Do you have high school graduates looking forward to their first semester of college with no idea of what to major in? The summer was exciting, but now it’s time for those kids to buckle down and grow up and make one of the biggest life decisions ever: choosing a career. Sure, they had their ideas from all the high school aptitude tests, but your eighteen year old is flighty and changes their mind on their major every week.
If you know me at all, you’ll know, my kids are not even close to college age (about as far from it, in fact). I do,
however, have three younger siblings that I’ve watched and helped through this time of great decision and went through it all myself within the last decade.
There are two ways I believe most parents approach this time in their cchild’s life. The first is to say, “Hey, you’re eighteen and an adult now. Make your own decisions, have fun, and follow your heart.” The second approach usually involves the parent telling the high school graduate where they will attend college and what degree they will earn (usually tied to the family business) because that is what they know works.
I disagree with both.
Here are the points I tell every soon-to-be-college student that asks my opinion:
Pick a degree with an actual job at the end
The purpose of college is not to give you four years of parties and education on random interests of yours like music, art, and history; it’s to train you for a job.
Colleges will tell you otherwise, that there is work tied to majors like these and they will sound real convincing. You know why? They want your money!
Bottom line is: choose a major that leads to a real job at the end. Any other reason for going to college is a huge waste.
Know your limitations
I’ve always been outgoing and have no problem talking to strangers, so I remember thinking I could make a pretty great teacher at one point. But, after speech class I realized I’m terrible at public speaking. It’s not that I’m scared of being in front of people, I just could never get my thoughts in order enough to communicate clearly when there was pressure to. I didn’t like that about myself, but once I realized my limitation in public speaking, I could rule out a lot of career choices.
I’m glad I understood my limitations before starting a career.
Someone else I know wasn’t so lucky. His athletic ability and passion for sports made the career of Physical Education seem like a no-brainer. He went through all four years of college before standing in front of a classroom for student teaching and realizing he did not have the leadership personality to control a mass of kids.
Limitations come in all sorts of forms, finances, location, scholastic ability, etc. and you are doing yourself a huge disservice by not being honest about them when it comes to your career choice.
Follow your heart, but…
I’m not going to tell anyone to pursue a job just because it makes the most sense when deep down they would love to do something else that might involve more work or more risk. That’s how my Mom steered me and while I don’t resent her advice, I would have done things differently if I had a do over.
The great part about this time in life is that you have a choice and that you can pursue something you love.
Say you want to be a Veterinarian, but the schooling is way out of what your family could possibly afford and the job market is highly competitive. You can still strive toward that dream, but realize you will probably have to work more menial jobs for years to pay for it and will make a lot of sacrifices.
Or, perhaps you live in the Midwest but have decided you are going to be a marine biologist. Ok, but understand you will have no social life and no spending budget for years because you have to shell over tons of extra money for going to an out of state school. Plus, you will be far away from your family and stuck on the coast forever.
Separate hobby interests from career interests
This is similar to my first point about making sure there is a job at the end, but has enough difference to be worth mentioning.
I loved riding horses as a kid. Whenever I filled out an aptitude test, “horse trainer” popped up as one of the top career options for me and I definitely considered it for a while. However, despite the obvious reasons of a tiny paycheck and shorter lifespan, I realized I needed horseback riding to be my escape. If I turned it into my work I would lose the pleasure in it.
People will tell you there is a way to make money off of almost any passion, but be very careful about what you are willing to give up as an enjoyable hobby. Once it becomes your job, you’ll never enjoy it the same way.
If you just can’t decide
Take some general educations classes for a year and try really hard to come up with a clear path. After a year, stop going to class just to be in college and get a job. It’s a huge waste of money to go to college just for the sake of it when you have no major with no career at the end. You can always pick up where you left off once you’ve had the chance to save up some extra money, mature a little, and realize what your passions really are.
Also, consider not going to college at all. After the Great Depression there was this huge push that a college degree was the key to living a happy life safe from financial hardship. The pendulum has swung backwards on that line of thinking (for many reasons) and it’s not so much the case anymore. Having a degree does not automatically mean you’ll get a job; just as not having a degree does not automatically mean you’ll be poor for the rest of your life.
I will caution anyone going that route, especially kids just out of high school that you have to be focused and work very hard to profit.
Yep, deciding on a career is a huge choice for high school kids to make. One they are probably, realistically not ready for at all. They need parent’s help and guidance, but also need to take a serious look at who they are and what they are good at. The most important things are to pick a major that has real money making work at the end, they need to know their limitations, they should follow their heart, but realize what sacrifices that might entail, and separate hobby interest from career interests. But, if their first semester approaches and they still can’t decide, don’t worry, but don’t let them waste money either.
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