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Selecting a Major |
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- Examine your interests or take a self-assessment.
- What type of things excites you?
- What types of jobs or careers appeal to you?
- Examine you abilities.
- What are your strengths?
- What are you weaknesses?
- What kind of skills do you have?
You can begin this self-exanimation by looking at the courses you took in high school.
- Where are your best subjects, and is there a pattern there?
- What kinds of extracurricular activities did you participate in while in high school?
- What kinds of things did you learn form part-time or summer jobs?
- Examine what you value in work?
Example of values include:
- Helping society
- Working under pressure
- Group affiliation
- Stability
- Security status
- Pacing
- Working alone or with groups
- Having a positive impact on others
- Visit Workplace Values Assessment for Job-Seekers
- Explore Careers
- Narrow your choices and focus on choosing a major.
Other resources for information about a major and/or career:
- Your college’s course catalog
- Your professors, including your academic adviser
- Your classmates, especially upperclassmen
- Your college’s alumni
- Your family and friends
- Your college’s career center
There are also a number of books that you may find useful including:
- How to Choose a College Major, by Linda Landis Andrews (VGM Career Horizons).
- The College Board Guide to 150 Popular College Majors, by Renee Gernand (College Entrance Examination Board).
- The College Majors Handbook: The Actual Jobs, Earnings, and Trends for Graduates of 60 College Majors, by Paul E. Harrington and Thomas F. Harrington (Jist Works)
- Major Decisions: A Guide to College Majors, Richard A. Blumenthal and Joseph A. Despres (Wintergreen/Orchard House)
What can I do with a major in:
Accounting
Chemistry
Communication
Computer Science
Education
Humanities
Liberal Studies
Management
Nursing
Political Science
Social Science
Social Work
Sociology
Theater
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