Been there. Done that. A lot.
It’s kind of a running joke between my friends and I that no one ever knows what my major is because I change it before enough people know to have a consensus.
I came in my first semester as a Psych major, hated it. It wasn’t at all what I was expecting and I didn’t like it. So I changed to Interdisciplinary Business with a Concentration in Pre-Law, I liked my classes, but couldn’t pass Pre-Calc. After two tries, I decided business obviously wasn’t for me. So I ditched that and went to Political Science thinking I’d go full speed Pre-Law. I liked my classes, liked the department, and I thought, and still think, I’d love to be a lawyer. But the problem is the things I want out of my life-to have kids and spend tons of time with them, to have hobbies, to go to the gym, to cook dinner every night, to have a consistent schedule-don’t fit with the demands of that job. That’s not to say people can’t do it, people can, but I don’t think I could, at least not do it all and still be happy. I always knew what career I chose was never the most important thing for me as long as in all aspects of my life overall I was happy.
So, long story short, back to the drawing board for me. So I thought; what do I think I’d be happy doing, and makes the most sense for everything I want out of life? I came back to the same answer I always have; I want to be a teacher. Hard, but rewarding, your work comes home with you, but it can be full of stickers and learning and lesson planning and fun. And even though my work may come home with me sometimes, my clocked in hours are reasonable and I’ll have time to do at least most of the things I want. This is obviously a rosier painted picture, but the point remains.
Well, because I took so long deciding, I can’t be an education major, but that’s okay. I’m majoring in my subject area, history, something I’ve always liked but knew I’d only major in if I taught it. Then, I’ll go to grad school for education. I have to take a different route but I can still get there. The point of this long story is for anyone who may be thinking they want to change your major, know that it’s okay. You can change it because you don’t like it, because you can’t pass a class, because you like the classes but can’t see yourself doing the job, because you think you’d like the job but hate the classes.
You can change your major for whatever reason you want because it’s your life and your future career. Besides, there are plenty of people who get jobs that have nothing to do with their college major. Choosing the wrong major is not the end of the world and never stick with one just because you feel like you’re not trying hard enough or you don’t want to give up. Everyone is in specialized areas now and everything isn’t for everyone. So what do you do? How do you know? Talk to your professors. They see how you learn, they can tell if you’re interested or not and might be able to point you in the right direction. Talk to your advisors; if I change my major how will affect my classes? My graduation date? Is it realistic for me to do an extra semester? Do I want to study abroad? Would I still be able to?
Talk to your friends; they know you, they can tell you if you’re bombing a class because you hate the material or because you’ve never actually looked at it. And most importantly, reflect on yourself. Know what you want, know your priorities, and know what subject area motivates you. What makes you want to go to class? What makes you want to do your homework? What makes you care? Follow those answers.