| By Maddy Gonzalez |
I can remember it just like it was yesterday, the day I chose my major. As an incoming freshman, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, or even the subjects I was interested in.
Without knowing what exactly I wanted to study, I opted to enroll in the Pamplin School of Business. This meant as a freshman I was officially a business major, and I was happy to finally be able to say that I had declared a major. However, I was not always confident that business was the right fit for me.
Freshman year I can remember being frustrated that I didn’t feel challenged by some of my classes and that a few of my classes seemed tedious and purposeless. This discouraged me and made me rethink majoring in business. I decided I needed to take initiative and gather more information about my major so that I could decide whether being a business major was the right choice for me.
The first step I took was joining clubs on campus that were associated with business so that I could get a better feel about what majoring in business entailed. The most influential club I joined was Alpha Kappa Psi, the business fraternity at UP. There I learned about possible career fields in business and I got to know upperclassmen who shared with me their experience as business majors. The knowledge I gained and relationships I formed in in the clubs I joined boosted my confidence that business was the right major for me.
The next step I took was scheduling and having a meeting with my academic advisor. He reassured me that it is completely normal to not feel 100% sure about your major, especially freshman year. The classes you take as a freshman might not be the best representation of the subject you are studying or the scope of the career field you are looking to pursue. He reassured me that as you begin to take upper-division classes, your classes become more interesting and relevant. Talking to your academic advisor or a professor is a great way to get the “inside scoop” about the major you are in.
The last step I took was coming to the Career Center to discuss major options. The staff at the Career Center has a lot of knowledge about how to choose a major and whether the major you are in is the right major for you. The Career Center also offers a test, called the O*NET, which evaluates your interests and suggests a list of job occupations. The staff at the Career Center can evaluate your results with you and help you decipher what the results mean. After taking the O*NET and discussing my results with Mary Beth I knew that business was the right major for me.
Overall, I decided to stay a business major because of the insight I gained by taking initiative and getting involved on campus. Joining clubs and seeking advice and support from my academic advisor and the Career Center staff is a great way to evaluate what major is right for you.