Entering college in the Fall of 2017, I did not have a major. I was not sure what I truly wanted to do after college, which made it hard for me to decide my major. Westfield State University graces their undecided students with the kinder label “Exploratory” major. The Office of Academic Advising & Transfer Transition helps students explore all the options the university has to offer and help guide them down the right path to declaring a major. Going through this process with my advisors and a team of fellow students, has helped me finally declare my Communications major this current fall as a sophomore.
Deciding to go into college without a major and without a good of idea of what I wanted to do was very stressful and overwhelming. I felt a sense of guilt for doing this, because I knew my parents would be paying a large sum of money for me to be taking classes that might not pertain to the major I once decide to have. I was scared that I would be turning the corner of second semester sophomore year, when I needed to decide my major by, and still would not know what I want to do.
Personally, my problem wasn’t that I didn’t have an idea of what I wanted to do, it was that I had too many ideas. Some days I wanted to become a social worker, other times I wanted to become a journalist, and some days I even had ideas to drop out completely and join the peace corps.
The exploratory department was very helpful in helping me find my path. My advisor, Laurie Simpson, and I set up many meetings in order to figure out all of the different fields of interest I had. They arranged classes for me that ranged from social work classes, to communication classes, and even exercise science classes. By having this broad range of classes, I was able to see what different majors are like. Based on these classes, I was able to find that my favorite classes were found in the communication department.
Although many of my meetings with my advisor helped me find my path, some left me very frustrated. At times, I was discouraged leaving the office because I felt as though I was leaving with less of an idea of what to do than I had before.
One thing that Simpson told me that really stuck with me was that many people graduate with one major, but end up with a job in another field. She expressed to me that the major written on my degree does necessarily mean I am limited to that one field. I would be able to branch out and peruse anything I want. What truly matters is that I have a degree, regardless of what major it was. This made me feel more at ease and helped me be more comfortable with the situation I was in, along with many other students.
If there is one thing I can pass down to students that are still undecided, it is that you will figure everything out with time. It may take longer than you hope, but with help from the exploratory department, you will be able to figure out what path you wish to travel down. When you get frustrated, which is inevitable, take a deep breath and know that there will come a time when you find a class your passionate about, which will ultimately pave the path of success you take.
