Students put too much pressure on themselves to decide their future while still in high school. Due to the extraneous pressure to take several APs and build a strong resume, Starr’s Mill students are primarily focused on preparing to attend a four-year college.
From freshman year to senior year, adults and peers continuously reassure students that they have plenty of time to make post-secondary education decisions. Yet, oftentimes, senior year arrives and all of the sudden a student faces the college application process with no more certainty about their future than they had during freshman year.
High school students face an excessive amount of pressure to have a set plan for their future. The suffocating weight of college and career planning leads many people to make rash decisions that conflict with their real ambitions.
Many students intend to go to college without knowing exactly what they wish to major in or pursue career-wise. Decisions regarding college and career pathways are not permanent. However, they are still important and influential to the outcome of a person’s future. How can an individual plan for such an important chapter in their life while battling so much uncertainty?
Indecision can lead people to pursue a future that looks good on paper and has a high likelihood of monetary success when in reality it does not involve any personal passions or aspirations.
While it is comforting to think that changing majors or transferring schools is always an option, the reality of trading a life that could have been lived for an entirely different future is terrifying.
Transferring majors can result in financial complications because previously received credits may not be useful in the pursuit of alternative degrees. An individual’s time spent in college increases, and with it student loans can pile up. Additionally, financial aid eligibility may be compromised by changing majors.
Despite the potential financial consequences, it is common and feasible for college students to change pathways. According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, about one-third of all college students pursuing a bachelor’s degree change their major within the first three years of college enrollment. In addition, ten percent of all college students change their majors more than once throughout college.
Colleges provide support in anticipation of their students exploring multiple options because changing programs is such a common occurrence. Financial guidance, scholarships, and alternative financial aid opportunities will continue to support students during transitions between majors.
College is an experience in which individuals are opened up to vast amounts of opportunities. An extensive variety of options are available outside of college, too.
Students must recognize that college is not necessarily the best option to pursue when future decisions are undecided. Rather than falling into the majority mindset that labels college as the only pathway to a successful life, individuals can seek out other employment in trade jobs, internship opportunities, or even entrepreneurship to prioritize discovering themself, finding passions, and networking in society.
Life is an unpredictable journey and uncertainty is inevitable. Navigating this uncertainty can feel overwhelming and this feeling is valid. There is also a beauty and an excitement in the ever-changing phenomenon that dictates what paths our lives will follow. Deciding on a future at age 17 or 18 is near impossible.
Embracing uncertainty enables individuals to explore, create, and find contentment in what life has to offer. As easy as it is to feel crushed by the weight of internal and external expectations, the future is flexible and it will bend to your aspirations whenever you are ready to make a decision.
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