Career Options Magazine

I wonder what the word “university” really means to a high school student. A valuable and exciting growth opportunity? A looming yet undefined next step? A boring bunch of buildings where you sit for hours in equally boring classes? There are no wrong answers, but it’s certainly difficult to define university if you’ve never been there.

When I applied to university in 2001, I was sure of only a few things: 1. It was the obvious next step, and if I wanted to make my family proud, I would get a degree; 2. I wanted to prove myself, or at least challenge myself; and 3. I wanted to experience the mystery and coolness of what university seemed like: a place where I could chew gum in class, meet friends in the library for sugary coffee, check out attractive students in the hallways, and, of course, skip class if I wanted to. Beyond that, I was quietly unsure of what I was getting myself into. Everyone insisted that university was the best place for me to be, so I figured I had to trust them.

I now know that university is really about choosing your own adventure. You can make lifelong friendships, and learn to exist in the world as a key player rather than a kid watching from the sidelines. You will literally rub shoulders with brilliance as you navigate to your next class among thousands of other students, from freshmen to post-docs (yes, there are people who go beyond their PhD! Maybe you’ll be one of them. I never, ever thought I would want to complete a Master’s degree, but lo and behold, I walked across that graduation stage twice). While first year can be a bit of a blur as you adjust to a new lifestyle, you’ll quickly learn that it’s an adult world, and that you—gasp!—are expected to act like one.

(But not to worry, you’ll still get into plenty of delicious trouble once you hit legal age and all hell breaks loose! Have fun, and keep a taxi number on your phone!)

The path you carve during post-secondary education is your own unique experience. Regardless of what parents and teachers might say is the best program for you, listen to your own thoughts and reactions when it comes to picking courses. If you’re not sure what you want to do, ask yourself some questions: What do I enjoy doing that could be useful to others? What subjects come easiest to me? How do I learn best: on my own at the front of the class, and focused on the teacher? Or do I have the best academic experience when I work in a group, surrounded by classmates that keep me interested and involved? Different programs accommodate different types of learners; for example, a program like communications may be a natural fit for a chatty, audio-visual learner, while engineering is a better fit for those who prefer focused, math-based problem solving. If you still don’t have the answer, don’t worry: you don’t even have to declare a major right away, and there really is a program for every kind of student.

So, after all the applications and preparations, what if you wind up hating your program? You might want to change majors after first year, or even before the year’s over—I did it, and so have countless others who realized they weren’t in the right place. I originally told myself I wouldn’t change majors, but in the end I transferred from political science to English, and it was a wonderful decision. It’s your choice—pick something you enjoy and succeed at, rather than an impressive-sounding program that doesn’t interest you. It will be a long few years if you ignore your gut.

Getting a degree gives you a special kind of freedom to make your own choices about life, and how you want to exist on and contribute to Planet Earth. Assuming you want to be happy, think about the kind of happiness you want to pursue. Soon you will be an official member of the grown-up club, and members love nothing more than to ask one another, “What do you do for a living?” It’s not the most creative question, but I like how it’s worded: the path you choose for yourself in university does tend to direct the way you work, play and live. In a way, it helps define who we are and who we want to become.

For now, think about the way you want to live. Chances are, there’s an empty seat in a university auditorium somewhere with your name on it. Go to it and let your brilliance guide you.

Allison Whalen is a freelance writer and blogger for Career Options.

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