Like many other college students, it took me a while to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. Sad to say, even now, with one semester of college to go, I still am not completely sure of what I want to do. However I do know that one of the best decisions I made during my college years was to switch majors.
I started out at Carnegie Mellon as a music performance major with a double major in history. I know, it’s shocking: I haven’t always been a witty and charming staff writer for Her Campus CMU (note: sarcasm).After two semesters of taking a variety of classes ranging from Eurhythmics and Acting to Intro to Global Studies and 20th Century European History, I realized I did not enjoy what I was doing. Music performance, as it turned out, was a long, never-ending road to perfectionism: a road I quickly realized I did not want to travel for the rest of my life. History, while less stressful than music performance, turned out not to be as interesting as I had expected. At this point I had two options: I could avoid being called a quitter and continue to study subjects I did not enjoy or I could find something I loved to do.
Well, as it turned out the last thing I wanted was to be considered a quitter, so I decided to remain in these two majors. I returned to Carnegie Mellon for my third semester dreading what was ahead of me. I went into a cycle of merely going through the motions of going to class and practicing trumpet. Andrew Carnegie would have been ashamed to see that my heart was simply not in the work. I had no passion for these subjects; they were just the things I studied.
Though I felt miserable about the courses I was enrolled in, I pushed the idea of changing majors out of my mind after I decided to stay with Music Performance and History. It wasn’t until about one month into my semester that the thought popped into my mind again. I was talking to my boyfriend at the time about how stressed I was and complaining about how my majors sucked. He said to me, “If it sucks so much why do you do it? Isn’t that masochism?” Those questions hit me hard and seemed to repeat themselves in my head. Why was I studying these majors? Why was I torturing myself? I could be studying something interesting and finding what I loved to do. It was then that I finally decided to make the change.
It wasn’t easy making the decision to switch majors. Luckily having the support of my friends and family I learned that changing your life plan is not quitting—it’s just reworking it. Looking back on my decision I don’t regret it at all. I have been able to have all kinds of experiences, including planning Orientation 2011 and being New Member Educator for my sorority, that I may not have had if I had remained a musical performance major. If I had not switched I would never have discovered my love for writing and editing as well as multimedia text animation.
My time at Carnegie Mellon has not always been smooth sailing. After changing majors a couple of times I finally found Professional Writing. I still do miss being a trumpet performance major, but when I look at how much happier I am as a Professional Writing major I know changing majors was the right decision. If something is making you miserable it’s not worth it to stick with it merely to avoid being called a quitter. The most important thing is to find something you love and let your passion flourish.
When it comes down to it, if you realize you don’t like your major, don’t wait until your junior or senior year to decide to change. Talk to your academic advisor. He or she will be able to give good advice on what you should do. I suggest taking classes outside of your major. Explore and find things you are passionate about.
– – –
Ashtyn Hemendinger updates her Senior Sendoff monthly with misadventures and lessons she’s learned throughout college, much to the benefit of the rest of us. For more advice from Ashtyn, visit her column.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at CMU chapter.