Tips from a CU junior: Don’t stress about declaring a major right now
Ever get that feeling where suddenly your whole life flashes before your eyes? I have. In fact, I did right before I came to college. What am I going to school for? What do I want to do after I graduate? What do I plan on doing with my degree?
These are all questions that were thrown at me by friends and family even before I even got to college. My reaction was, “woah. Wait a minute. Hold it. I’m only going to be a freshman! I still have two years to decide what I want to do with my life.” Newsflash freshmen: you have time!
As a junior, I can confidently say what I thought I wanted to do going into college is not at all what I ended up pursuing. Growing up, I knew I wanted to be a teacher. I was a camp counselor for four years, I loved babysitting, and in high school I helped student teach at my old elementary school. I was admitted into the School of Education here at CU and couldn’t wait to pursue being a teacher.
Then, I had an epiphany. Four weeks before college, I suddenly didn’t want to be a teacher anymore. So, I switched into the College of Media, Communication and Information, and here I am two years later pursuing my advertising degree!
It is perfectly okay to not know what your major is right now. It is actually very common. Many students don’t declare a major right away, and a majority of the ones that do end up switching majors.
Two of my peers can back me up on this. “I applied to the Leeds School of Business and didn’t get in. I took a few business classes, then realized that business was not at all what I thought it was. I wanted to do more of the creative side, so switched into the advertising track,`` said Ariana Falco, a junior peer advisor for the Program of Exploratory Studies.
“I switched majors from Arts and Sciences to Engineering based off of my interests,” states Leon Shen, a sophmore peer advisor for the Program of Exploratory Studies.
Both of their experiences was based simply off of trial and error. So, what can you do if you don’t have a major declared in your first semester of college? I asked some of my peers for some advice.
Get involved
Whether it is an artistic expression, social justice, environmental protection or athletic competition that sparks your interest, our 500+ organizations have something for everyone! Go out and explore your interests through our endless clubs and organizations!
Explore different academic programs and areas of interest
“If they have hobbies, or classes that they are interested in, they should explore more of those. They should also meet with a peer advisor to pull out their strengths to see what career path they could potentially go down,” said Ariana.
Try new things
It is important to stay open minded. “Since there are so many diverse classes that you can take, go out and explore all of your options. This means being uncomfortable with a class that you might not initially enjoy, but maybe once you get deeper into the class you could realize it could be a potential new path that you want to pursue,” said Leon.
He’s right. Don’t be afraid to step a little outside of your comfort zone! I went out on a limb and ventured onto the advertising path, and I have not questioned my decision once since.
Remember, you don’t have to have it all figured out right now. Have fun exploring your options!
Katie is a junior at CU Boulder. She is studying advertising in the College of Media, Communication and Information