Choosing the right college major/career is a baffling subject. Sometimes it feels like a lonely walk down a deserted road that leads to nowhere. I myself traversed down that road through college picking a
major my first semester and changing it almost every semester thereafter until
my junior year. How does one select a major that will yield a satisfying career
for 30+ years after only being exposed to the subject matter for 4-5 years at
best?
In the end, there is no one right way for picking a college
major, but by coupling your interests with the following tips, you will find
yourself looking at college majors in a much more objective way. This objectivity can provide you a much more
meaningful career that keeps your interest throughout the longevity of it. I hope the result for you is looking at
college majors in a more thoughtful way that will yield the best path for you.
1. Find your Passion.
In my opinion, this is the most important attribute a
college major must have for you. By
having passion on a certain subject, it allows you to spend more time thinking
about how you can become better at that subject. This automatically gives you insight,
excitement, as well as creativity in your major. Since you are able to study this subject
matter without getting bored out of your mind, you will find ways to solve
problems in ways that others will not be able to. This will translate well at your future
position in your career.
2. Couple your
Interest with Unrelated Interests.
Sometimes, the answer to the passion question is not always
located in a particular major or career.
That being said, don’t be afraid to branch out and find things that
appear to be completely unrelated to help you find your passion. For example, before becoming an accounting
major, I was a graphic design and architecture major. Therefore, it came as a shock to people when
I informed them of my decision to go into accounting. These are unrelated fields to be sure. However, this tip did not dawn on me until a
professor I had told me “you will be one of the most creative accountants I
have met.”
That’s it! I
immediately saw that I had a gift in being creative that I could bring to a
major/career that is stereotyped as having limited creative juices
flowing. That is when I started to
combine the art skills I learned with the accounting skills to create my
passion.
Bottom line: if you
are afraid that you are coupling unrelated interests, don’t be. You are probably heading on the right track. Just because it hasn’t been done before doesn’t
make it wrong.
3. Have a Reason for
Being in Your Career.
Whatever your initial reason for picking a college major,
eventually you will want to discover the underlying reason for being in this
major. Having a vision for your career
helps. Is your vision to help others
become better at something? Maybe to
entertain and bring laughter to others?
Or, it could be another meaningful reason for why you picked your
major. The key to having a reason behind
your selection of an eventual career is that it centers on others. If the reason for picking a major is based
only on satisfying yourself, your career will run its course and eventually
pique.
Pleasing yourself is something we are all good at, in fact
it is something we learn as toddlers.
However, being able to assist others provides a growth inside of us that
fosters the ideas mentioned above and allows us to continue to grow and improve
in our school work and careers. Making
ourselves the centerpiece for our majors, and careers will not provide the
satisfaction of continual growth that others can provide when they are our
vision and focus for our career.
4. DON’T Make
it About the Money
I was hesitant to make “money” even appear in these tips
because of how it can interpreted. All I
will say is this:
Make your college major decision based not on the money you
expect to earn. Don’t get me wrong,
college education does cost money and therefore you must select a combination
of major(s) that provides you a way to make money in the future.
However, once picking a career that provides for you (with a
job at graduation), focus on applying the first 3 tips above. If you focus on applying those 3 tips, then I
do not need to speak any more about money because I am confident that money
will continue to come your way if these other tips are followed first.
To Your Success,
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