If you have no idea what you want to do in College......

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If you have no idea what you want to do in College........what is the best concentration to major in?

I have already switched from Journalism-->Psychology-->Engineering-->Mathematics--> Accounting.

I just cannot make up my mind, I hated Engineering/Medical(Chemistry) classes in particular.

I want to do Accounting and at least try it because I like numbers and organizing my own bills and such, but the school I go to doesn't even offer Accounting in Undergrad.

I am majoring in Economics basically because it will lead me on to do whatever it is that I want to do in Grad school.

Have you visited your college's academic services office? Many colleges offer career advice and even have computer programs
which allow you to sit and answer a bunch of self-interest questions to see where your interests lie or what kind of jobs you would
like to do.

Maybe college isn't for you as there are many jobs in the vocational/technical field that go begging for job applicants...carpentry,
plumbing, electrician, auto mechanic, auto repair...and they often pay alot better salaries. Maybe you'd like a job where you can
be your own boss. There are so many Economic majors...they are a dime a dozen. But a good auto mechanic, with the cars of today being built with so much computer gadgetry, are in great demand!

The world is becoming a more service-oriented economy, so fiqure out what kind of "service" you are good at and would enjoy
providing to people in need. You know the saying, "Find a need and fill it."

like this one?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mBZln4hS-4

I always had a hard time figuring what I wanted to with myself and what major to select. Even though I didn't really change majors that much, it too me a while to choose something to stay with. I majored in Psychology and got a BA degree in it.

Even with the BA in Psychology I'm still not a 100% sure what I want to do with myself.

Your student services office should also be able to give you an aptitude test, which could narrow your interests. Or you could speak to your advisor or someone else you trust and whose opinion you value. If you don't know someone in the field you're looking at, someone else probably does.

Major in what you enjoy; you will work for a long time and you should enjoy your work. Practically speaking, you will be more likely to have success in your career if you enjoy your work. Good Luck!

O.K., but what do you want to do with your BA?



I've done that at two different universities... problem is... they give me this long list of things I can choose from which is not much better for me than where I was at the start. Many of these don't have all the same requisite core curriculum, so I have to figure out a smaller group which is difficult for me.

I know it helps some folks though. Maybe it will help the OP?

That's where your advisor comes in (is that the OP?). I really would suggest looking at two things: first, if your dad is an accountant, he has a good idea of what it takes. Do you like the work he does? Does that environment suit you? Some people like the office and working with numbers and some prefer meeting with clients and going out. So that helps, to know what kind of environment you would like. I would really suggest putting off declaring a major at this point until you are more sure. Take classes that interest you (anthropology? technical writing? computers? whatever you are really into) and see if that helps. Those professors would also know of careers that tie to the classes you love.
I am very opinionated about working in a field you feel passionate about. I have worked a long time at several different careers. I have had success in all of them, but I know one thing: working just for the money is so much harder than working at what you love. That is a difficult concept, but worth tyring to understand.

I'm having a bit of a hard time this evening determining if people are replying to my posts or someone else's.

Just incase you were replying to my post above...

The OP is the 'Original Poster'... the one who starts the topic.

Going back to myself for a moment

the trouble with me is that I can't decide on one thing to do. I keep seeing other things that I feel driven to try.

Hence, 40 jobs from age 18 to age 47.

I hope an advisor can help Brian003, but I know it's been hard for me to figure out my career path even with the help of one.

I'm so sorry, Tucan. As you can see, I'm an emu egg and a pretty lame one. Don't even know OP. Sorry. So I mixed up a reply and have confused you. I apologize.

I still say go for what you enjoy. I am the same age as you -1 and I just started a whole new career. All the other starters are my daughter's age. So mostly think, again, where you could stand spending your day. You have to do work for a certain number of years, but think more short-term. If you want to explore a career, research it. You might be surprised what the actual daily work is like.

Again, sorry for the messed up posts. I am learning as well.

It was strange, I have never really done specifically well in any other class besides Psychology in College.

When I was younger I was good at Spelling(Won some contests) and at Math.

In Middle School/High School I was more focused on sports so I didnt do that well in school.

Then in College I took what should have been a simple class, "Psychology 101", nope not easy at all. The teacher only used exact sentences from random pages in 50 paged chapters for tests/quiz questins. Class averages where 50% and I scored 95-100% on every test. Maybe it because I am good at memorizing exactly what I read?

Don't know why that happened, but Psychology is definitely not the right job for me.

Its really strange with me.

At times I will be only interested with one thing, but that will change nearly everyday.

For example, If I am studying for my Economics class, I won't care about anything else in the world besides Economics, but once I put the book down my focus will change to something else. Lets say that is Lunch- I havent eaten in about a day now so thats probably why I am mentioning this.

After Lunch, it will switch back to my next subject I have to study for and so forth.

Its more than just studying/paying attention; it is like complete OCD to the book I am reading or the subject I am learning about. Its kinda hard to explain I guess.

Now on to the subject(There I go with the OCD thing) My dad is a finance major, Whenever I see him work at his job I always think of Office Space. He actually leads a lot of business discussions and hes pretty high up in the company with a 6 digit salary, but I'm not exactly sure what it is that he does. He tells me he prices brakes for his company(TRW Automotive). So he must do something with pricing merchandise.

Its really hard to figure out what classes I like in College. Probably is that I like all my classes the first 2 weeks or so then I will start studying for them obsessively and (Since I don't really actually like studying) then I will no longer like them anymore. Its also strange on how I study so well and yet in some classes (Like Math now) I will get a C on all the exams even though I study insanely for them. It must be because I only pay attention to the part of math i like and completely ignore the rest.

To Summarize- My interests shift on a yearly basis, I dont necesarily like doing one thing in particular anymore, When I was really young it was video games, middle school was girls(Yes girls), High School was sports, and now in College its ?????I dont know. Maybe its wondering why I am going to College?

My mind wavers around and is very inconsistent. Sometimes I wonder what the heck is happening up there.

I have talked to many advisors before, same problem with you.......mind always wavers.

I apologize for the triple post, but I dont know how to use the edit button .

I know what you mean about getting really into the subject you are studying. It can be helpful if you are really absorbing the information, but it doesn't sound like that's happening for you. You are studying a lot, and studying HARD, but the information is not really sinking in, or you're at least not testing well.

If you have to work after college, and we pretty much all do, I still say look at what type of environment you would enjoy. Do you want to talk to people or just be alone with a computer? Can you handle meetings? Do you like making presentations or would that be a "deal-breaker"?

These are just a few ideas. I know it's difficult. You don't have to make all the decisions for your life TODAY. It also sounds like you have a really full plate right now. Keep working hard this semester and see which classes you do well in. That will also give you some information. Then reconsider some aptitude testing, even online. Good luck.

Hello cartersmom.

I sent you a private message.
I think one of my posts came off as a bit 'uppity'?

Anyway, hope the PM makes sense!

Stop wasting money on college and go to technical school and become an electrician. I would say do accounting, otherwise, but you've already gone down that path.

I have to say Information Technology for myself... IT is the field I'm working in (my obsessions throughout life all centered around using computers, so I figure that I should head in that direction.)

For anyone else, try to find the common link between your temporary obsessions and find the closest major to that...