Towards the end of our senior year of high school we are all coaxed into the process of searching for colleges and thinking about possible careers. The idea seems simple at first for most people. Others have an extremely difficult time. Those who ponder deeply about their dreams sometimes learn that the career they chose to study for in college ends up not being what they expected. During my junior year of high school, I thought I was sure about which career I wanted. After beginning college classes I was excited to be one step closer to obtaining a Media Arts degree with an emphasis in photography.
During my second semester I began volunteering at an elementary school and found that I really loved it. I’ve always interacted well with children, but I was tutoring them and I felt like I did really well with that, too. Not only was I able to work one on one with the kids to help them understand what they were having trouble with in class, but I loved that I could do that. After some contemplation, I decided to change my major to Elementary Education to one day teach second or fourth grade. From volunteering I found those age groups were my favorite to work with.
When I finally began taking the necessary courses to become a teacher I fully enjoyed them and learned a lot as a first time education student. However, indecisiveness plagued me once again before registering for the following semester. Finally, I decided that Media Arts fits me better and photography is what I truly have a passion for! Plus, I will have a degree in Media Arts and begin working sooner than I would if I would have stuck with Elementary Education. In the future, it would be awesome to combine my love of photography and teaching.
I believe the majority of people in college switch majors at least once. It can be overwhelming when you choose a major and begin to feel stuck. That feeling should not arise. I have the following advice for future college students and current students: It is okay to change your mind about what you would like to do with your life. Whatever major you choose should make you happy. Just try not to dawdle because that’s exactly what holds you back. Of course, we don’t enjoy every class, but it will be worth all the hard work.
