How to Choose a Major

Deciding what you want to do for the rest of your life can be a stressful decision. After all, there are so many choices in majors. In reality, there are most likely many more choices than you are even aware. So where do you start? As with many things, it’s better to start at the beginning and luckily, we provide those steps for you so here we go…

Step 1 – Don’t Stress!
Step 2 – Get to Know Yourself a Little Better
Step 3 – Research and Explore Your Options
Step 4 – Network with Some Contacts
Step 5 – Make a Major Decision
Step 6 – Don’t Stress, Again!

When beginning college, you will experience all kinds of stresses: getting used to new classes and new instructors; balancing school with work and family and friends and just relaxing; wondering if you can make it through a difficult subject; looking ahead to the goal of a degree that seems so far away. Add to this the pressure of trying to decide what you want to do for the rest of your life when you’re not ready and it can all get a little overwhelming.

Many students struggle with choosing a major and end up just picking one that sounds good or something they were good at in high school. Unfortunately, many students choose a major and change their minds after working in the field for a few years after graduation. Some even change their minds much sooner switching their majors several times while still in college. I’m sure you’ve heard of many stories like these and would prefer to make a good decision in the first place. Steps 2 through 6 are going to help you do just that.

So, again, Don’t Stress! Realize that this is a big decision but one that you shouldn’t feel bad about when there is uncertainty. It may seem that everyone around you is doing exactly what he or she wants, but this most likely isn’t the case. Many people even change their career paths several times in their lives because we are always growing and changing. The best you can do is get to know yourself better, get to know what options are out there and pursue your interests…all covered in the following steps…

This sounds a little vague…how does someone really get to know him or herself better? Do you need to go through hours and hours of self-absorbed thought or seek a psychic friend? No, not what we’re suggesting. Let’s face it, you’re old enough to be in college, you probably know yourself pretty well by now. You know what you like or don’t like; what makes you happy or sad; what doesn’t bother you or what makes you really angry. We’re suggesting that you put all of those pieces together about yourself and think about them in terms of lifelong employment. How do you put those pieces together? You could start out by taking some interesting personality and career tests:

These tests won’t give you a magic solution but what you can do is use them to give you more ideas about the future. You can also use them to understand what makes you tick a little more than maybe you knew before you took the test.

All of the preceding questions will help you think about where you might want to work and what you might like to do when you get there. However, the last question is key. As you look around at others in your life, do any of their careers have appeal? Getting to know people in fields that seems interesting to you are going to be key in your decision-making process. This will be discussed further in step 4. First, however, we need to continue to Step 3.

This is where a lot of the work is going to come in on your part. Researching and exploring options for your future could take up quite a bit of your time but it can also be a lot of fun. There are several major sources to tap for this information: the University, the Library, the Internet, and People You Already Know.

The University: Think of your campus as a small universe all its own. Look around and you will find many people from just as many walks of life. As often as people tend to change careers, you will most likely find several different careers represented just in your instructors, advisors, and staff members. Don’t be afraid to utilize people you meet in college as a resource to learn about future career options.

The Library: The Library at IUPUC has approximately 500 resources available for career exploration, including a section devoted specifically to career information. To research different careers, use the IndyCat system and do a Keyword Search for "(your career of interest) and VOCATIONAL". This search will provide you with a list of resources available for the career you find interesting. Other excellent resources available through the IUPUC Library include the book, What Color Is Your Parachute by Dick Bolles.

The Internet: Know it, learn it, love it. At least learn to love it. The Internet is going to be your most immediate source of information out there. Learn more about Search Engines such as Yahoo, Lycos, and NetCrawler. These sites will allow you to search the Internet for any topic. You could search anything from job availability to salary information to actual companies and careers. This is also an excellent way to build some networking contacts. You may find it helpful to register at the following website for career and education information: http://icis.indiana.edu.

People You Already Know: This could be one of your most valuable resources. If someone you know is already involved in your career of interest, contact him or her for more information. Ask them about what they studied in college, what the job market is like for their career, what they like most/least about their job, what advice would they give you while still in college, etc.

Once you have researched these areas, you will be closer to a decision and then you can go on to some more thorough networking described in Step 4.

Before you make a final decision regarding a major, it would be advantageous to see these careers up close and in person. Most times, this is not only possible but also highly recommended! Terms used to describe the time spent exploring more about an actual career are interning and job shadowing. Internships usually take place during the summer but can also take place over the semester. They take place in a job related to your major and sometimes are used for college credit. Also, sometimes they are not paid positions. Job shadowing is a shorter process. It can be for as long a period of time as you and an employer decide. During job shadowing, you are doing much what the term describes: observing someone on the job. For example, if you think you might really want to be a park ranger, you could contact a park ranger and observe them for a day. With this career, as with others, you would find that they do many things during the course of a day that you wouldn’t expect! This step is the most involved yet the best learning process of any of the steps because you are receiving hands-on experience with your desired career.

However, networking with contacts doesn’t have to include actually working in the field, although, obviously, this would be the ideal. Networking could be just calling up people who are employed in the field in which you are interested. For example, if you are interested in becoming a physical therapist, you could call the School of Allied Health through IUPUI and tell them you are a student interested in the field of Physical Therapy. You could then ask them if they know of anyone you could contact already employed in the field to see what the job is like.

After getting to know yourself better, conducting research, and networking with some contacts, you will feel more prepared to declare that major. When you are ready to do so, discuss your options again with your advisor. Once you make your final decision on a major, you will need to fill out a School Record Change Form which you can get from the Student Services office, Room 155. On to Step 6.

Once you’ve chosen your major, ideally you will want to stick with it…the more you change your major, the longer it will take to finish your degree and the less likely all of the classes you take will count toward your degree. And, again, I’m sure you’ve heard those horror stories of people who change their majors seven or eight times during their college career. Of course, changing so many times is not encouraged, however, if once you have chosen your major, you would like to change it, Don’t Stress! After all, that is part of what college is about…exploring your options and making decisions based on those explorations. A few years into your major, you may find a career out there you would have known nothing about when you started out. If this happens to you, start over with your research and networking and see if this new direction is really where you want to go. If it is, don’t feel guilty about pursuing a new direction. Just remember, after people finish their degrees, they also continue to change along with their interests. Statistics show that a person could change their career six or seven times in his or her lifetime! The important thing is to press on to finish the degree in a timely matter and to understand that it is normal for your interests to change over time.

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Choosing a Major

Step 1 - Don’t Stress

Remember, you are not alone!

Step 2 - Get to Know Yourself a Little Better

SIGI Plus (available through the Continuing Education Office)
Keirsey Temperament
Birkman Quiz

In addition to the tests, you can also ask yourself the following questions:

Have I always had a dream of being in a certain job? No matter how mundane or normal you think it is, make note of it.
What subjects did I do well in school? What subjects did I avoid like the plague?
Do I like being outside better than inside or vice versa?
Do I like the solitude of being alone or sitting in front of a computer for hours at a time?
Do I like being surrounded by friends and am I very social?
Do I enjoy routine work or do I have to have lots of variety in order to not get bored?
As I look around at people I know personally, what jobs do they have that seem interesting?