Choosing a Major
What should I major in? If you have agonized over this question be assured you are not alone! Choosing a major is an important decision, but not necessarily because the major prepares you for a specific career. Some majors do just that: engineering and accounting, for example; some majors do not. Employers look at many things, including your major: your grades, courses you have taken, skills you have developed, experiences you have had, extracurricular activities, interests, knowledge of their specific area, and personality traits that would make you a good fit with their organization.
A major can help you in many ways, both by allowing you to pursue areas which interest you and by helping you develop new areas of interest. What you learn in a major can form the basis for lifelong enjoyment, broad intellectual interests, communication and technical skills. A major can prepare you for graduate or professional school or for a specific field in the work world.
Choosing a major is a process.
Here are some ideas on how to get started:
- Reflection -- Don't begin with a career choice and try
to find a major to match. Instead begin with yourself. What
interests you? What would you be interested in studying for
the next four or five years?
- Take a short walk over to Career Services (AS 101) or to Counseling and Psychological Services (SH 103) and ask one of the counselors to show you the Discover program. It is a computer program designed to help you reflect on your interests and abilities. It's fun to work with and helps you get a clearer view of yourself. Both offices also have libraries with useful information related to career preparation.
- My Dream Job: take a blank piece of paper (or sit down at your computer) and write a description of your ideal job. Make your description as detailed as you can. What would the environment be like? What field would the job be in? What would you be doing? What kind of hours would you work? Who would you interact with? How much money would you make? Have some fun with this. The results will give you clues about your preferences and values, which you can match with your career research.
- Self Assessment on the Web: try The Keirsey Temperament Sorter http://www.keirsey.com/cgi-bin/keirsey/newkts.cgi
- Research: Find out about different majors and careers.
- Use the SCSU Undergraduate Bulletin to find out about different majors you think might appeal to you. Look at the requirements and read course descriptions.
- Visit departments. Go to the department office and ask to speak with a major advisor, or make an appointment with one. Faculty members are generally happy to speak to prospective majors, and are often enthusiastic in discussing their own areas of interest and expertise.
- Visit the Career Services Office (AS 100). They have an
excellent web site with many links dealing with careers,
resume writing, etc.: http://www.stcloudstate.edu/careerservices
Career Services also has a career library for job information, salary information, etc. - Visit Counseling and Psychological Services (SH 103).
They have lots of material pertaining to majors, careers,
etc.
See
the
career
counseling section of their web site:
http://www.stcloudstate.edu/counseling - Career/Major Exploration on the Web:
College Board Online - Career Search http://www.collegeboard.org/career/bin/career.pl Provides information about many careers and gives detailed descriptions of working conditions, nature of work, earnings, job outlook, and related majors.
Occupational Outlook Handbook http://www.bls.gov/oco Student online version of the government's career reference book. It profiles 250 occupations with detailed information about work activities, environment, earnings, training, personal qualities, and opportunities over the coming years.
- Action
- Talk to Family, Friends and University Personnel people who know you well can help with your self-assessment. See what your professors think you would enjoy and be good at.
- Do an Information Interview after doing some research, arrange to talk with someone working in a profession that interests you. This is a great way to get first-hand knowledge about a field and to start making contacts.
- Take introductory classes you won't know if you like a major until you try out a class. Obviously you need to be judicious about this, as you don't have time to sample everything.
- Get relevant experience through internships, volunteer work, paid jobs, student organizations, etc.
Here is a Checklist you can use when you are considering a major:
- Am I interested in the kinds of courses required for this major?
- Do I have an aptitude for the coursework required for this major? Am I willing to invest the time necessary to succeed?
- What are the entrance requirements (courses, GPA)?
- Can I meet these requirements by the time I have earned 80 semester credits?
- What kinds of graduate programs does this major prepare me for?
- What kind of careers have graduates of this program pursued?
- What kinds of skills can I develop from this major?
- Do the skills I would develop in this major match the ones I would need for the career (s) that interest me?
- How long will it take me to graduate with this major?
- How many electives will I be able to take?
- Are there internships or other capstone experiences required in this major?
Advice from Employers
Many students are convinced that every career requires a particular major, but that is not the case. Very few of the thousands of jobs listed in the U.S. Department of Labor's Dictionary of Occupational Titles require a specific undergraduate background. Employers are more concerned with the person they are hiring. Here are some suggestions from employers on how to make your undergraduate experience marketable:
- Provide a strong academic record. Note that this suggests that you choose a major that you enjoy and are good at. There is no point in selecting a highly marketable undergraduate major if you don't like the subject matter and/or struggle with it.
- Become involved in campus and community activities. This demonstrates leadership, teamwork, and organizational and managerial skills.
- Get relevant, hands-on experience in the form of internships, volunteer work, and part-time jobs. Note the emphasis on "relevant!" You might be better off with a part-time job that relates to your career interests.
- Acquire strong communication skills, both written and oral. Select classes that will allow you to develop and demonstrate these skills. A friend who has a law degree and an MBA recently stated that people who can communicate well tend to get placed on the fast track.
- Develop your interpersonal skills and social skills. Employers look for traits such as maturity, responsibility, leadership, ability to get along with others, etc.
- Acquire and develop computer skills. Identify specific software applications for your field of interest and learn these. You can take courses to help you; software applications can also be learned on your own through experimentation. For example, you can easily learn HTML and create your own web page, and you should learn word processing and spreadsheet applications.
- Make good use of any elective courses. Avoid merely accumulating credits. Select courses that will help develop specific areas of interest.
- Seek out international experiences through studying a foreign language, participating in a study abroad program, or taking classes to enhance your knowledge of international issues and cultures.
- Identify a field that interests you (or several) and keep track of your field's job market, new developments, employers, etc.
- Attend workshops to hone your interviewing skills and learn how to write effective resumes and cover letters.
"Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life" |
| --Confucius |
