When You Realize Your Major Isn’t ‘The One’ | The Odyssey Online
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Student Life

When You Realize Your Major Isn’t ‘The One’

It's probably not a good fit if you find yourself melting down in the grocery store...

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When You Realize Your Major Isn’t ‘The One’
Twitter @StudentProblems

I've never been super "excited" about the whole college thing. There were times throughout high school where it felt like nothing would ever be as exciting as the whole "college experience" seemed. Come to find out, the "college experience" in which I'm referring to is just a bunch of stressed-out strung together nights worrying about your correct citations on a completely irritating research paper. Needless to say, I dragged my feet through my general education courses at a community college with the hopes that one day I would have the "Rory Gilmore at Yale" experience.

Perhaps my expectations are a little too high because, well, you know, I don't actually go to Yale, but either way, it has been a seriously lackluster experience.

I've wanted to be an English major for as long as I can remember, and I was counting down the days until I could finally start taking higher level English courses. Of course, the classes were less "Gilmore-esque" and more "get me the f***k out of here." Pulling out my eyelashes one at a time usually sounded much more fun than anything school related ever did.

For years, I had been surrounded by my best friends raving to me about how fun (and challenging) all of their courses were, and I had seen them happily bury their heads in textbooks to study for exams. Why couldn't I study with such enthusiasm? I loved to read, I loved to write, why wasn't my English major becoming the perfect fit for me? I had never gotten poor grades in anything literature related, and I suddenly found myself drowning in a sea of uncomprehensable Beowulf quotes. NOTHING WAS MAKING SENSE. And you can bet your bottom dollar that these feelings often left me discouraged, overwhelmed, and extremely unhappy.

After a minor-meltdown in the middle of a grocery store about the status of my college graduation date (it is not nearly as close as I would like it to be, but is it ever really?) It finally occurred to me: My major just definitely isn't 'The One.'

I sat in shock. I really didn't think I was the type to change up my major more than once. But the more I thought about it; the more it made sense. It's OKAY to change your mind. It's OKAY to decide to take a risk and travel down a path that may or may not work out for you. It's OKAY to feel overwhelmed, and it's OKAY to reach out for help. After all, the only way one really gets through college in one piece is with plenty of help! And most of all: It's okay to graduate behind schedule. Because you know what they say, better late than never, right?

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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Some of the best advice I've ever received was from my social studies teacher in sophomore year of high school. He stated, "If you don't know it at midnight, you're not going to know it for the 8 a.m. exam, so get some sleep."

It's such a simple piece of advice, but it holds so much accuracy and it's something that the majority of college students need to hear and listen to. "All-nighters" are a commonality on college campuses in order to cram in studying for an exam that is typically the next day.

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1. You will have that special "college" look to you.

2. You will feel like an adult but also feeling like a child.

3. You will have classes that are just the professor reading from their lecture slides for an hour.

4. You will need to study but also want to hang out with your friends.

5. Coffee is your best friend.

6. You don't know what you're doing 99% of the time.

7. You will procrastinate and write a paper the night before it is due.

8. Money is a mythical object.

9. It is nearly impossible to motivate yourself to go to classes during spring.

10. The food pyramid goes out the window.

11. You will have at least one stress induced breakdown a semester.

12. Most lecture classes will bore you to tears.

13. You will not like all of your professors.

14. You will try to go to the gym... but you will get too lazy at some point.

15. When you see high school students taking tours:

16. You will try to convince yourself that you can handle everything.

17. Finals week will try to kill you.

18. You won't like everyone, but you will find your best friends sooner or later.

19. You actually have to go to class.

20. Enjoy it, because you will be sad when it is all over.

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The ones who have grown up with a false lens of what love is and how relationships should be. The ones who have cried themselves to sleep wondering why he hurts you and your family so much. This is for all the girls who fall in love with broken boys that carry baggage bigger than their own, thinking it's their job to heal them because you watched your mother do the same.

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Because we made it, and because high school seniors deserve to know what they're getting themselves into

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We've all been there. From move-in day to the first finals week in college, your first term is an adventure from start to finish. In honor of college decisions coming out recently, I want to recap some of the most common experiences college freshmen experience.

1. The awkward hellos on move-in day.

You're moving your stuff onto your floor, and you will encounter people you don't know yet in the hallway. They live on your floor, so you'll awkwardly smile and maybe introduce yourself. As you walk away, you will wonder if they will ever speak to you again, but don't worry, there's a good chance that you will make some great friends on your floor!

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