you think you might enjoy a particular major, there are a few things you can do. One is to talk to faculty in that department about what the major leads to and what will be required as you get into higher level courses (psychology majors, for example, often enjoy Psych 101, but bail out when it comes to statistics or neuropsych courses). Another thing you could do would be to talk to your school's career center about doing an informational interview. That is where you talk to a professional in the field about what they do. Most people like talking about themselves, and it could give you a good sense of what the job is like. Know that most people change majors sometime during their college careers, and if you make the wrong choice, it won't be fatal!

Answer 4

Figuring out what to major in is different for everyone. Some people know exactly what they want to do and go straight for it. Others, like yourself, really aren't sure what they see themselves doing for a career. The thing to do is this:
1. Check results of your ACT/SAT scores and see where your strengths are located according to the tests.
2. Talk to your academic adviser about a career interest inventory. That will give you some really good ideas.
3. Remember that you may end up in a completely different field then the one you major in at college. That happens to many people. The most important thing to do is to get that diploma. Employers want to know that you have had the endurance to stick with a program and see it through to the end. This tells them that you have the potential to be a great employee. Good luck!

Answer 5

seem, a important and/or an undergraduate degree would not define your total profession! in case you love to do "criminal profiling", that's regulation enforcement! they do no longer hire undergraduates out of faculty to be "criminal profilers"! purely like they do no longer make "rookie police officers" detectives! in spite of a level, in regulation enforcement you nevertheless could desire to put in it sluggish and earn your "strips" on the streets. i could additionally advise you spend it sluggish in the militia. To get the place you like to flow will take time and annoying artwork! Getting your degree is purely one small step in the approach.