Confused about career/major

[alegnagogo]

<p>I'm a freshman in college and I'm undecided about my major/career. My problem is that I love a lot of things and don't want to narrow it down. I work really hard in school and I'm willing to put a lot of time and effort into school to better my future. There are so many things I want to study in college. Over the years, I like math more and more. However, I don't wanna stop classes that aren't strictly math. I want to learn Spanish, Arabic, Psychology, Chem, Bio, Physics (not so much but I only had it once with a bad teacher so things could change), Physiology, Music, Art, Computers/Technology, and maybe a Shakespeare class. I like too many things. My dad is a doctor and my mom is a nurse and both of them said I would be a great doctor because I have caring personality and I'm bubbly and I'm a "people" person. However, I don't want to major in Bio because if I can't do medicine, it doesn't leave me with many career options. I like kids and can see myself doing Pediatrics, but I'm not completely sure and medicine is changing so much. Physical therapy is another option, but after volunteering at a PT clinic, it seems too boring and not challenging enough for me. I like drawing, cooking, wood shop, etc. and I appreciate understanding "why" things work, so I thought of engineering, but I feel like my extroverted personality wouldn't help me in the field. Also, I want to work one-on-one with the people I affect and help them, and engineers don't really do that. From what I know, they work a lot with their team or alone. Teaching is another option, but I wouldn't want to do high school or middle school. I think elementary would be best, but I know I wouldn't like teaching at that level. I would love to teach something complex, like calculus. My dad said I could be a college professor, but I feel like there's a lot of pressure to research and it's hard to get tenure because many schools kick professors out before they can. Also, I know I wouldn't want to work with college students. I think I'd like teaching, but maybe I could do it as a second career? I like so much so maybe I could have one job for a good 25 years and then teach when my kids are done with their college education. I also thought of being an actuary, but I don't like how they work alone and in an office. I care about the environment and there is certainly a lot that needs to be fixed. I am so lost and stressed about my future. There is so much for me to choose, but I just don't know what. Any help?</p>

<p>My first semester, I took Calculus, Chemistry, English, Spanish, and Psychology, so I can go into a lot of majors because I got some general education requirements out of the way and everyone must take English at my school.</p>

[chrisw]

<p>Take a step back and breathe. Many, MANY people are in your exact position right now. The nice thing is that you have completed one out of eight semesters, meaning you have yet to complete 87.5% of your college career. You have that long until you really need to have a sense of what you want to do.</p>

<p>Continue taking courses that interest you, and once you have a course schedule lined up for first semester of sophomore year, take a look at the graduation requirements for several majors. You will probably find that you can fit more courses into one particular major than into any other. That will indicate to you what major to really keep your eye on. During sophomore fall, again choose courses based on what interests you (and what fulfills general requirements) and see if it is still leading to the same major.</p>

<p>Once you see what major your experience suggests, look at higher level courses in that major. If it seems interesting, then you have an answer for what to declare. If not, then move down the list of majors. If you make it to second semester of sophomore year and you find that you’ve only taken one Psychology course, you probably shouldn’t be a Psych major. If you are surprised to find out that a sociology and political science course count for an economics major and you’ve also taken three economics classes, you might want to major in economics (apply the same logic to any major).</p>

<p>If medical school is even a thought, you should start taking one pre-med requirement per semester. You can major in anything and still get into med school, but you need to have the pre-med requirements done or you’ll need to do post-bacc.</p>

<p>As for what you want to do when you graduate, you have plenty of time to think about that. Once you decide on a major, you will see doors open to different potential professions, and you will be able to figure out what interests you the most. Definitely don’t start thinking about second careers 25 years down the line; your life WILL change, and this thinking can be more hurtful than helpful since you may feel obligated to maintain a trajectory that isn’t what you really want.</p>

<p>Enjoy college!</p>