When it comes to college majors, people can be judgmental af. Going to school in Silicon Valley, I’ve seen this firsthand. If you’re anything but some sort of engineering, science, or business major then you’re clearly not doing anything with your life. Well ya know what? I’m a history major, and for anyone out there who cares, I am doing something with my life.
Ever since I was little, I’ve been obsessed with history. I used to read biographies of famous historical women, I got super jazzed about going to presidential libraries on field trips, and I watched National Treasure dozens of times (that one is still true). Coming to college, being a history major seemed like the natural thing to do. Although it took a few tries (okay, more like half a dozen) to actually figure out that it was what I wanted to major in, I eventually picked history with the intention of going to graduate school and getting my PhD.
The stereotype that anyone who is majoring in something in the humanities or social sciences is clearly not doing anything with their life and is planning on mooching off of Daddy seriously irks me. Just because I have to write papers instead of take final exams or give presentations while you build something in lab makes my life easier? While I’m not saying that “sciency” majors are easy by any means (props to all those who can actually understand math and science), I’m just saying that what I do is a different type of hard work, and it shouldn’t be judged as any easier than all the hard work you put in.
Also, since when did applying to graduate school become considered not doing anything with my life? So just because I’m not going to med school to become an award winning neurosurgeon like Derek Shepard or get a law degree to be a kick-ass lawyer like Olivia Pope I’m not doing anything with my life? Think again people. Getting into graduate school is h-a-r-d hard, contrary to popular belief. You wouldn’t believe the amount of people who have asked me “Oh, grad school is hard to get into?” UHM, HELLO YES, YES IT IS. Not only do you have to work your butt off to get a good GPA (C’s get degrees isn’t really an option for me) and get a near stellar GRE score, but just to make life all the more difficult you also have to have some sort of research background all by the time you hit the ripe old age of 22.
Now this is by no means me sh*tting on people who are in STEM majors; I give you guys serious credit for doing something that I would never be able to do. My point with all of this is that people shouldn’t judge each other for their choice in major. College is a time to pursue what you’re passionate about. Whether art history or chemistry is your true joy in life, then as a wise woman once told me “You do you, boo boo.”