This fall I began my first semester at the University of New Hampshire. I came in as a student with an undeclared major, by choice. This was because, I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to do just yet. As any undeclared student would do, I searched through the majors the university had to offer, for hours, weekly. Things began to change for me when I discovered that there were many majors that fit my interests. Not to mention, this new transition into college came with so many opportunities to discover my interests. The number of clubs, majors, and intramurals my school has to offer blew my mind. It started to make me realize that I like a lot of things and that I wanted to get my feet wet and try some of them out. I thought to myself that this would help me decide who I am and what I want to do with my time here.
As I am now sitting in my dorm room mid-way through my first semester, I have had many breakdowns. Partially regarding the fact that I have no clue how to write a lab report or annotated bibliography, but also about the fact that I felt like I was running out of time to declare a major. I would also get worried that a biology class that I’m taking isn’t even going to count toward my future major. Luckily, it fits as a “discovery” requirement, but as I plan for my second semester of my freshman year, I get concerned that I’m wasting my time with these random courses. I used to get worried that the next classes I pick aren’t even going to matter when I declare, because they didn’t fit a requirement or pre-requisite for my major, but I’m here to tell you how it will count in different ways.
Taking classes as an undeclared major is actually a great opportunity for many incoming students. It gives you the chance to discover what they like and if a subject fits them or not. Being undeclared pretty much gives you the chance to pick your own schedule and that is amazing! Even though most of us had this opportunity in high school to determine what we like or not by taking electives, it’s a great chance in college to figure yourself out for good. This is important as you will be planning for what you do once you leave college.
Besides just getting the chance to discover what you like by taking any classes, this also gives you the chance to meet people who might be stuck in the same boat as you. My roommate and I have very similar interests as far as school goes, but we are both undeclared and stuck on what to do with our college career. Having a person to talk to who can relate to this particular decision is important as they can be supportive or even helpful in decision making. I say that because sometimes it’s easier to tell someone else what to do versus telling yourself.
Now, you might have clicked on here because maybe you could relate, or because you wanted more knowledge about undeclared students. The paths we take are just a little different from the people who declare earlier. We still have a lot of classes and work, just a different opportunities for us to take since we can choose our own schedules. The reason it’s okay to begin college with an undeclared major is because this gives you the opportunity to discover yourself and what you like. Of course coming into college with a declared major is completely fine, but it’s just as okay to come in undeclared. Being an undeclared student allows for more opportunity to take any classes you want. It gives you the ability to decide where your interests lie and where you may want to see yourself in the future. We spend a lot of time stressing about what we will declare in, but what we should really be focusing on is finding what interests us and go from there!