I knew what I wanted to major in when I went to college when I started 7th grade. And if someone would have told me that I’d change my major, I would not have believed them; I wanted to study psychology.
So that’s what I did. My mom always told me to study something that would help me get a job, something I could potentially make good money doing, and something I was passionate about – that’s what I thought psychology would be. But when I got to college, I changed my major.
I changed my major from psychology to a double major with creative writing, and eventually, after two semesters, I settled on a having a psychology minor and a creative writing major. Through this process, I learned a few things that I think might help some of you considering changing your major!
When I was first debating making the change I was terrified. I was a first-generation college student, with no safety net. I was afraid that by changing my major I would fall behind or run out of loans before I could finish. But neither of those things happened.
Changing my major didn’t set me back. I think part of the reason it didn’t is that I used the credits I’d accumulated toward a minor – which I needed to declare in order to graduate. I made sure to outline my courses and plan out how I was going to change my major and still graduate on time. I talked to my advisors and they helped me throughout the entire process.
My mom wasn’t super thrilled about my decision, but I was relieved.
If you want to change your major, it has to be because it’s what you want to do. You can’t let anyone influence your decision; there’s a difference between asking for guidance and letting someone choose for you.
I said that my mom wasn’t thrilled with the idea, and that was true. But it was something I had to do because it was my education and I knew I needed to do what felt right for me. Now that I’ve graduated, I’m glad I changed my major and my mom has come around too.
Changing my major helped me realize that I finally had the ability to make my own decisions. It was scary but exhilarating! I realize now that this was one of the first things I did that helped me become my own person, with my own expectations for myself.
Though I love psychology and think about eventually going back to school and getting my masters and practicing, for now, I’m in love with being able to pursue my longest passion: writing. When I changed my major, I felt like I was discovering the real me, and was giving myself the ability to do exactly what I needed to do.
I learned so much, and I realized that I can still pursue other passions, like psychology, while I write. I can use the skills I learned by studying psychology since I was eleven to become a better writer.
If you’re changing your major from something you aren’t passionate about, or from something that makes you feel drained or empty, to something you do feel passionate about, you will feel so much better. College can take so much out of you, so you deserve to love what you’re studying!
When I decided on psychology it’s because I have always wanted to help people. During my freshman year, every freshman psychology major had to take this seminar and the advisor teaching the seminar said, “there are so many ways to help people, you don’t have to be a psychologist in order to do that.” That stuck with me and was part of the reason why I decided to change my major.
I want to help people, I always have. What is it you want to do? If there is another way to do what you want to do and your major isn’t working for you, changing your major might be the perfect way to discover what your purpose or true passion is. Changing my major was the first step in me discovering mine.
Changing your major can be scary, but it can save your life – you won’t know what I mean unless you take the leap. So if you’re thinking about changing your major, think it through and talk to your advisors. Follow what your gut tells you, I’ve found that it’s a good middle ground between your head and your heart!
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