Pick a major, any major

Kelly Todd just knew she wanted a career in journalism. As a high school student, she wrote articles for an international magazine, did a co-op at the local cable TV station and fell in love with the field.

“I love doing camera work, I love doing the behind-the-scenes stuff; I love everything!” says Todd, who is now a college freshman studying journalism.

For some people, choosing a major isn’t as easy.

Amy Zinck-Farkas was used to hearing she “had a way with children.” She baby-sat often, liked kids and was looking for a career to pursue. So after high school, Zinck-Farkas entered Keene State College in Keene, N.H., and tried her first education class.

She hated it.

Zinck-Farkas related more to her English classes than the education one, and ended up declaring English as her major.

What do you want to be when you grow up? Now that she’s going to be a senior in high school, that’s a question your teen is hearing a lot. And the answer could determine where she’ll be for the next few years!

How to start the search
When should students start thinking about which major they’ll pursue in college? Believe it or not, as early as ninth grade.

To help your teen get an idea about what she wants to study, have her set aside some time to think about her interests and values.

“The key to choosing a major is to know yourself—your passions, your talents and abilities, your likes and dislikes and your dreams,” says Fern Oram, production director for Peterson’s, the college information publishing company. Here are some more tips about how and when to declare a major.

Ask good questions. Have your teen ask friends and family to rank the three most important skills they need to function in their jobs, Oram suggests. Are any of these skills a match for your student? She can also ask her friends and family what tools they need for their jobs, such as computer programs, microscopes, creativity or teamwork. Are any of these tools she currently uses or has?

Determine where they want to work. Consider the hysical environment here—indoors or outdoors, office building, gallery, park, hotel or lab. Do any of these surroundings pique your student’s interest?

Get creative. Are students at your teen’s high school required to fulfill a certain number of community service hours before graduation? Basil Hamblin, an independent college advisor, recommends completing those hours at a business or in a field your teen’s considering as a major. “There’s a ton of volunteering work out there. Do community service nearest to your interest,” Hamblin says.

Know her interests. Suggest that your teen takes interest inventories that matches her personality to compatible careers, and consider having her meet with a college counselor to talk about her career goals, suggests Ann Hetherington, director of marketing at St. Clair College. “There is a lot of assistance out there for those who want to take advantage of it,” she says.

When should she declare?
If your teens has some idea about what major she wanst to follow, she should go ahead and declare it on her college application—but declare it with an open mind, Hamblin says.

“Pursue an interest, but realize that that’s not necessarily your life’s work,” he says.

Lindsay Jolly, 19, declared her major about three months into freshman year. “I am very in touch with my own emotions and have always been the person friends turn to when in need,” says Jolly, who is studying psychology. “I plan on staying in school to get my Ph.D. so that I can own my own practice in psychology mainly dealing with teens in crisis situations.”

What if your teen hasn’t got a clue about what he’d like to pursue? He won’t be the only one with an undeclared major. At St. Clair College, about 15 percent of students enter undeclared. Those who are still searching for a major often find themselves in the general arts and sciences program.

Many of Sara Miller’s friends have gone to college undecided. “Chances are, you will find something you like once you get into college,” advises Miller, a 17-year-old freshman at Cal Poly Pomona in Wrightwood, Calif. “It will get you on a great start. It’s the next step in life that will get you where you want—as long as you’re willing to do the work to get there.”

Looking to change?
Miller has a few career ideas she wants to pursue. “My major is English education,” she says. “But I do have other ambitions, and the first (is) to become a writer. My other ambition was to teach, so I figure I could start there and later on in life pursue writing.”

Miller says her main challenge when she chose a major was to find something she could see herself doing the rest of her life. But what happens if her career goal changes while she’s in college? She—and your teen—shouldn’t panic. Remind your student that people get jobs outside their majors all the time. “Statistics show that on average, a person will have six to eight careers in their working lifetime,” Hetherington says.

Moral of that story: Your teen can choose a job outside his major if he’s not happy with his choice after graduation. Remember Zinck-Farkas, who chose to study English instead of education? Her first job was as a teacher.

“Students change their minds all the time,” says Laura Beattie, an assistant registrar, “and the university is organized to help accommodate those changes in interests!”

Changing a major can, however, get more complicated the closer the student is to senior year of college, notes Oram. That’s thanks to prerequisite classes and fulfilling major requirements.

“Changing your major may mean additional time spent in school to fulfill those requirements for your new major,” Oram notes. “And additional time translates into additional costs that you may not have anticipated. You want to balance the time and money a change in major will cost you versus your expectations of how the new major will help you to realize your personal dreams and goals.”

Maria Neels, 25, switched her major in the middle of her junior year of college. She was frustrated with the disorganization and requirements of her initial major. “The classes I had to take were boring and way too easy,” Neels says. “I decided that the degree I wanted wasn’t worth the hassle and began looking into other degree programs that would best use the rest of my time there.”

Neels spoke with her college advisor, signed a form and—voila—became a photojournalism student. “Even though everyone warned me how difficult it would be, it just took a lot of focusing and dedication,” Neels says. “Everyone told me I was nuts. But I saw it as an opportunity to really challenge myself to grow.”

Final words of advice
Whether your student has had a major in mind since fourth grade or is searching madly for something to study, encourage her to go into college with an open mind.

“Most people are NOT doctors and lawyers, yet so many students think that’s what they want to do because they don’t know about the world of job opportunities,” Beattie tells teens. “Get involved in clubs both in school and in the community and think about the issues that interest you. Study those!”

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