Picking a college with no major in mind?

[gingersmom]

My daughter knew exactly what she wanted (nursing) so it was easier to focus on specific schools.

 

My son has no clue what he wants to do. He feels stressed/pressured everytime I bring the subject up. I realize it's a lot to think about at a young age but feel it is somewhat necessary.

 

I went to college with no plan, graduated and still had no plan. I don't want him to make the same mistake.

 

He knows he wants to be in state or neighboring state so that is about 4-5 colleges to choose from. They have some similar majors and some that are only offered at one school.

 

I know he could always start at one school and transfer but knowing him he won't want to do that.

 

How do you decide where to go?

[Matryoshka]

I went to the state flagship because it's what my parent said they could afford.  Fortunately it was a huge school with just about any major to choose from.  I ended up with an interdisciplinary major because I kept just taking stuff that interested me, and parents also said they wouldn't pay for more than 4 years, so I managed to find a common thread in my totally diverse set of classes and did that...

 

I think in a scenario like that, just make sure he goes someplace he can graduate debt-free.  If he still can't figure out what to do after 4 years, he at least has a degree in something and still has the flexibility to find himself without worrying about paying off college.  He could work, travel, or finally figure out what he wants to do for grad school.

[Barb_]

I was going to suggest the same thing as Matryoshka: large state  school.  Even a student who is reasonably sure of her path could change it.  I would hesitate to pick a narrowly focused college for a particular major for any but the most dedicated students unless I was willing to finance the upheaval of changing schools.

Edited March 10, 2016 by Barb_

[JanetC]

Rather than thinking in terms of "what do you want to major in?," ask some simpler questions;

 

What subjects would you like to study more of?

What subjects are you ready to be done with?

What subjects are you strong or weak in?

 

You might not get an exact major from this, but you can narrow down the possibilities. Your son may not know if he's interested in history or business, for example, but he may know that he is not an engineer or a foreign language major.

 

In addition to looking at schools that are strong in 2 or 3 areas of interest, look for schools that will help him find his way: Things that might be important for an undecided student include: the quality of undergraduate advising, the availability of co-ops or internships, a strong career center that doesn't just create resume books of seniors, but starts in freshman year with interest and aptitude testing, etc.

[Crimson Wife]

Be aware that in certain states, the public universities may require students to apply to a specific college within the university and transferring from one college to another may be difficult. Whereas private colleges often do not require choosing a field until sophomore or even the beginning of junior year.

[clementine]

At dd's freshman orientation administrators said that about 30-40% of students come in undeclared.  Also, approximately 75% will change their major at least once in 4 years.  

 

He is not alone.

 

I would suggest a larger state school with a nice variety of majors/departments and plenty of opportunities & activities outside of the classroom.  

[Mom22ns]

At dd's freshman orientation administrators said that about 30-40% of students come in undeclared.  Also, approximately 75% will change their major at least once in 4 years.  

 

Additionally, we were told the average number of times a college student changes their major is 4. 

 

I agree, go somewhere with a good variety of options. If there are only 4-5 colleges on the list, then compare the options. Do some leave out options that sound interesting? 

 

Gently mom, he isn't you. You can't make him decide on a path now because you didn't decided on a path. It won't work. You can force him to look. You can force him to choose, but it isn't likely to stick. Go easy on him.

[teachermom2834]

My ds, when he had no idea, was looking at liberal arts schools.  They are set up in such a way that they encourage exploring different options and allow for that for the first couple years while still graduating on time.  

 

He did know he did not want STEM.  But, at the liberal arts schools we toured we did see that students went all kinds of directions.  Most also had agreements with other universities to transfer for engineering in 3 + 2 programs.  

 

Might not be ideal for a STEM kid to go to a liberal arts college but they do allow for exploring and it seems they have a path to get kids where they want to go.  The state universities ds applied to required he apply to a major.  The liberal arts schools did not.  I agree that large state universities that have everything are a good choice if it is otherwise a fit. Mine felt he could find his way easier in a small school.

 

I think it is OK for a kid not to know.  I have told my ds it is okay not to know and that alot of kids that are really set on what they think they want change and are thrown for a loop.  I tell mine it is mature to admit he just doesn't know and needs more time.  I will say that he went from not knowing what he wanted to having a much better idea just through the college search process.  He applied to 10 schools because he could not pin down what he wanted but here we are in March and he has narrowed it to just 2 or 3 he wants.  We wouldn't have needed to apply to so many schools but he seemed to need the process to figure it out.  

[bettyandbob]

A few of the state universities in my state have special first year programs for students in your ds situation. Check if the schools near you do the same and start comparing details. Like whether or not the program does anything beyond run the student through gen Ed credits.

[sassenach]

A few of the state universities in my state have special first year programs for students in your ds situation. Check if the schools near you do the same and start comparing details. Like whether or not the program does anything beyond run the student through gen Ed credits.

Yes, one of the schools we visited had a field exploration program, which put them in a variety of 1 credit classes to experience different areas of study.

[J-rap]

For my dd's who had no idea, they just applied at several state and private liberal arts colleges (within our state).  Nearly all of ours are in the same metro area, so they knew the city they'd end up in.  They just went with the one that gave them the best financial aid/scholarships.

Edited March 10, 2016 by J-rap

[justasque]

I think it helps to look closer at a variety of majors - what will the courses be? What would the job be? I'd also suggest visiting as many of the local schools as possible, ideally on Open House days where you can go to presentations from different departments.

[JanetC]

I think it helps to look closer at a variety of majors - what will the courses be? What would the job be? I'd also suggest visiting as many of the local schools as possible, ideally on Open House days where you can go to presentations from different departments.

 

Depending on the school, though, Open House days can be a zoo. DD was really turned off by the crowds.

[Lori D.]

First -- what grade is DS??

 

If he is a 12th grader right now, this is extremely late to be applying to college, and if he's stressed, I would strongly suggest taking a gap year and give him that extra year to have some good life experiences, do some career exploration, and just have time to research the schools and programs so he will feel comfortable making a choice and not freak out that he made a choice out of pressure.

 

If DS is in 7th-10th grade, that is perfectly normal, and you can reassure him that he does NOT have to make a decision until the fall of 12th grade -- still "a ways away". And that gives your family time to GO VISIT those schools of interest in the next few years, and while visiting, go and talk to some of the departments he might be interested in. That alone might help DS to decide.

 

If DS is in 11th grade, then you do want to stay calm, but map out a schedule with DS for the next 6 months that includes regular career exploration, family trips to visit the different campuses and programs, and to research the different fields that DS might be interested so that when it comes time to apply to college next autumn, he'll have more info and hopefully feel more confident in making a choice.

 

And, whatever he chooses, DO reassure him it is NOT the end of the world if he changes his mind partway through college and needs to take additional courses to meet the new requirements of the new program -- or if he needs to transfer to a totally new school in order to enter a different program that becomes of interest to him. The MAJORITY of university students DO radically change their choice of major at least once. And MANY university students transfer to a different school, for all kinds of reasons. So he would NOT be the "lonely only" if he switched majors or switched schools. ;) It will be okay! :)

 

… My son has no clue what he wants to do. He feels stressed/pressured everytime I bring the subject up. I realize it's a lot to think about at a young age but feel it is somewhat necessary.

I went to college with no plan, graduated and still had no plan. I don't want him to make the same mistake.

He knows he wants to be in state or neighboring state so that is about 4-5 colleges to choose from. They have some similar majors and some that are only offered at one school.

I know he could always start at one school and transfer but knowing him he won't want to do that.

How do you decide where to go?

 

If he is in 12th grade now, or, if he continues to feel stressed and pressured into his future 12th grade year, and just can't decide (and esp. if DS  doesn't know what he wants to do and would really feel more comfortable with more time to mature, think about it, and get a little "life experience" under the belt before going to college), that really might be a very strong sign that DS might do better by delaying going to the 4-year university and go with one of these alternative options:

 

- apply, but ask for a deferment and take a gap year

- instead of a 4-year university, start at the local community college and take general ed. courses that will transfer later on

- perhaps attend a technical school or community college and earn a 2-year AAS degree in a vocational-tech field of interest

- go to work full time for a year or two

- apply for and go on an extended volunteer project or missions trip

- participate in AmeriCorps for a year (volunteer/intern with specific projects/organizations and earn federal educational tuition credit)

 

 

ETA -- PS

For some resources to help with career exploration check out the many linked threads in POST #5 of the pinned thread at the top of the High School Board, "Transcripts, Credits… Scholarships/Financial Aid, Career Exploration -- links to past threads here!"

Edited March 11, 2016 by Lori D.

[MarkT]

As mentioned go to community college for at least a year.  A much cheaper way to "find yourself".

[JanetC]

As mentioned go to community college for at least a year. A much cheaper way to "find yourself".

Maybe, maybe not. There is more to education than just a price tag. In the aggregate, the stats on students successfully going from CC to 4 year degree are not great.

 

I don't want to sound completely against CC's - my DD is doing DE at one, after all. But CC's do vary in academic offerings and in available support, so look carefully. Some require more focus and planning to navigate successfully rather than less.

[Lori D.]

Maybe, maybe not. There is more to education than just a price tag. In the aggregate, the stats on students successfully going from CC to 4 year degree are not great.

 

I don't want to sound completely against CC's - my DD is doing DE at one, after all. But CC's do vary in academic offerings and in available support, so look carefully. Some require more focus and planning to navigate successfully rather than less.

 

Agreeing with JanetC that you really have to look into the specific community college (CC) to see if it a good fit or not, and if it will be the best stepping stone for YOUR student, as not all schools are equal. 

 

For us, going to the CC and then transferring to a 4-year university was perfect. DS#1 has gone this route.

 

Our local CC was a SUPER way for him to gently keep moving forward with education while not at all sure what he wanted to do. He knocked out all of his general ed. courses which did all transfer. Our CC has a good rep. and good instructors, and high transferability of credits.

 

Going to the CC saved DS a ton of $$, as it was 1/3 the cost of the local state university -- and he earned scholarships at the CC, which in turn led to transfer scholarships at the university. Plus, he earned an AAS during his time there -- a nice extra to have in his back pocket.

 

Also, the campus and student population of the CC was also much smaller, so DS (who easily feels overwhelmed) had a much easier time starting off there. 

 

Finally, starting off at the CC and living at home allowed DS some extra time to figure out what he wanted to do, and some extra time to mature, so that when it came time to transfer, he was really *ready* for it, and very *excited* to do it. (He is extremely introverted and always been a bit of a "late-bloomer" in some areas.) He attends an in-state university 2 hours away, so he lives on campus and has really blossomed and enjoyed it. He graduates this spring at the end of 2 years there with a Bachelor's degree.

 

The one downside is that, while CCs do offer campus activities, clubs, etc., all of the students are commuters (no on-campus living available), so students don't tend to get as involved, and really don't get to know other students, unless they make a big effort to reach out. So while DS has made friends at the university from his dorm, from campus activities, and from classes, and has been really involved in various aspects of campus life, that just never happened while he was attending the CC. Since he's had all of the positive social aspects and activities at the university, for DS it's okay that the CC experience was all focused on just getting used to college, taking classes, and figuring out what he wanted to do.

 

As always, you really have to know your student, and really have to research your options to know what is the very best path for YOUR student. :) BEST of luck for everyone in finding that best path ! Warmly, Lori D.

Edited March 11, 2016 by Lori D.

[MarkT]

Maybe, maybe not. There is more to education than just a price tag. In the aggregate, the stats on students successfully going from CC to 4 year degree are not great.

 

I don't want to sound completely against CC's - my DD is doing DE at one, after all. But CC's do vary in academic offerings and in available support, so look carefully. Some require more focus and planning to navigate successfully rather than less.

I would assume the OP would help find a decent CC for their student. In the end, it is the student/person that has to be motivated to succeed at life - no one is going to hand it to you especially in today's world. Eventually you need to kick them "out of the nest".