By Emily Schoch | Staff Writer
Often when students decide what to major in, there’s pressure that it will dictate what you do for the rest of your life. That’s a myth. Whatever you choose to major in should be a topic that interests you and a topic that you will be able to excel in.
I came into college as a business major. I was taking precalculus my first semester of college and soon realized that math was not one of my strengths. I ended up dropping the class, frustrated that I would not be able to excel in the major due to the business track relying heavily on mathematics.
I was concerned that I would not be able to find a major that suited my interests and catered to my strengths. As I was researching other majors, nothing seemed as fruitful as a business degree.
I had many people explain to me that it wasn’t your major that mattered, it was your personal brand and ability to create a network. After much consideration, I took their advice and chose a journalism major.
Many people would assume I’m a journalism major because I want to work for a newspaper, but that is simply not the truth. By majoring in journalism, I am acquiring many hard and soft skills that are transferable to the business world.
I believe that even though I’m not a business major, I will still be able to land a job in the business field. This is true for any major — it’s not your major that matters, but how you network yourself and how you present your brand to future employers.
A study done by Intelligent in 2022 says “In addition to dealing with financial insecurity, only 46% of college grads surveyed say they currently work in their field of study. 29% report working in a different field, while 16% of those under age 54 (and therefore not likely retired) say they are currently unemployed.”
The difference between a degree and a major is that your degree is determined by the level of education you’re receiving. A major is specific to the area of study you’re focusing on. This further explains that your major is not going to determine your future career path.
Amy Rylander, director of the Baylor Career Center, explains that you should major in something that makes you happy, rather than focusing on what jobs you will be in the market for based on that major.
“You should study something that you love and that you do well in. For example, I started out in school as an education major, and I never really wanted to teach school, so I decided to just study something I enjoyed. And I’d taken some writing classes, so I switched to English and ended up, when I graduated, spending 22 years in corporate America doing very corporate type jobs, solving problems and that sort of thing,” Rylander said.
Employers would much rather hire someone personable, creative and teachable, among many other qualities, over someone who may have the correct major that aligns with the potential job but has no personality.
Companies often don’t look at what the potential employee majored in during college. This is because companies are more interested in hiring someone who has good interview skills and a broad network. Landing a job will never come from what your degree says you majored in. It will be because of the connections you made while you were in college from the internships and jobs that you may have had.
Harvard Business Review says “In today’s world, networking is a necessity. A mountain of research shows that professional networks lead to more job and business opportunities.”
If you are concerned that what you’re majoring in won’t be the career path that you want to take, I’m here to tell you there is no need to worry. As long as you enjoy what you’re learning, are working towards gaining experience, building your personal brand and networking, there will be a job out there for you.
