Your Major is a Minor Issue

Edited by: Suhavi Bajwa

June of my senior year in high school, I signed my acceptance letter and determined my future.

Within a matter of months, I was having a quarter-life crisis. I wasn’t sure if medicine was what I wanted to pursue, but it felt too late, because what else am I to do with a science degree? I wanted to pursue photography, integrated media, and material arts, but I also wanted more structure in both my academic and personal life.

I played it safe and chose science, almost as if I had been rushed into my decision. Everyone else seemed like they already had it all figured out, while I felt as though I had done absolutely nothing to figure out my life. I became insecure.  

In high school, I knew that I enjoyed science, but I couldn’t think of any other options other than medicine. I felt that I had chosen the wrong major, and I had no one to blame. My parents weren’t strict enough to tell me what to do and gave me the option to choose any major. I settled with the one I felt the most confident and safe with, rather than taking a risk and choosing something else. 

In retrospect, it was naive of me to believe that I, a seventeen-year-old girl, could decide what she wanted to do for the rest of her life. Who’s to blame? Most of us tend to associate biology with medicine, psychology with therapy, and political science with law, and with this understanding, we are told to choose. 

When you’re passionate about something, your major becomes a minor issue. What you make of your major matters more than what your major shows on paper. During my first year, I worked as a server at two restaurants where I met a lot of people with all types of careers and trajectories. I’ve talked to a handful of people, and the conversations would often start with: 

 “You go to school around here, hun?”  

and I’d place their plate down, blushing, but excited to talk about my academic and career dilemmas—I got in trouble at both restaurants for talking too much. 

Then, they would share what they did academically compared to what they do now, and most people worked in fields that weren’t directly related to their field of study. One woman even sat me down once with her business card to reach out after talking about possible careers related to my program. 

I felt lost in my major because there was no clear path laid out for me. Everyone assumes that science majors want to pursue medicine, and I allowed these social norms to guide my own decisions. I felt pressured and the path I was going down felt inauthentic and untrue to myself. I kept searching to find meaning within my degree, especially in my days where I consumed calculus and physics material that I hardly found any interest in. I yearned for something that would excite me while desperately hoping I wouldn’t lose my creativity in the slumps of calculus midterms. 

To explore pathways within my program, I joined the co-op experience that allowed me to explore my curiosities during my undergrad. I joined clubs that allowed me to continue my creatives outside of my major like writing (thank you HerCampus), and hosting shows on our campus radio, which also allowed me to meet people from different academic areas. 

Third year came by and immunology stood in front of me, light shining from its back, lip biting, and winking at me..? Finally, I found a meaning in my program. Although I was unhappy with my initial decision to choose this major, I began to realize that my choices within the major mattered more. Pursuing opportunities beyond what my program offered me was the key to finding a sense of purpose amid immense discouragement. I was fulfilled academically and personally. 

At school, I would meet students in my program preparing for the LSAT, exploring business or education, and diving into interdisciplinary studies. Choosing one major does not mean you have to give up everything else. Your undergraduate degree also provides you with time to explore different pathways within, or outside of your program. 

Rather than believing that your major will be useless, volunteer and find extracurricular activities that you like! Talking amongst your peers also allows you to enlighten to new pathways you were never aware of. The skills you develop within your major will be transferrable wherever you go. Putting the effort to find interdisciplinary subjects that work in harmony with your major is the nichest thing a student can do, and it’s the only time being niche matters! 

It’s completely okay to not know what you’re doing, whether you’re 19, 20, 21, or even 25. You’re not behind because you’re figuring out what you like, and you’re certainly not behind compared to someone else. Comparison is genuinely a thief of joy; I learned it the hard way. The process of actively seeking out your interests will provide you with a unique set of skills that you’ll be able to apply in your major. You are the mold, don’t let your degree shape you! 

From trial and error in finding my interests, discovering research pathways, I believe that Life Sciences was the best choice I could’ve ever made. I’m sorry I ever doubted you Life Sci… 

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• hobbies
• major
• personal reflection
• undergraduate