<p>My son's a college sophomore. Over winter break changed his mind from what he thought he wanted to go into. Just talked to him and now he's not sure at all what he wants to study. Loves college but is struggling on what he should do about a decision. Says he don't want to waste our money. I told him a lot of kids are feeling this way. Anyone have any stories, own experiences with their child, and/or advice?</p>
<p>Halfway through sophomore year is a little late to be making this sort of change without risking the need to spend more than eight semesters in college. "Spend" is the key word here. Having to spend a 9th or 10th semester in college is expensive.</p>
<p>If he were my kid, I would suggest that he obtain some guidance from the advising people at his college immediately. They may be able to help him figure out strategies for exploring several possibilities while still being able to graduate on time (or nearly on time). Alternatively, they may explain to him that it is no longer possible to do that kind of exploration and still graduate on time, if he intends to do his entire degree as a full-time student. It all depends on what sort of majors he is talking about -- whether they're highly structured (such as most sciences and professional majors) or whether they're less structured (such as most social sciences and humanities majors).</p>
<p>If your son thinks that he might want to major in a subject where he would be behind schedule in terms of completing the requirements for the major, he might be well advised to take a leave of absence from college or become a part-time student, get a job to support himself, and take one or two courses at a time, while working, to catch up. Then he could return to school as a full-time student in the new major. This means that he would not graduate with the class that he entered with, but it is a lot cheaper than spending a 9th or 10th full-time semester in college.</p>
<p>A couple of anecdotes involving people I knew at college:</p>
<ol>
<li>A young woman started out college as a biology major but fell in love with chemistry while taking the general chemistry and organic chemistry courses required for the biology major. By the end of her sophomore year, she knew that she wanted to switch to a chemistry major, but she had a problem. She had taken the wrong organic chemistry sequence -- the one designed for biologists, not chemistry majors. She would have to take organic chemistry over (taking the version for chemistry majors this time), and if she did that, she would need to take 10 semesters to finish her degree -- something that was financially impossible for her family.</li>
</ol>
<p>Here's how she solved the problem: With the cooperation of the chemistry department, her college's advising office, and a lot of other people, she took a year's leave of absence from the college but stayed in the college community and got a full-time job at the college as a lab technician. Using a program that allows college employees to enroll in courses at a reduced tuition rate, she enrolled in the organic chemistry courses that she needed, paying the tuition out of her salary. A year later, she returned from her leave of absence and continued at the college as a full-time student, now majoring in chemistry. It took her five years after high school graduation to finish college, but she only paid for eight semesters, and her parents did not have to contribute anything to her support during her leave of absence because she was able to live on what she earned as a lab technician. (Incidentally, she went on to earn a PhD in chemistry from one of the country's best graduate programs in that field.)</p>
<ol>
<li> A young man I knew was majoring in electrical engineering when he became ill during the fall semester of his sophomore year and had to take a leave of absence for that semester. When he returned to college in the spring and tried to register for classes, he realized that he had a problem. Many of the courses in the electrical engineering major were taught in two-semester sequences, with the first half offered only in the fall and the second half offered only in the spring. Since he hadn't taken the fall half, he could not enroll in the spring half. He realized that his one-semester leave of absence meant that he would need at least two extra semesters to complete the requirements of the electrical engineering major and graduate. Rather than do this, he switched to a less structured major outside of engineering. This enabled him to graduate at his orginally scheduled time (with a little help from AP credit and summer school to compensate for the missed semester), but it also changed his entire career and life. </li>
</ol>
<p>I know this person as an adult, and I know that he has a continuing interest in electrical engineering and electronics, even though he does not earn his living in this field. I have always wondered whether he might have been better off extending his leave of absence for a second semester (i.e., missing both the fall and spring semesters of his messed-up sophomore year) and staying in the electrical engineering major, even though he would have graduated a year later than his original classmates.</p>
<p>What's he majoring in?
In general, students don't need to know what they plan to do as a career. Virtually all college majors can lead to careers in a variety of fields. Also, most people change their jobs at least 5 times as adults, and the fields that many of our kids will eventually work in haven't been created yet.</p>
<p>So, I wouldn't worry about your son's being soph without know what he wants to do after college.</p>
<p>He can, though, use the college's career office or counseling office to take assessments designed to let him know about what types of careers and work environments could be good fits for him.</p>
<p>And he can work jobs -- on campus and during the summer -- to find out more about what he likes and dislikes in work environments.</p>
<p>He also can participate in preprofessional clubs, and go to career fairs to find out more info about things that may suit him. In addition, he can talk to professors, friends, alum to find out about their jobs and careers, and to see what might be good matches for him.</p>
<p>His being active in doing things like the above would be far more helpful to him than dropping out of college without a plan. It's not like a career will drop into his lap. He needs to do the work to figure out what he likes. In many cases, he can best do that kind of research while in college.</p>
<p>I agree with Northstarmom 100%. I was going to write something similar, but she pretty much covered it for me. </p>
<p>As a professor, I see tons of kids at this age. Some know what they want to do and follow through on a straight path. Some think they know what they want to do and diverge near the end or come to see me for letters of ref., or just to chat etc. and are going someplace else completely from what they thought they would. They are changing jobs, going back to school, or through serendipity ended up in unusual places careerwise. And of course I know lots that don't know at all (they are going down a path but already know its not for them). Moreover, many think there is just ONE way to get to an occupation when in fact for so many occupations and careers, there are numerous paths to get to the same place. </p>
<p>I think trying to hone in on what you DO like and/or are good at at school- which courses, which parts of courses- can be really valuable information. Talking to profs in those courses can be a good idea too, as they may know of a swath of occupations related to them. Most students are only aware of a small fraction of the more common/visible occupations out there yet as we know, the world is made up of more than engineers, doctors, accountants, and lawyers.</p>
<p>my nieces changed their majors quite a few times, sure it took a bit longer, they worked while going to school, but in the long run, they are happier for it</p>
<p>seems there is so much focus on the sciences, that we forget about the other majors out there that aren't so "tracked" </p>
<p>sad that a freshman is supposed to know they want to do organic chemistry and not biology the minute they step on campus</p>
<p>so much early specialization results in many unhappy students</p>
<p>To echo what Northstarmom and Starbright have said, my advice is to your son is to follow his heart and major in something he loves, and not focus on career-driven goals. Most of these kids will have multiple jobs, perhaps multiple careers over their lifetimes, and the most important skills are (1) know how to learn new things, (2) communications, written and spoken, (3) ability to work in groups, and (4) innovation/creativity. Specialized learning can be saved for grad school.</p>
<p>My majors: freshman, chemistry; sophomore, biology; junior, history; took my first history course in junior year; graduated with BA in history on time. My middle name was indecision. The major I ultimately chose didn't lock me into a career path, but instead opened the door to a world of possibilities. I could have gotten to where I am now with a major in chemistry, or biology, or history, or literally a dozen others. It wasn't the major as much as it was what I learned in college about how to learn. I agree with everything that everyone has said about resources your son can draw on to help him make a decision. I especially agree with the poster that mentioned the possibility of taking a leave of absence. Although I must admit I took an assessment test (is that the right word?) - it said I should be a minister, about the last thing I wanted to do. The thing that tells me he'll be OK is that he loves college. Just to complete the story, in my case it took another five years after graduating to decide what I wanted to be when I grew up. And no, I didn't live with my parents those five years. :)</p>
<p>pb&j, well your son is certainly not alone. Mine is a junior and has declared majors, but is making noises about changing (again). He sounds much like JustaGuy (btw, thank you for posting, it gives me hope). Son started in chem, switched to biology, added psychology and now is thinking of minor in bio and adding exercise science to the psych. With a transfer thrown in there too, I am sure he will take longer than 8 semesters!</p>
<p>Like starbright posted, there are many careers paths out there. My son too seems to having a problem focusing on the post graduation years. Though it is not true, he feels as if he is trapped in a career by choosing a particular major.</p>
<p>I'm trying very hard to just keep repeating, "It is your life, your decision to make, and there are no wrong ones".</p>
<p>I was a fine arts major freshman year & an art history major sophomore year. I then decided I might like to attend Dental School & switched my major to biochemistry ( with no science background ). With summer & intersession courses I was able to finish my science requirements & was admitted to Dental School after 4 years without a BS degree. I was awarded my BS after completing my freshman year of Dental School. It was hectic & somewhat untraditional, but it worked out in the end. Both of my children currently in college have changed majors, 1 from sociology to economics, & 1 from math to pre-med. I have no problem with this as your exposure to different courses, people & circumstances shape your world & perceptions while you are in college. The old cliche of finding something you love & making a living from it is true, but we should let our children know that their primary profession does not define them. You can be a doctor, musician, artist, etc., many things at once & constantly evolving. The pressure to decide on a career path at 18-20 years old is daunting, exposure to a wide variety of courses & experiences should be encouraged.</p>
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Says he doesn't want to waste our money.
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<p>Is he thinking of taking some time off?</p>
<p>Oh I have so many stories I don't know where to start. My good friend's career path went like this. Undergrad was community college then university. Majored in pre-med, then business, then math, then computer science. Couldn't make up his mind. He was brilliant but never took school very seriously and his grades showed it. Ended up with computer science degree, but only because he had enough credits to cobble it together and graduate. </p>
<p>Got a job in a high tech consulting firm, that IPOed and he got some serious pay out. Now runs another consulting business, picked up an EMBA along the way, and really would call himself a high level consultant at this point. He's doing great.</p>
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<blockquote> <p>. Loves college but is struggling on what he should do about a decision. <<</p> </blockquote>
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<p>D is struggling with what to do after college graduation this June. So the struggling doesn't end just because a major is chosen!</p>
<p>Well.....once again you all have truly helped and made me smile. I just knew I'd find some good stories and advice from here. He started out in Education, teaching jr.high/high school math (he's good in math). Now kinda interested in electrical engineering. Took a couple classes, (just this quarter so we're only talking a couple of weeks worth) said they were hard but he liked how they got his interest. Now, he says he's not sure. I asked are you sure you're OK with being away and everything's going alright with the college "stuff". And he said, Oh yea, I love it here (he's at Ohio University). </p>
<p>I told him to see his academic advisor because I'm sure they've seen kids before in his situation. I heard other people talk about how kids change their majors more than once. There's just so much to choose.<br>
Starbright........I keep telling him to try and find what interests him the most, what he loves and go with that. He's good with kids and loves sports so that's why he thought teaching and possibly coaching....but now that's changed?
ADad.....he mentioned that maybe he should take some time off and figure it out. Once said maybe he should come home and go to Stark State because it would be cheaper. I told him if he loved OU and is fine there, don't worry about the money.<br>
So I guess I'll wait and hear from him today or the next couple days. He said he emailed his advisor and hopefully that will shed some light for him. Who knows, the next time I talk to him he'll say....I got it all figured out!!! But that will never happen, I'm 45 and still don't have "it all figured out".<br>
THANKS EVERYONE .... I look forward to reading your posts.</p>
<p>This is very typical. Sophomore year, most kids consider different majors and may change their intentions several times. This gets harder to do as a junior. At a certain point it becomes impossible to graduate without taking additional time. Some colleges offer "multidisciplinary" degrees as a solution. So when is the best time to pick a major? If we could do it, maybe never. There is something to be said for a liberal education as opposed to learning a trade that happens to require formal education.</p>
<p>The way things are at my kid's school in the sciences and with the Liberal Arts "distribution" or "core" requirements , it's tricky to change a lot between radically different majors. D started as a Bio/Spanish double, switched to a Bio/Chem/Spanish triple. Backed off to a Bio/Chem double , and now wants to consider a Bio with both a Chem and a Religion minor. And she's just a soph. Thank God the Bio stayed the same. Her philosophy , gained from her mentor, is to "throw the plate against the wall and see what sticks". And she's trying. ;) They do make it kind of hard to just float through (like I did). I do think having all the requirements somewhat defeating of the purpose (if the purpose is to create a truly "globally" educated person) but ...there are ultimately trade-offs at every school.</p>
<p>I went to the university counseling center for an evaluation when I was in a similar situation. The result: "congratulations! you can do anything you want to do!"</p>
<p>Big help.</p>
<p>Now, perhaps the evaluations are better now, in that I took mine on a stone tablet .....</p>
<p>My point though, is that some people are just interested in and reasonably good at lots of things. So the trick is to just choose something for the sake of choosing it, knowing that learning need not end with the diploma.</p>
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I went to the university counseling center for an evaluation when I was in a similar situation. The result: "congratulations! you can do anything you want to do!"
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LOL. Sounds like the vocational aptitude test I took in middle school - the only thing I did poorly on was "clerical speed and accuracy". I didn't want to be a secretary anyway. I've always been pretty well rounded. In the end I chose my major because the classes would make me happy every day - and they did.</p>