I second (third) majoring in geology or psychology, AND minoring in CS, in order to apply CS to your field of study. It’d be hugely valuable, and instead of applying your skills to random models and projects, it’d help your research/project. This wya, you’re not “giving up” on CS. You’re USING CS in order to increase your professional opportunities.
How about you take a geology or psychology class this summer?
If your parents harass your for the classes you choose, don’t tell them. Simple.
Sometimes giving up is okay. It’s often productive to give up something that you don’t like and/or are not good at. Conversely, it is often unproductive, and not a great idea, to keep persisting at something that you know will not be fruitful or enjoyable.
Not everyone can be a software engineer. First of all, not everyone likes it, and second of all if everyone majors in computer science then those careers won’t be in high demand or high-paying anymore. Furthermore, everyone seems to think that these companies just want a warm body sitting in a chair and that they’ll pay you $$$$$ just because you know how to code. It is a small handful of large, prestigious companies that pay their software developers a lot of money; these companies want the best computer science grads. And they want the ones who love the job and will think about these problems in the shower, on the commute, while making dinner at night…for fun. But many mediocre software developers aren’t making the big bucks that people seem to think comes along with all of these jobs - they work at smaller firms and make decent but not spectacular money.
I’m a psychology major who has a job. Most psychology majors I know have jobs, and in fact, the vast majority of psychology majors have jobs. The unemployment rate for psychology majors at the height of the recession (2009-2010), the most recent time frame for which we have data, was about 9%. That’s not that much higher than it was for computer science majors (8.7%). The difference is primarily in salaries, not in employment rates.
And oh, also, I hear a lot of people say that psychology majors cannot get jobs without graduate degrees. That is false. Most psychology majors don’t actually get graduate degrees. There are lots of jobs that don’t require any specific major and would welcome a psychology major with the right kind of skills and experience; there are many other jobs that prefer social science majors. And there’s lots of things that psychology is applicable to, especially within business.
It would be great if your college does have human-computer interaction or UX, but most colleges do not have a major like that. It’s great, but you don’t need it - a general psychology major with a minor in CS, maybe, would be fine. I would strongly encourage the minor - in fact, I always say if I had the chance to do college over again I still would’ve majored in psychology but maybe double majored in computer science (or statistics).
Thank you everyone for your responses, I appreciate it. I realized that I really need to find some way to get the courage to tell my parents. I can’t hold in my feelings for so long. I haven’t mentioned anything since July and i have been holding them in since November at least. I really want to talk a geology adviser, would it be ok if i were to talk to a geology adviser without telling my parents? Thank you again.
Of course it’d be okay. You’re a college student. You should talk to advisers, professors, etc, without consulting them first, even as a courtesy. Get your facts straight, as they’ll want to know if it’ll push your graduation date, if there’ll be career prospects, if the university is well-known in that area, if you can get internships, etc.
I’d absolutely talk to a geo adviser, and a psych one too.
I add my voice to the chorus saying you might wish to keep CS as a minor. It may be really useful.
Gather as much intel as you can, then write it all down (or, my favorite, a spreadsheet), and present a cogent argument to your parents about how this is a better, more informed path to success. I would not use the words “giving up” or “quitting”. You’re learning what you want to do in the world; don’t be afraid of that.
I did email a geology adviser, first step is over with. However, I still have a fear of telling my parents my desire to switch without sounding like I am giving up. I am stressing out about how to tell my parents. I am happy I emailed to adviser though .
Don’t say anything until you have a good plan in place, @bostonforever95 .
That, in and of itself, will give you confidence to know you’re on the right path for you. Until you have a game plan, there’s no reason to freak out your parents, because nothing is happening. Never present a problem; always present a solution. Work out the problem on your own, then show them your new path. If it makes sense (and I’m sure it will), they’ll most likely go for it.
Well I got some good news. I met with a geology adviser and got a good idea of what classes I would have to take. I got a good chunk of the general ed courses out of the way. The math requirements are about the same as CS. As for master’s degree and job outlook, the adviser said that people who graduate degree either go straight into a job or get a master’s. My school offers a master’s in geology too and some graduate degrees are paid for. He also said that the job salary and employment rate for geology in general is very high. I have the list of classes and requirements to present to my parents. I am still nervous to tell them. Thank you.
Sounds like you got what your parents want to hear. Honestly a geology major CS minor is highly employable. However it’s a niche enough position that you may not see a lot of on campus recruiting. You may need to be aggressive in terms of target companies but you can make it happen.
My parents didn’t even ask…