@mathyone She competitive dances and runs sound for high school theater production or acts in her spare time. She is also on a volunteer board that does community work for a non-profit that invests heavily in kids in our county. She did the personality profiles that say she is a strong nurturer and suggested social work. She also loves to organize and schedule things. I have suggested supply chain management but there is some math involved in that major.
@blossom Great suggestion on CS. She enjoys reading blogs. She could take stats for her senior math class and get her feet wet that way. She’s definitely not into journalism.
I was not a strong math student in HS but took statistics in grad school and discovered I was good at it. It was a requirement for an MBA- I never would have taken it if it wasn’t mandatory but it was my first real math success story since third grade.
She is WAY too young/early to focus on supply chain management. And she doesn’t need to major in it if she wants a career in supply chain (I’ve hired hundreds of supply chain folks over the years). It is really, really ok for her not to have a career goal right now! And the kind of math in supply chain- she might be good at it, she might enjoy it. So that’s my point about getting boxed in and boxed out.
A kid hates trig in HS so automatically rejects any academic discipline or professional path which is even vaguely quantitative. THAT’s the trouble with vocational testing- aiming too low.
I have friends who are doctors who are worse at math than I am. But the kids in college who wanted to go to med school all seemed to be good at math. (which turns out not to be true. Yes, you need to pass organic chemistry in college. But you don’t need to have rocket science math skills).
Don’t let her aim too low just because she’s comparing herself to ambitious and directed siblings! she can really, really, really show up at college ready to learn and do a deep dive on stuff she’s interested in, learn what she’s not interested in… and figure it out from there. And she doesn’t need to stamp herself “librarian” or “CPA” in HS.
Thanks @blossom . Seems LAC is definitely the way to go! 
She did well in chemistry but didn’t love it. I’m sure her STEM brother would be happy to help her get through orgo. He speaks science. Half the time I do not understand a thing he is saying.
She will figure it out, I wouldn’t worry! I think the best course of action is to fond schools where she can thrive and let the major/job ideas come later. My parents were happy that I was going to college. My job ideas were no idea, maybe something in the music industry/theatre, florist, interior designer, a cave geologist, and finally I want to work in science museums as a program manager.
My majors changed from interior design to geology. I was able to graduate in 4 years and I had the best experience I could hope for. I’m in grad school now. I’m not sure if its because of the crowd I hung out with or I was oblivious but I never remember all this anxiety of trying to find a college/career path. I’m 22 so I’m not that far removed. It makes me a little sad. I think LACs or small-medium universities would be a great idea. Good luck!
Thanks @FluentInCarbs . We are starting early to help keep the anxiety at bay and have a clear path. She is a planner and unknowns are difficult for her. She sets high standards for herself and is very hard on herself. We are working on that too. Thanks for sharing your story! She is amazing and will go on to do amazing things.
Having plans is good. Being comfortable with the unknown and being willing to fail are also good. So if there are ways you can encourage your daughter to challenge her anxiety and perfectionism, she will benefit.
@scraphappy I completely understand! I think I had more anxiety over grad school applications than I did for the undergraduate applications. I’m a perfectionist, have high standards, and can sometimes be the definition of a type A person. One way I’ve learned is to give myself a fun day. On my fun day, I don’t work/plan at all. I relax and do the things I enjoy. Its better to learn stress coping techniques as soon as possible. It took me the longest time to realize that I needed to be nicer to myself. I had to go through a nervous breakdown, then therapy to realize my habits were extremely unhealthy. I hope I helped, and feel free to PM anytime! I’m not old and wise yet but hopefully my young adult perspective can be some use!
You’re well on your way @FluentInCarbs! I appreciate the offer for help.
You may want to make your child a “marked child” for the guidance department. This would involve setting up a parent GC meeting about your child and how you can help direct her. With most of the student body being more average the GC likely would enjoy being able to do more. It can be refreshing for teachers and other academic staff to have your D’s sort of problem to deal with. You will not want to interfere too much but one meeting and a phone call or two could make a difference. This can be done without the students noticing. I’m sure the GC department knows about your D already because she shows up as a top student.
I would be surprised that group testing for interests is not done- it is merely a matter of having the class fill out a form which they then use to figure out where they fall on the intersecting traits. If you verify that your school district does not do any of this you can look online.
Thanks, @wis75. This is our third time through the process and our GC is phenomenal and works well with our family. They just do not have those types of resources, which is frustrating. Our state switched from giving the ACT to the SAT last year so we do not even have that type of information. The GC has been working with youngest D and has advocated for my kids throughout their high school careers. We have to be the ones to narrow the search. She was terrific when S15 applied to multiple reach schools and helped us to navigate this process. His search was easier; he had a specific career area in mind and knew which type of college he wanted.This search will be more about fit for D18.
Everyone has been so helpful here! Thank you! I’m glad I came out of lurkdom.