Let’s go back about 10 years. When I was little, I was obsessed with the ocean. I always wanted to be at the beach, in the water with my dad (usually getting knocked over by waves, while he was standing up perfectly fine and my mom was on the beach laughing at us), and I LOVED dolphins.Â
After watching the movie “Dolphin Tale”, it blossomed my love for marine biology. When my parents and I went on vacation to Florida, we visited the Clearwater Marine Aquarium where the dolphins Winter and Hope took residence, and after that it was decided. I was going to pursue a career in marine biology.Â
It’s important to know that at this time, I thought marine biology was just swimming around with dolphins and turtles, taking care of them all day. 11-year-old me didn’t think about the fact that I was not the greatest at science. So a few years after that, I ultimately decided that marine biology wasn’t for me (no more swimming with dolphins, L).
Once I was in high school, I started watching the very popular series “Criminal Minds”. I was fascinated by how they profiled their suspects (and Derek Morgan, but that’s for another time). I watched that show at least five times, and I never got tired of it.Â
This then led me to decide I wanted to major in forensic psychology and become a profiler for the FBI. It’s safe to say I was setting the bar high, but I was passionate about psychology so I figured I could achieve it. So, I applied to nine different universities with the decided major of psychology with a minor in criminology.Â
Now I’m here at St. Bonaventure, still a psychology major but no longer a criminology minor. After taking an investigative psychology course the fall semester of my freshman year, I decided that the route of forensic psychology might be a bumpy road full of potholes that haven’t been paved in years, and I should probably veer off down another path.Â
Fast forward to the beginning of fall semester junior year (last semester), I was sitting in my psychology statistics 201 class, listening to one of the professors from the occupational therapy program talk about their master program. This instantly lit a fire inside of me and I knew OT was what I was meant to do.Â
I’ve always loved kids and helping others, so the Early Involvement (birth to three years) route was the best option for me. After I made my final decision about my future, it felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders because now I am confident that this is what I want to do until I’m old and gray and must retire.Â
So change your mind, take courses on topics that interest you, and then change your mind again. You’re young, there is so much time to decide what you want your future to look like. Remember you only live once, so you might as well spend that time doing something you love.Â