When you first go to college, you feel a sense of isolation or fear that you won’t have any friends. You want everyone to accept you so a lot of the time people are rather… different when they first start. I like to think that that’s how my college major has evolved because I myself as many others have changed.

When I first was told I had to go to college, I thought that I would be able to have a dance major behind my education so that I could one day work at a studio as well as an English teacher by day. Suddenly a car accident later and I’m not supposed to dance. I continued with the Secondary Education and English major with the approval and command of my family.

“What else would you do with your life? This is the only way you’ll get a job Lauren,” my mother repeatedly nagged at me. The moment when I told her I was dropping the Education Major, I thought my heart was going faster than a bullet just shot out a gun. All my mother thought I was capable of was being a teacher. I love correcting papers and Shakespeare plays, but was afraid that my “students” would see me as a person who didn’t have the passion to teach. I always could tell if a teacher was only a teacher because they wanted summers off and never really enjoyed their classes. I don’t want to be the cause of someone’s hatred of education.

So sophomore year of college: mother disapproving my major and a new concentration in Public Relations goes underway. I started enjoying my classes for the most part. I took Marketing, Publication and Typography and so many more. The pressure of finding a job after college started to remove from my shoulders, but there was still something missing… Something that would make me want to go to where ever my career was going with a smile on my face. You’re supposed to love your career and hate your job at your local food chain right?

I continued to look for the missing piece to my college career. Then while helping a friend with some homework I caught a glimpse in something I have always loved-- art. In high school, I created my own online store for my artwork. I made custom drawings and sent them as far away as Philly, which was a milestone for me. I saw that I was missing my creative outlet, the thing I longed for.

Junior here is about to start in a few days and I have my third major of my college career, Interdisciplinary Studies with the concentration in Art Management and English. It’s a mouthful, but it’s created a happier environment for me. It now allows me to enjoy my education and not feel pressured by my mother; she’s given up on me anyhow. If changing your major too many times means that you are doing what you love and still graduating on time then I guess I have. One day when I’m working at an Art Museum and planning art galleries, I’ll know that the other majors were just rough drafts to the final masterpiece of my life.