Choosing the right major is difficult, and some students find it through trial-and-error. At UF, 38 percent of students change their major by the end of their freshman year and 61 percent by the end of their sophomore year.
Claire Rice, 19, sophomore, changed her major three times during freshman year. She switched from biology to health science to nuclear and radiological sciences before ending up in graphic design.
“I went through a lot of majors thinking I knew what I wanted to do based on advice that my parents gave me when growing up,” she said.
Rice didn’t see herself in the health science or engineering field. She was interested in it, but she struggled with the critical tracking courses required for science and math majors, such as calculus and chemistry. Over the summer, Rice explored other opportunities. Rice changed her major to graphic design, something she is more passionate about.
“I always thought of the health field as more practical and I’d always have a job,” she said. “But with graphic design, this is a risk that I have taken: to do something that I love and practice.”
Not every major is for everyone, and each is difficult for different people, she said. Rice now looks forward to her art classes. “I wouldn’t take organic chemistry,” she said. “Those people excelling in organic chemistry wouldn’t be able to do what I’m doing, either.”
Rice is hopeful that if she works hard, she will get a job in the graphic design field. She hopes to work in the video gaming industry and design clothing, movie posters and CDs. If she struggles in the graphic design field, she is willing to give health science another try.
“If anything, I can always go back and get a degree in the health field,” she said. “I like what the research engineers do, too.”
Though there is often pressure from parents to opt for a professional degree, students in the United States are encouraged to change their major. In other countries, students complete the degree in which they enrolled during high school.
“In Ireland, you have to know what you have to do before college,” said Blaithin Henehan, 21, a journalism student from Ireland. “You don’t have the liberty to choose once you’re in college.”
Henehan ranked the programs she was interested in and got accepted into her eighth choice, journalism. She said it is unlikely that students change their career paths, and they usually stick to what they are studying.
Nikole Nelson, 21, is a premed student who has been a microbiology major since the start of her college career. She came into college aspiring to be a doctor.
A strong premed candidate, she is expected to be well-grounded and have high GPA and MCAT scores.
“They don’t want that geeky kid who doesn’t do anything but study,” Nelson said.
In addition to her classes, she participates in research eight hours a week, volunteers at Shands three hours a week, is an officer for the UF Microbiology Club and is a part of the Belly Gators dance team.
Students are often discouraged and decide not to be premed by the hefty weed-out science classes such as physics and chemistry. Nelson didn’t enjoy those classes when she took them.
“I don’t see myself actually ever using chemistry or organic chemistry,” she said. “They give you those classes to assess your critical-thinking skills.”
Nelson said that, with her busy schedule, she can get annoyed when her friends are going out partying and she is staying in to study.
Nelson would likely have given up premed already, but she enjoys seeing how she can change people’s lives. If she doesn’t get accepted into medical school after her undergraduate years, she will take a year off and apply again the following year.
“Taking a year off isn’t entirely bad because you can live your life before spending years being extremely busy in medical school,” she said. “If I didn’t get in, I might travel and bit. I’d also study harder for the MCAT or take an extra class to show I’m interested.”
