May Have Chosen the Wrong College... Now What?

College Search & Selection
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Hi everyone,

Many of you may recognize me from my numerous posts throughout the year… I ended up applying to 14 different colleges, and picked my favorite from the list. But I’m starting to have doubts.

I am in the process of creating a schedule with my advisor. I explained all of my interests and goals to her upon meeting. I know right now that I’d like to go into some kind of counseling profession. Probably not mental health counseling, but something else. I’ve thought of being a school counselor for an inner-city or special education school, an employment counselor for immigrants, the homeless, or the handicapped, or something of the like - essentially, I’d like to find a niche helping people in need.

Currently, I plan on majoring in psychology and getting a master’s in counseling down the road. But I’d also like to take sign language classes, which was something that was suggested when I talked to someone who is an employment counselor for the handicapped. I’d also like to take a few semesters of a foreign language, so I can study abroad and be more competitive for the Peace Corps and job hunting in general. I think a communications class would be valuable as well. And I’d like to take some classes with social justice themes, for my own interest and in the hopes of finding a passion. The school I am (currently planning on) attending offers a social justice minor, but there supposedly isn’t enough room in my schedule. My advisor told me I ought to decide what my priorities are or plan to take 5 years to finish (which I would honestly hate to do, as I will already be taking out a great deal of loans). She also suggested I drop the honors program - a huge reason why I chose to attend the school, by the way - because it’s “not worth the time” and will put even more pressure on me. (Note that honors students are NOT required to take more classes… their classes are just more interdisciplinary).

I’ll be attending a Jesuit college, and I know they are big on having a breadth of knowledge and being well-rounded. I knew this upon deciding to attend, but did not think it would be a problem. I do understand the appeal, but I think I just have way too much I want to do to have to spend time in classes that will mean little to me down the road. I think I’d prefer a school with an open curriculum, and I have already begun to look at options. (If anyone has suggestions for a big city school with open curriculum, let me know :slight_smile: haha)

I have already made my tuition deposit at this school. My parents would not be happy about me changing my mind at this point (and forfeiting $500 and x money in airfare), and I know it’d be extremely difficult to weasel my way into another school, and may be risky, considering not one of the schools I’ve looked into has an open curriculum. My question is, what should my plan be? Is it worth it to stick it out a semester (or even a year) and see how I feel, or should I try finding another place?

Thanks in advance for the help!

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Also to consider: Should I ask to take mainly courses in my major because of my intention to transfer, or should I do as suggested by her and get my cores out of the way? (I keep asking to hold off on my cores because I intend to study abroad and was told that holding off on cores will broaden my options, but my advisor is like “that’s dumb lol”)

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I think you should relax. This is your first semester. You don’t suppose to take all specialized classes and you do not have to take an “official” class for every single one of your interests. What else are you planning to do? It seems to me that you can get a lot from joining clubs or organizations. Learning will occur on your other experiences/interactions as well. Also from volunteering to causes close to your heart. And again, things you learn in your history/english or other classes are not for nothing. Core classes are there for a reason. They are not fillers. Things come together to build your education. You might need those classes in order to fully benefit from the social justice class you will take later.

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If you’re thinking of taking 300 level courses as a freshman that is not a good idea. Is there another advisor you can talk to?

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What is your estimated total student loan debt after 4 and 5 years at this Jesuit College? How will this debt impact your “career choices” post graduation? Your college advisor might be on target about prioritizing course load/selection, honor’s college and time to graduate (speaking from experience).

Instead of majoring in psychology, have you given any thought to become a Psychiatric–Mental Health Nurse Practitioner instead (if mental health counseling is your goal)? Much higher pay, autonomy, job demand and job satisfaction IMHO.

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You may want to get a second opinion from a different advisor.

I find it hard to believe that you wouldn’t be able to complete a major in psych, a few semesters each of sign language and a foreign language (which I imagine would contribute to your core requirements) and the interdisciplinary honors courses in four years.

I don’t think there’s a lot of formal value added in completing a “social justice” minor. You can take courses in that concentration without having to complete the minor. Maybe that will provide the wiggle room that you need.

Is part of your buyer’s remorse also based on affordability/loans?

Is there a plan B? Would you take a gap year or try to get into a college for the fall where there is still space?

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Many people get nervous about their college choice. Think about why you chose the school in the first place. My S went to a Jesuit college so I understand what you are saying about how the requirements can eat into the chance to take elective classes. But I do think the breadth of knowledge you will get from a Jesuit core can be worthwhile whatever road your pursue. And I agree that a a minor isn’t a big deal at all so focus on using your electives to pick and choose courses you are most interested in.

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First, you may not be able to do all the things you want even if it were at a different college.
Next, your freshman year should be more intro courses and electives, not upper level courses you are not prepared for.
Lastly, you may need to only choose one language for now, not two.

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Thank you all for your replies. I do think that I’m probably more anxious than I should be. I have a bit of a perfectionistic nature and prefer to get things right the first time. :slight_smile:

@am9799 You are so right. I do plan on joining many clubs for my own enjoyment, but didn’t really think about the educational value they’d have. Hoping to be a part of Psy Chi and participate in community service… that will cover a lot of ground I was intending to get in the classroom.

@“Erin’s Dad” I did take AP psych through my high school, so I have intro out of the way. Was hoping to take intro to psych research, abnormal psych (both 200 level classes), Spanish (I need 5 semesters of Spanish before being allowed to study abroad in a Spanish speaking country), my honors colloquium, freshman seminar, and a sociology course. I definitely don’t want to jump into my upperclass courses too early.

@Jamrock411 Parents agreed to pay for $20k, and I’m taking on the rest. Without taking potential tuition increase into account, it’s looking like I’ll be taking $8k/year. I have a summer job and have applied for numerous scholarships (and Peace Corps would help pay debt should I be accepted to serve), but I’ll also likely be going to grad school and am looking into a career that does not offer high pay. Not intending to go into mental health counseling, but rather school counseling or rehabilitation employment counseling.

@mamaedefamilia I was thinking the same think about the advisor (clearly I’m not a fan of her). There’s only one advisor for all of the science majors. She’s a biology professor, and I’ve been told she doesn’t quite support psych majors and often pressures them to go into other fields. Should I be talking to an advisor in a different field? The social justice minor would eat up a lot of credits, and I understand what you mean. There is already a community service focus built into many other classes, being a Jesuit school, and other clubs would probably give me what I’m looking for. I actually just got an email this morning with the new DCPL, and they just made two semesters of language a requirement. I’d like to study in a Spanish or French speaking country (because the Peace Corps prefers this), but although Spanish countries are significantly cheaper, students must take 5 semesters of Spanish to study there. Cutting out the minor though may make that easier to do.

To answer your other questions, I would definitely prefer to stay in college 4 years simply because of the cost, so yes, I am anxious about the cost, but it is important to me that I go to a private school, and I did receive a substantial amount of scholarship money from this school. I tried to talk my parents into taking a gap year with Americorps early last year, but they were not supportive at all. They worried about the safety and in general wanted me to take the more traditional college route. (I think it was partially a pride thing too). I spent last night looking up which open curriculum are still accepting apps, but I only found one school whose app was due today and doesn’t offer a psych major.

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@dragonfly26 - 8K a year is a reasonable amount of debt given the quality of education that you are suggesting. Over time, you may be able to whittle that down a bit by working summers, buying used textbooks, looking for cheaper living arrangements/meal plan options. Especially if you do a service job like Peace Corps or Teach for America after your graduate, you will be able to draw down that debt quickly.

Regarding advisors, typically you’re assigned somebody when you enter a college and then once you pick a major, you should be shifted to an advisor in your major. It doesn’t work that way everywhere, but that’s what is likely.

Good luck!