<p>I have no idea what I want to major in. I've considered business, journalism, media (television & film), and creative writing. </p>
<p>As far as careers go, I'm in the same situation. I've considered owning my own business, writing fiction novels (side career), or working for a magazine company/in the entertainment industry. I'm really unsure about what I want to do. I feel like I don't know myself well enough to know what I want. I know my weaknesses, but I don't know my strengths. One thing I am sure of though is that I want to do something I love and will make me happy and something that pays well (over 100k). I have social anxiety (which I'll be working on soon with a psychologist), so the thought of going to college and eventually going out in the working world is scary. I keep having doubts of whether I will succeed or completely melt down from fear, anxiety, and depression.</p>
<p>I spoke to my mom about this and she told me that she was disappointed. She said that at my age, I should have my college and career plans mapped out. My parents won't let me apply undecided, so that isn't an option.</p>
<p>Any advice or thoughts?</p>
<p>Over 100k per year is a pretty specific goal, and difficult to achieve with the careers you’ve outlined above. I’m not saying that there aren’t writers making 100k+ per year, but it’s the exception rather than the rule. If you’re hard-set on that pay rate you’ll have a better shot if you become an engineer, doctor, lawyer, actuary, accountant, dentist, somthing in IT, etc. Less romantic for sure but far more likely to net you the kind of income you want. How far are you into college? Sometimes you can narrow down what you want to do after you’ve taken a few classes, at the very least it helps you pinpoint what you don’t want to do.</p>
<p>Since you’re going to see a psychologist anyway, you might inquire whether he/she does occupational assessment/career counseling, or can refer you to a counseling psychologist who does. This might help you identify some of your strengths and interests and identify occupations and careers that might be a good fit. </p>
<p>Depending on the particular school, you might need to specify a particular field if you are applying to a university which admits students to a particular school or college within the university (e.g., School of Journalism, School of Business, College of Arts & Sciences, etc.).
However, you can always change your major. If you are applying to a university, it might be advisable to consider whether it has a range of different majors that interest you. If these are offered in several different schools within the university, you also might want to consider how easy it is to transfer across different schools within the university.</p>
<p>Other than the above considerations, you should be aware that many students will change majors, some more than once, for a variety of reasons. You may even change careers or areas of focus within a career several times over your working life. There is no particular reason why you need to pin this down when you haven’t even entered college yet. There is nothing wrong or unusual about being undecided at this point in your education. Any number of threads on this forum make these same points. Some people go into college knowing exactly what they want to do, others take a while to find the right field or career, and others go into a major or career for the wrong reasons (e.g., someone else wants them to, for the money, for the status, etc.) and they may end up not liking it or not doing well. There’s no one answer that applies to all people. Trust me, you will eventually find the niche that fits you best.</p>
<p>If you love math and want to make over 100k, look into being an actuary.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the feedback. I am going to apply to the business program, but still give myself room to change majors by, like zapfino said, applying to schools that have a variety of programs. I’m hopefully going to see a psychologist next week and I will ask if he/she does career counseling.</p>
<p>Take a good look at Advertising and possibly Public Relations. They are oriented toward “business, journalism, media (television & film), and creative writing” as well as “owning my own business, writing fiction novels (side career), or working for a magazine company/in the entertainment industry”, and you can make a good living.</p>