The most common path to choose after graduating high school is to attend a university and further your education by pursuing a degree. Most students, by the end of their second year attending a college, need to have declared a major in a field they would like to eventually pursue on a professional level. As a college student currently in this process, I think the notion that we have to know exactly what we want to do in life is unrealistic and very unfair.
College can be a very difficult and challenging time in a young adult’s life, and having to make a choice as difficult and important as picking a major and possible career is equally as stressful. Some people are lucky and know exactly what they want to for the rest of their lives—and that’s great. But for the other half of students who don’t have a clue, it really puts them at a disadvantage as opposed to other students. A student who knew what they wanted to major in going into freshman year, will have more internship opportunities and experience than another student who just figured out what they wanted to do their junior year and is now struggling to snag an internship. It puts that junior at a severe disadvantage that can potentially damage how they find a job after graduation.
I'm honestly very lucky to have figured out pretty early on what I generally want to do as a career; but I know many college students who are currently struggling with trying to pick a major. It can be a very tough decision, and I think it's very unfair that we're expected to know what we want to do for the rest of our lives at such a young age. I think a big part of the problem however lies in high school. Speaking from my own experience attending high school, guidance counselors were not very helpful when it came to giving me advice on choosing a possible career. If guidance counselors, teachers and career advisors could have prepared us more for what to expect in college and guide us on a general career path, I think a lot more students would be able to have an easier time at college with picking a major and securing internships in their field of study. This would therefore put them at a higher advantage in the job search after graduation.
Adults expect us to have our entire life mapped out perfectly, when in reality this is not the case at all. Most of us are clueless, and are just trying to enjoy college as much as we can— after all we only get one shot at the college experience. Parents however expect us to join a bunch of clubs, sports organizations, fraternities and sororities, while still maintaining a perfect GPA and have a major and career picked out.
The expectations that have been set by adults and parents is way too high, and we need to bring it down. It's extremely unrealistic that we have our entire futures planned out just by one decision, and very unfair to those who are still trying to figure things out. This is a monumental decisions that will impact our lives forever, and the pressures of choosing a major and securing internships and a job makes college even more daunting than it already is. I'm going to be a sophomore this fall, and I feel I haven't accomplished nearly as much as I should in order to succeed in the professional world. College students should have time to explore possible careers, while at the same time not impacting their chances of securing internships and jobs in the future.
