Kent State University is a place that I have called my home for only two years, but in that time, I feel that I have learned a lot about what college has to offer.

At the start of my freshman year, my initial instinct was to pick a major that would provide financial stability, as well as job security. The idea of nursing and pre-med did just that, making up the idea that “doctors and nurses make a lot of money and I need money to succeed.” Then, I considered that since I am more artistic than I am science and medicine driven, VCD would be a much better pick for me. It wasn’t, so again I switched. And although I am enjoying my major much more, I am getting so many mixed signals from so many places. I am a 20-year-old first generation college student who has a lot on their plate, in a small university in northeast Ohio, who doesn’t know quite what they want to do with their life.

I know that I am not the only one. Of course, people all over the country and all over the world have run into this, or a similar predicament. For example, 50 percent of incoming freshman don’t even have a decided major and go into college undecided, and 50 percent to 70 percent of students change their major at least once, if not at least three times (Major Exploration).

With these statistics, it is amazing that in just the United States, the career ratio to where students end up actually getting jobs is astonishing. To quote the past citation, “Not in the least! A math major can have a business related career just as a business major can be a psychologist. For most people, it’s what you do in your graduate program or on the job that will dictate your career path. So getting back to the examples above, a math major can go on and get a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) and a business major can go on and get a graduate degree in Psychology.” (Major Exploration) This is to show that career options are open to what the student does with them, not necessarily with a degree in a certain field.

But all this is information gathered from the United States, where college and education is a more independent experience. However, this idea of having time to choose a career and a major isn’t one than other countries always share. For example, in China, they just recently in some major universities have been permitted to have their own major explorations, as recently as 2002. Many of these majors are located and started in the University of Science and Technology of China, which means there is a broad number of majors to choose from in fields that are relevant to the area.

According to chinadailyasia.com, the program launched by this university, as told by the vice president, was made because “high school graduates in China need to choose majors when applying for college enrollments. Many students, who are not sure of their own interests and the curriculum designs, often find their original choice for the majors not a desired one after studying at the college for a period of time.” (China Daily Asia) However, as helpful as this may be for some of those students, there are others who just succeed in changing their majors, because there isn’t always room in the majors. Again, according The School of Physical Sciences of USTC, “In 2011, 28 students in USTC failed to change their majors due to limited teaching resources and their own poorer performance,” said Yang Fan, a teaching coordinator of USTC.

But since December 2012, these failed students have been offered an additional choice: studying their desired major on their own as well as under the help of a professional team dedicated to them.

Basically, what this all means is that even if the students in America are more willing and able to change their major, and other countries are more inhibited to these changes, they are still in the position to do so. And China isn’t the only example of these sorts of issues. All over the world, students are majoring in things that they think will help them graduate and get jobs. In certain parts of the world, it is useless to major in education, when the funding and need for it is much lower. Likewise, majoring in something like computer science when the individual is very bad at math and doesn’t much like computers is also a poor choice. It is best to major in what is needed around the area of living as well to play to the individual’s strengths. (The Complete University Guide)

I choose this topic to research and write about because I am still very uncertain as to what I will eventually spend the majority of my time studying. I have been over a wide spectrum of different possible majors, and see the strengths and weaknesses of each. But, it seemed unfair for me to write about “Art Education in the Middle East vs. The United States" when I have just barely begun to explore the major for myself. However, universities all over the world have students who eventually need to choose a major of their own. And that just felt like something I thought I had more of an expertise in.

I have been struggling to choose. But, after researching the information on a national and international level, I feel more at ease. I know I have a lot more time and resources to help me choose, as well as have a difference circumstance from what other students have. I feel empowered and fortunate.

"Choosing a Course." - Complete University Guide. N.p., 2015. Web. 9 May 2015.

"Explore Majors & Degrees | Kent State University." Explore Majors & Degrees | Kent State University. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 May 2015.

"Free Choice of Major at College Comes No Easy Way - Focus - China Daily Asia." Free Choice of Major at College Comes No Easy Way - Focus - China Daily Asia. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 May 2015.

"University of La Verne." Career Services. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 May 2015.