Starting college is an intense and confusing event that plagues all recent high school graduates. It is like trying to run when all you can do is crawl, and for many freshmen, myself included, one can get easily overwhelmed by the daunting task of picking a major when less than two months ago some of our parents still packed our lunches for us every morning. The concept of entering college tends to be frequently skewed and expecting an eighteen year old to decide what they want to do for the rest of their lives, without having them actually experiment in different areas, has the potential to create a generation of adults who are aggravated and depressed in their careers. What I am slowly coming to learn and accept is the concept that failure and not knowing is okay because finding out what one will thrive in, is a process that has peaks and valleys but ultimately you have learned something from each of those. Neil Gaiman talks of a concept of “making great art,” and many would define great art as the “Mona Lisa” by Leonardo Da Vinci or “Moonlight Sonata” by Beethoven, however, I think Gaiman ultimately means make and do what you enjoy most because what you enjoy most will, in time, produce success. What is most genuine, what frightens you most and entices a feeling of both fear and adrenaline, what exposes you …show more content…
I am not saying ignore those around you who tell of their experiences, which one can learn a great deal from, just do not let the pressure to earn money or please your parents be the deciding factor of what you do for the rest of your life. Father James Burtchaell makes a good point in claiming that “the choice of a major is not the choice of a career,” it is a stepping stone, an important one, but your major does not define your
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Show MoreIn recent discussions of education, a controversial issue has been whether or not to go to college after high school. On the one hand, some argue that starting your career after high school is the smart thing to do. On the other hand, however, others argue that the smarter decision would be to continue your schooling by going to college to get a degree. In sum, then, the issue is whether or not college is the right decision for you. My own view is that you should go to college because it helps you build character, start a tradition, and gives you experience.
The main point of Jessica Tomer article “The truth of college majors” is that she explains that many worry about choosing the right major in order to get a great job. Furthermore when they worry about it they always seem to pick a major they have no clue about. She also give out great examples of how other experienced college students got to where they are, most of them knew what they wanted to major in from middle school. For example she talks about a student that knew he wanted to be a Federal agent worker but didn’t how to get there. In addition he started by majoring in Psychology but once there he didn’t know how to become a FBI agent, until he went to a different university that helped him find a niche on following the right path. As
College majors are one of, if not the most important aspect of college. Starting at young ages, students are pressured to think about their future and the possible career paths they will take, leaving little room for them to relish in their childhood. In high school, they are told the AP classes they take and the clubs they join should be reflective of the major they will have in college. This pressure ends up being a source of stress for many incoming college students who have no idea what they want to do with the rest of their lives. Moreover, when students are rushed to make a decision, they may end up in debt, unemployed, or working a field they have no interest in. Additionally, the necessity of bachelor’s degrees to get well-paying jobs,
Ever since my parents divorced, everything was confusing. Under the circumstances, my mother decided to immigrate. Since I was a little girl, I wanted to travel the world; I wanted to experience new things, I wanted to meet new people, and to speak different languages. But not at twelve. I wanted to stay in Barranquilla, Colombia; I wanted to hold on to my culture, my traditions, and my familiar surroundings. However, I wasn’t old enough to make life changing decisions anyhow, we migrated to the US on September 7, 2012.
In high school, students always have to make the decision of what their future has to be. As they determine their future, they also have to determine what their major will be in college as well as what college they want to go to. College can help you open many doors in life, but also, it can also close some doors if it the major or the future does not fit for them.
Tons of people want to expand their horizons and meet new people. As many campuses pride themselves on being diverse, it is a great place to discover other cultures and different people. More importantly, going to college is a decision based on the choice of a specific career. When someone discovers their dream career, they will do anything to achieve it. Most of the time, these dreams need a college degree. On the other hand, many students go to college as “undecided” majors. With many colleges offering upwards of one-hundred majors, college allows students to select the major and future career that will work best for them.
Life is full of transitions, how they are handled and the choices made ultimately effect the overall outcome. College is a transition in which many students begin to truly discover who they are, and what they are meant to fulfill in life. Throughout my time at the current institution I attend, the journey has not been what I quite expected. My goals were afflicted, this includes several unexpected roadblocks throughout the course of it, which ultimately have been detrimental to my success. In order to truly discover the path that is right for me, I have come to the conclusion that the only way to fulfill this is to take my journey to another institution of higher education.
This abrupt career decision is made without proper guidance and foresight, which results in students working toward a degree that they are not interested in pursuing or they drop out of college. College professors said: “I find my colleagues around the country deeply concerned about students assuming vast debt burdens and about those parents who respond to the financial pressure by urging their children to make career decisions at just the wrong stage in their development” (McPherson). Students are too young and uninformed to be making crucial decisions about their future alone. In order for students to succeed after college with the littlest amount of debt possible and a profession that they enjoy, they need to have a precise path to follow while obtaining an education. Having a plan and guidance allows students to determine the pros and cons of each field of study and the opportunities that are available. This instruction guides students to obtain a degree that offers a variety of stable jobs. Therefore, this process is an efficient way to help eliminate unemployment, and massive amounts of debt for college graduates. Many students assume that by going to college they will come out with a bachelors degree. Without having the navigation skills to pursue a degree, students will fall flat. According to a study by Avery and Turner “Of everyone who enters college expecting to get a bachelor’s degree, more than half leave with no degree and average of $7,413 in debt” (Haltom 14). This problem occurs because students don’t have any specific person guiding them to make sure they reach their goals. Before college, students would depend on their parents to keep them on track and get things done, but now they are forced to manage themselves. Therefore, if students had someone overseeing their progress and
It was difficult to accept that I was going into college undeclared. It seemed as if everyone else in my grade already knew their true calling in life; several of my classmates were planning to major in psychology, another in business, and even one friend going into a specialized art therapy program. Being an immigrant and a soon-to-be first-generation college student, I felt the pressure to choose something, anything, just to prove that I had at least stepped foot onto the path of success.
Today, it is quite common to encounter a student who conflicts on deciding a major. In fact, according to academic-advisor Dr.Fritz, eighty-percent of college students begin their undergraduate uncertain of what career they want to pursue but choose a major anyways. Fifty-percent of those students decide to change their major once or much often more than once during their college career. Even worse, due to their indecisiveness, students often decide to change their major which also leads to a list of other dilemmas. For instance, students may become prone to stress if they contemplate too long on deciding on a major, this could also lead to the student’s poor performance in school which also reflects badly on the school’s reputation. Needless to say time and money is used up carelessly when students take courses and then decide to change their majors. Some likely sources for students’ indecisiveness when choosing a major could be due to their lack of research and experience related to their interests from the very beginning. This issue has become a very common in nearly all universities. Students need to know that it is okay to explore your options and gain experience; a student shouldn’t wait too long to be confident about their major. There are, however, some potential solutions to this issue, nonetheless,
I come from a family who has a very close bond. For myself and my family education is
I moved to the United States in 2011, seeking a better life and a higher quality education. Surely, being a first-generation college student, I felt an immense amount of pressure to succeed because I was the only one in my family who was lucky enough to get the opportunity to earn a college education. When I initially arrived in the United States I did not feel a sense of belonging rather I disliked the transition as it made me feel lonely. Of course, a large move like this one had a significant social impact in my life. But through these challenges, I constantly reminded myself of the reason I moved here and that is to attain an education and pave my way to success.
I’ve just entered my senior year of high school. I know that this is a very important year. I have a lot of decisions to make and not much time to make them. These decisions will either make or break my life, and I want to make sure that I make them to the best of my ability because there is no turning back. I need to make sure I definitely want to attend college. The decision is totally up to me. There are many positives and negatives of attending college. Go over them, and then decide. I know myself better then anyone else, and I won’t let anyone else tell me what to do. I will make sure if I am going to attend college that I have something in mind that I will want to do, to succeed in. Choosing a major can be a very stressful situation so why not sit down and take some time to do it? Be creative, don’t rush, give yourself plenty of time and really think about what interests you in life. My major is something that I will want to enjoy, something that I will be doing for the rest of my life. Why would I want to be miserable at something I do in life? In two short essays: “College? What’s in It for me?” by Steven M. Richardson, and “What It Means to Be Creative”, by S.I. Hayakawa, I can relate to my major very well. Athletic Training is something that takes skill, as well as being creative in your own way. No two Athletic Trainers are the same. The more creative I am at whatever I do, the better off I will be. I hold the keys to all the doors that can ...
Coming from a small town where farming and working right after high school is what everyone decides to do, I decided to further my education by going to college. College to some people isn’t even an option, most kids would follow up their families and go work for them or start helping out around their farms or in the family business. Not wanting to be stuck in my hometown for my young years or working right after school I started looking at colleges to get out and go do bigger and better things.
According to CollegeAtlas.org, “30% of college and university students drop out after their first year.” Growing up, most people 's dream is to graduate from high school and enroll in a community college or a university, but what happens once they get to that point of their lives? To some people, attending a college or a university is the most important step of becoming an adult, and if they have a clear mind on what they want to study, they will begin studying their major. While for others, college is the place where they will find out what they want to become. Some students, as they go to college, have a clear idea of what they will be studying, but once they start taking courses for their major, they may realize that the classes are difficult