Collegiates, you know the feeling: a well-meaning friend or family member asks you a question about your future, and you suddenly wish you could just go back to bed and hide under your covers. Your 4+ years in college will involve a ton of decision making, and it seems all too easy to stress over it. One of the worst offenders is a question you’ll hear from the moment you get your acceptance letter: “So, what are you majoring in?”
Are you overwhelmed, torn between a few majors, or have absolutely no idea? Don’t panic! Few people are lucky enough to effortlessly know what they want to do for the rest of their lives. Plenty of students come to Hofstra undecided and only declare their majors towards the end of their sophomore years. This means that your freshman and sophomore years are ideal for creativity and flexibility in your courses. Take the opportunity! Sign up for new classes, explore your interests, or learn about that one subject that has always piqued your curiosity.
Thankfully, you won’t have to make these decisions entirely on your own. Your transcript may still brand you “undecided,” but that doesn’t mean you’re floating aimlessly through college. You’ll balance out those “why not” classes with the distribution courses that every student needs in order to graduate. Plus, there are a ton of people you’ll turn to for advice as you sort yourself out. Academic advisors, Career Center employees, and major faculty advisors are there to soothe your academic nerves and narrow down your career path.
Bottom line: major indecision will not doom you. It will not commit the unspeakable sin of preventing you from a timely graduation. In fact, it can be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. You might end up declaring a major in something you’d never given a thought to before. Or you might simply find a real sense of focus and passion toward that “I dunno… English, maybe?” mentality you’d had on day one. Either way, learning from your undecided days can be a great step toward a bright future.