When thinking about university, most of us aspire to be “that” student: the one who knows exactly what their end goal is and how they intend to achieve it. Facts are, most of us question our majors more than you’d think. I admittedly have made some questionable adjustments to my degree that I still regret today, which only proves why it’s so important not to “jump the gun” when choosing your major. When going into university, you must remember that you will be investing copious amounts of time, effort and money into getting a good education. This only highlights how important it is to take your time in choosing a major that suits you. 

My biggest regret in my degree (so far!) was convincing myself that I could never be successful in my chosen major early on in my university career. When I entered university, I had hoped to major in biology and minor in psychology; however, that changed quickly when I entered a first-year biology course and barely scraped by with a passing grade. As a student that has always worked hard in her studies and had never failed, this was a huge blow to my self-esteem. I immediately thought to myself: “you barely got by this class, how are you going to get through a whole degree of this?!”. So, I hastily changed my minor to biology and began majoring in psychology. Sadly, now looking at the progress and work ethic I’ve managed to establish in the three years I’ve attended university, I regret having swapped majors. I know that I would’ve been successful had I stuck by myself and trusted my abilities. 

It’s easy to be spooked in your first year of university; you’re adapting to new expectations, as well as a new environment. It’s totally normal! Despite this, you must have confidence in yourself and your abilities. 

When looking into potential fields of study, you should keep in mind what courses you would need to take for this particular degree. No, this does not mean planning out the next four years of your life perfectly (let’s be honest, I meet with an academic advisor at the start of every semester) but having a general idea of what kind of courses you want to be taking should help you decide whether you’re willing to invest your time and money into a certain major. Other things to keep in mind when planning your degree should include: 

Just remember, whichever decision you end up making, you should be proud to tell others of what you have chosen, and, most importantly, look forward to spending the next 4 years studying a subject that you love.