Do you need to have your major picked out already?

High school students often feel pressure to have their college major already chosen by the time they apply to college. The pressure to have their plan already figured out comes for the application process itself, which often asks why you’ve chosen the major you indicated in your application. It comes from teachers and counselors at school. A lot of the time, it comes from parents. This is really important: you don’t have to have a major picked out yet.

There are situations where it’s definitely more convenient to already have a major in mind. Large universities, often divided into separate schools with their own applications and requirements, make it hard to get started as a completely Undecided major. It also helps to know your major from day one if you want to graduate from college early…or even on time. There are financial considerations, too. I tell people all the time that if your honest idea about a major is “I don’t know,” then there are plenty of schools built for that. But they tend to be smaller, private liberal arts colleges. And those are often more expensive than larger public universities in your state.

On the other hand, it’s not always a good idea to get too caught up in a chosen major, especially if you’re not feeling too sure about it. You’re likely to change your major anyway—around a third of college students do. And feeling like you “have to” know your life path by the time you’re 18-19 is about as practical as feeling like you “have to” find a life partner by the time you’re 25. It just doesn’t really work that way for most people, even if it would be more convenient and efficient.

Most of the people I work with don’t have a single, clear major chosen by the time they graduate high school. But most of them have an idea of what direction they’re going. Or several possible directions. So if it’s helpful for people who haven't gone through the process to see what’s “normal,” here are examples from the class of 2022 that I’ve worked with (I changed all the names). You can see the variety of schools they end up going to. I live and work in Texas, so it’s no surprise that many of them end up at the University of Texas.

Blair is solidly undecided. They think they’re leaning towards a STEM major, maybe Chemistry? But they’re really relying on college as a place to help them figure out their path, not college as a stepping stone on their path. Blair will be attending Trinity University.

Katherine is STEM-focuesd and very interested in ecology. She will probably end up majoring in Chemistry or Environmental Science. Katherine will be attending UC San Diego.

Liz is undecided. She’s interested in psychology and film, or maybe something else altogether. Liz will be attending Bates College.

Henry is one of the most decided people I’ve worked with when it comes to a major. He wants to major in Mechanical Engineering. Henry will be attending UT Austin in the Cockrell School of Engineering, in the honors program for mechanical engineering.

Lexi wants to double major in Neuroscience and Women & Gender Studies. She’s thinking seriously about med school, and she’s seriously interested in the disparity of medical treatment among men and women in the US. Lexi will be attending the University of Arizona.

Hannah is undecided, but focused on humanities, possibly Political Science. Hannah will be attending American University.

Layla had her mind set on a pre-vet program, but then later in high school she got really interested in agricultural policy. I will not be surprised to see her go on to law school. Layla will be attending Baylor University.

Raj is interested in both Political Science and Chemistry. He also has a passion and natural talent for linguistice. Raj will be attending UT Austin.

Yash is interested in many things, including Political Science, Global Studies, Business, and Education. Yash will be attending UT Austin.

Rachel hasn’t got a major picked out, but it will definitely be in the Humanities. Communication, perhaps? Rachel will be attending the University of Virginia.

Sarah is thinking about majoring in Business, Computer Science, and/or Engineering. She has experience with all three through working in her family business. But she can also envision herself moving towards Literature or Anthropology. Sarah will be attending Dartmouth.

Hannah is very focused on business, so it makes sense that Hannah will be attending Bentley University.

Cara has a variety of interests and hasn’t got a clear major yet. Cara will be attending UT Austin. She applied with the Moody School of Communication as her top choice, but is already trying to move to the McCombs School of Business. She hopes to make the move official at Freshman Orientation.

Molly is a charismatic performer who had a different idea for a major almost every time I spoke to her. Theater. Film. Costume Design. Business with an art industry focus. Music production. Molly will be attending Southwestern University.

From my experience, this snapshot of 14 is pretty typical. There are a few who have a strong sense of that they want, applied to only a few schools, and made the choice fairly easily. Most have a big-picture idea of what they want to do, and will figure out the details in college. These students applied to more schools and had more difficulty making their final choice. And some are still pursuing a wide array of interests. They have very little focus on a major or career path, though they are some of the most energetic and accomplished of the bunch. Several of them made the decision, literally, on the last day.

There are lots of ways to get where you’re going, especially if you don’t know where that is.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, here are three easy things you can do:

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2. Read these related posts:

   Stop telling people you’re going to double major!

   Picking the right school for your major

   Will a Humanities degree make you poor?

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Expect surprises

In my years teaching high school seniors who were going though college admission, I learned to expect surprises. Several times I had fairly intense conversations in April with a senior trying to choose between two colleges. And on the May 1st deadline I would learn…that they went someplace completely different. I saw seniors celebrate in December their early acceptance to their dream school only to have very different dreams—and enroll at a very different school—in the spring. I learned never to consider a decision final until the student actually committed on paper. Even then, sometimes students will change their minds or do something completely different. When it comes to college admission, which is a very big, complex, and important decision, we should all expect surprises.

As a consultant, I often remind clients to expect surprises and not to be afraid of them. I’ve had clients begin the process in their junior year with a very clear set of goals, only to find themselves with a very different set of goals by the end. I’ve heard a shocking number of times: “I don’t actually know why I applied to that college.”

I had a couple surprises last week as I was checking in on people to see what news they’ve heard so far and what I can do to help them over the next month. One client initially told me that she’s not interested in going to school in the South, except maybe Florida. Still, I wasn’t too surprised when she told me a month ago that she applied to the University of Alabama. And this week she told me she’d been accepted to 11 schools so far, including Ole Miss. I didn’t know she applied to Ole Miss until she’d already been accepted. Surprise!

Another client had a plan. She was going to apply to UT Austin and Texas A&M, where she knew she would be accepted through auto-admission. She was also going to apply to Harvard and Cornell. And that’s it. Four schools: two assured acceptances, two long shots. So was I surprised when she told me this week that she was offered a scholarship at Auburn and is interviewing at Baylor? A little. But I’ve come to expect surprises.

Students, it’s ok to change your mind about things. People do it all the time, and you’re still growing and figuring things out. All that I ask about changing your mind and embracing the surprises is that you’re honest with yourself about your reasons. Self-knowledge is the best knowledge, and understanding your own motivations is honestly more important to your future success than what college you attend.

Take a (relatively) common example: the senior who gets accepted to an exclusive private college, one that they had as their top choice school, but ends up going to the less selective public university that’s much closer to home. They choose less prestige than they might. Why might a student do this? There are plenty of reasons.

A student might realize that they were only applying to the selective school to see if they would be selected, not because they actually want to go there.

A student may have known all along that they were unlikely to afford the private school but wanted to find out for sure. This student is fine with the decision.

Another student may have just assumed that a big scholarship would fall in their lap, and when it didn’t they changed plans and are very not-fine with the decision.

A student may have applied for the selective school with a major in mind, and then changed their mind about their intended major.

They may have visited the selective school and realized that the culture isn’t a good fit and not worth the extra money for them.

They may be experiencing mental or physical health problems that make being near home more practical.

They may be experiencing a major case of poor self-esteem and feel like they don’t deserve to go to the more prestigious school even though they were accepted.

They may change their mind and have no real idea why.

There are so many reasons to change your plan; there are probably overlapping reasons. But be honest with yourself. If what’s happening is that you’re scared of failure and so you’re setting yourself up for something that seems easier, don’t tell yourself that you’re changing your mind because of the dorms. If you’re freaking out because you now understand your family’s financial situation isn’t a stable as you assumed, don't tell yourself that you’re suddenly philosophically against private education. You can’t grow if you’re not honest about what the problems are. That’s really important.

You don’t have to tell everyone your reasons for changing your plan. You can always say of the school you enroll at: “it turned out to be the best academic, financial, and social fit for me.” And leave it that at. But if the reasons for your surprise move are things you need help with, you have to be honest with yourself so you can get that help.

Parents, keep yourself open to possibilities. When I talk to a student who doesn’t know what they want to major in but feel pressure to figure it out by their senior year of high school, it’s always their parents who are doing the pressuring. The reasons for the pressure are completely valid. It is indeed easier to choose a school suited to your field of study if you know what your field of study is. You are more likely to graduate on time if you go in with a plan and a schedule. College is indeed an expensive place to just explore interests. And yet you have to expect surprises. A third of college students change their major at least once. Forcing them to figure it out before applications doesn’t actually make things go more smoothly. When you’re helping your student choose colleges, focus on things other than fields of study and majors, especially if your child seems unsure. I don’t worry about clients who don’t have a major picked out. They’ve got a lot to discover and a lot that can go right. I worry a lot about clients who seem to have the next five years mapped out. They’re in for surprises, and there’s a lot that can go wrong.

Surprises happen, all the time. Those of us who see them over and over again are not that phased by them. Students going through the process for the first time, and especially their families, are often really distressed about it. Many high school students don't know what they want to do, what they want to study, where they want to be in the world. While I could share a bunch of exercises on trying to figure it out, instead I’m going to share the words of Zen Master Seung Sahn: “Good. Keep this ‘don’t know mind.’ It is an open mind, a clear mind.”

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, here are three easy things you can do:

1. Share it on your social media feeds so your friends and colleagues can see it too.

2. Read these related posts:

   Making a very important decision in a very difficult time.

   It’s not the choice, it’s how you explain it.

   Getting good advice from your family.

3. Ask a question—or share other resources—in the comments section.

Apply with Sanity doesn’t have ads or annoying pop-ups. It doesn’t share user data, sell user data, or even track personal data. It doesn’t do anything to “monetize” you. You’re nothing but a reader to me, and that means everything to me.

Photo by Zoe Herring.

Apply with Sanity is a registered trademark of Apply with Sanity, LLC. All rights reserved.