You meet someone new on campus and they ask "What’s your major?" You go home for a visit and it’s "Have you decided on a major yet?" Then you zero in on an area of interest and it changes to "What can you do with a major in.......?"
While some students arrive at Western with clearly defined academic and career goals, the majority need to spend some time exploring before deciding on a course of study. This exploration is positive when it helps focus interests and abilities and yields useful information on academic options and prospective careers. But sometimes exploring options and narrowing choices can seem pretty overwhelming. Issues that can impede the process of choosing a major include:
Lack of information – having limited information about self (interest, abilities, values), majors or careers
The CSC Career Planning Model will guide you through an integrated process of academic and career decision making to prepare for future success. As you move through the process, keep the following in mind:
You Can Change Your Major – Most students change majors at least once before graduating. Changing majors is a common occurrence as new experience is gained and interests and circumstances change.
You Can Enhance Your Major with a Minor or Internship Experience – Minors and internships can accommodate varied interests and broaden your education. Moreover, internships help develop job-based skills and professional contacts that will help you find career employment after graduation.
You Can Design Your Own Major – Multiple interests can be combined in a variety of ways. Two areas of interest can be pursued through a major/minor combination, double major, or, in approved cases, a combined major. Broader interests can be incorporated through academic plans that integrate courses from several departments under an unifying theme. These interdisciplinary majors can be developed three ways: through Fairhaven College, the General Studies major or a Faculty/Student Designed major. The Academic Advising Center can help you decide which is the best option for you.
Your Major Does Not Restrict Your Career Options – It is true that some career fields require specific training (engineering, nursing, and architecture for example). But the majority of careers can be entered in a variety of ways and employers look at more than a candidate’s degree when they make a hiring decision. Other factors considered include:
In addition to whatever discipline specific skills you may attain through your major you will also develop an array of "transferable" skills, skills that can be used in a variety of settings and ways. These are skills like critical thinking and problem solving and are valued by all employers. So for any graduate it’s the combination of their interests, education, experience, personal characteristics and transferable skills that lead to employment in a particular field or work. Any given major can be used in a variety of ways and employment unrelated to the major is not a negative outcome. WWU alumni often cite that internships, volunteering, networking and work experience obtained while attending college opened career opportunities beyond what they would have expected on the basis of their degree alone.
Your Major Does Not Restrict Your Graduate School Options
You might assume that future graduate study would have to be in the same area as your undergraduate major. In reality, many graduate programs do not restrict selection on the basis of major. Some only require completion of specific courses, leaving the choice of major open (law and medicine are examples) and for many having related experience and strong academic skills is more important than having a particular major.. Thus, people often pursue advanced degrees in areas that differ from their undergraduate studies.