Strategies for Choosing a Major

Your choice of a college major should reflect your personal interests, long-term career goals and your skills. You don't want to choose a major because your parents think you should enter a certain career. When this happens you won't be as dedicated to your studies and you may regret not choosing a major that could have helped you become successful in the career you really wanted. Before choosing a major, you should first write down a list of your strengths, weaknesses and possible career options based on those. Then read sources such as the Occupational Outlook Handbook and research the trends and salaries of the careers you're considering.
  1. Consider Your Financial Goals

    • While you should choose a major that's in line with your talents and interests, you should also consider whether this major will help you obtain a career that is financially stable for the long term. For example, if you plan to work in journalism, you can do research on the various jobs within journalism and examine the different salaries within this field to see which jobs are the most financially stable as well as rewarding for you.

    Consider Your Talents and Interests

    • When choosing a major, you want to decide on something that suits your talents and interests. For example, if you're skilled in baking delicious desserts and think that you would be successful in operating your own bakery, you should consider a major in business management and then take some non-credit courses in pastry making to help improve your baking skills.

    Talk to Your Career Counselor or Professor

    • If you know what your talents and interests are but still don't know what major to choose or which career would be right for you, meet with your professor or campus career counselor to get help with this decision. For example, if you tell your career counselor that you've always wanted to help struggling married and engaged couples build stronger relationships because you're inspired by the marital troubles your parents experienced and overcame successfully, the counselor may advise you to major in psychology or marriage and family studies.

    Talk to Your Parents

    • Although the final decision to choose a certain major rests with you, it doesn't hurt to seek your parents' suggestions in this decision. If your father knows that you have a strong ability to play the piano and that you can sing well, he may suggest that you major in music performance. Or if your mother notices that you enjoy researching social and political issues, she may advise you to major in sociology.

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