If you feel stressed out about choosing a major before entering your post secondary education, you are not alone. Higher education is one of the most important decisions that many students who choose to continue their education deal with. When pursuing your education, it is important to set some life goals this can determine what major might be right for you.
Here are five tips you to help you make your decision.
Choosing your college major
- Find your interests — Ask yourself what you enjoy doing and what you are passionate about. Make a short list of interests, hobbies or causes you would like to explore further with higher education.
- Find your strengths — What are you good at? Where do you excel in school or life in general? Look back at your best grades or your most successful extracurricular activities and ask yourself if you would like to revisit these areas with a post secondary degree.
- Job priorities — Continuing education often opens people up to jobs they may never knew existed. Would your ideal job allow you to travel or help others? Would it have to have a high social status? Would it allow you time to grow a family? This will help you create a job profile.
- Find this job — Take all of this information to a career counselor at your school. Together, the two of you can find a job that matches your interest, skills and priorities to choose a major.
- Do a Reality check — Once you have found the ideal job or jobs you can focus on what education requirements you will need. Ask yourself if it is doable; if your dream job requires a post secondary education and you cannot commit to further schooling after your bachelor’s program, you should rethink this path.
How to choose
So you've graduated from high school, managed to choose a college, and just when you thought you had made enough big decisions it is time to choose a major. While this may seem like a huge deal, unless you want to be a doctor, what you choose to major in is not going to dictate the rest of your life; it is merely a starting point. Obtaining a secondary education is simply a step on the way to becoming who you are.
Higher education programs provide individuals with valuable skills that are both applicable to professional endeavors and regular life endeavors. If you know exactly what you want to do with your life, then by all means you have it figured out. If you don't have it all figured out and need to choose a direction for your undergraduate degree, these tips will help you to decide.
- Investigate the different professors in a given program. Are their reputations strong? Do students enjoy their classes?
- Talk to other students in the program you are thinking about, they may have some valuable things to tell you.
- Try getting an internship in your field of interest to see if you actually like it.
- Research the requirements and syllabus of a prospective major to gage if it is something you can and want to do.
- What is the earning potential for careers related to that major? Do the funds correspond with your lifestyle?
These thoughts and questions will help you to discover which majors are better suited to your interests and goals. Essentially you just need to figure out what you want to learn about and how that can translate your higher education into a career path.
Top 5 higher education majors
Determining the "best" college majors is very subjective. Some will make you more money, some will provide you with travel opportunities and some will be personally rewarding. Higher education is meant to enrich your life and help your dreams become reality, but choosing a major that is perfect for you depends on your priorities. To help, here is a general list of college majors that are wise choices for a number of reasons.
Engineering
Not only is there a seemingly infinite amount of concentrations in engineering, the general field is one of the most lucrative in the country. Petroleum engineering is in the obvious lead as the highest grossing higher education major in the U.S. However, other areas like computer engineering and civil engineering are very successful as well.
Business
A business major can be somewhat of a chameleon. Because nearly every job in the world is centralized on making money, a business major can apply her knowledge to almost any role. If you are unsure of what to study during your secondary education, business is one of the safer choices.
Nursing
Unlike many other industries, health care is almost recession proof. Nursing is a great higher education major and profession that will allow you more job freedom than that of a doctor or surgeon. Yet, you will be able to lend a helping hand in important medical procedures and gain important knowledge in the field.
Education
While teachers are not known to make the best money, they are an integral part of civilized society. Becoming a teacher with your higher education major will be your way of giving back to your community and finding a truly rewarding career.
Criminal Justice
A career in the police department is not only a revered position, it is also impressively lucrative. Police officers and detectives enjoy comfortable salaries and benefits in return for risking their lives every day while keeping the streets clean. If you crave excitement and are passionate about making your neighborhood a safe place, look into this higher education major.