Major Decisions (Pun Intended)
Hey everyone!
Since the Discovering Majors & Careers (DMC) course is starting in a few weeks (WOOOH!), I thought I’d reflect on how I chose my majors. When submitting college applications, one thing I knew for sure was that I wanted to be in a mathematics field – specifically something using statistics because AP Stats was my favorite course throughout high school and the teacher told me any career combining math and business would be a great option. I leaned towards schools with a strong technology and math focus because if anything, I would always be a math major.
But … I was wrong. If you’ve read my earlier blogs, you might remember I’m now a management and economics double major (so business and social science, not mathematics [awkward]) after switching from actuarial science. If I was at a different school, things would probably be different and I might still be pursuing that math degree but I decided to follow different strengths and try a different path.
I didn’t expect to be either of the majors I am now. With economics, I was only taking the intro classes to fulfill my social science requirements like everyone else but found the concepts interesting. After finishing the intro courses, I decided to do an econ minor until I found out Economic Science was a major here! WHAT?! Bet most of you didn’t know that. Although it’s a really small program (4 students as of the beginning of this term), I absolutely love it. And since it’s so small, my opinions on how to change the program and attract more students are considered and I’m one of the main resources for anyone who’s interested in the program. Economics was the major I chose to do just for fun, but now it’s something I’m seriously pursuing.
Regarding my management major, I’ve only been in the school of business for only two terms now so I’m pretty new to it. Although we don’t have finance as an undergraduate major, I’m gonna try getting as much out of the finance and math based business classes as I can because that’s the field I wanna go in – plus it incorporates math!
Moral of the story: it’s okay to switch from what you originally were. I had a really hard time accepting that I wasn’t going to be an actuarial major anymore, but I believe that things have a way of working themselves out. Play to your strengths and be open to different choices. Take courses outside of your major and maybe you’ll develop a passion for those. For those of you taking DMC next term or C-term, I hope I can help you guys figure out your strengths and discover your passions.
Until next term,
-Jacky
Post script – have a great break and good luck with finals!
