Choosing a College Major

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So, What Is Your Child Going to Do With Her Life?

Some students start college knowing exactly what they'd like to major in. Others don't know what to major in, or have a career goal but no knowledge of what majors will get them there. Most find themselves switching majors during college.

As a parent, it can be unnerving to watch your child go through this decision-making process. It's helpful to remember that, unless your child has been declaring her intention to be a doctor or an archaeologist since she was in the sandbox, a few changes along the way are very normal for students today.

Here are some questions your child should consider, no matter where she falls in this range.

What Is a College Major?

Students are required to major in a specific academic subject (or professional field) to demonstrate sustained, high-level work in one field. Depending on the college, your child might major in two fields, have a major and a minor, or even create her own major.

When Should My Child Declare a Major?

At most colleges, students aren't required to declare a major until the end of their sophomore year. If your child is in a two-year degree program, she'll probably select a major at the start because the course of study is much shorter.

How Does My Child Choose?

First- and second-year students usually take more general courses while they try to decide on a major. After this initial "shopping" period, coursework becomes more focused and specific. Your child should make sure that genuine interest is there, though. She doesn't want to choose a major by process of elimination—that could take a while.

Your child should take courses in subjects that appeal to her, then try and focus on one that will interest and motivate her. Your child will do better, and the motivation can continue through college and into a job.

What If My Child Wants to Go to Grad School?

If your child thinks law school, medical school, or another professional school is in her future, many schools offer preprofessional advising programs (such as premed and prelaw). These programs are not majors, and participants still need to declare a major. As long as your child fulfills the prerequisites for admission to grad school, it really doesn't matter what she majors in.

Does My Child's Major Dictate Her Profession?

Sometimes. If a student chooses a major like nursing, accounting, or engineering, she is learning a specific trade and will likely continue with that. Most majors, however, prepare students for a range of duties that they will be trained to handle once they graduate. For most students, picking a major is not the same as picking a career. It will be up to your child to go with what she likes.

Your child doesn't have to go through this process alone. Choosing a major is usually done with the help of academic and peer advisers.

You want to do what? When most parents get the news their kid doesn't want to head straight to college, they're upset. The thought raises fears such as that their child may never get an advanced degree so crucial to success. In fact, experts say teenagers who take time off do go on to college—and they're usually better, more motivated students for it.

Consider This

You're about to invest thousands in an advanced education for your child. Unless he's ready to make the most of it, this money could be wasted. So, if your kid is telling you he doesn't want to go right now, it's in your best interest to hear him. Insisting a child go to college against his wishes is likely to cause resentment, failure, and more wasted cash.

Make Time Off Meaningful

That doesn't mean a reluctant student should get a free pass to lie around the house all day. Experts say the key to a successful year off lies in structuring this time around activities, paid or unpaid, that will provide a rich experience. You can discuss options for how to spend this year, but you will also want to set some ground rules, and stick to them. Will he be expected to support himself, or pay rent at home? Your relationship should change to reflect the fact that your child has crossed the threshold to adulthood. Otherwise, you risk supporting a perennial child. The key to a successful year off lies in structuring this time around activities ... that will provide a rich experience.

How Colleges View the Year Off

Letting your child coast could also hurt his chances later. Colleges will want to know in detail how the time off was spent. A year full of rich, mind-expanding experiences or solid work can mean admission, even for a student with a poor high school record. In Beyond the Ivy League, former college administrator Loren Pope notes he wanted to make a year of work a requirement for admission, because he found that students with this experience are invariably more mature and more focused.

Rita Goldman, director of college guidance at Germantown Friends, a high school in Philadelphia, agrees. She says she often suggests a year off for kids who have driven themselves extra hard during the four years of high school, taking Advanced Placement (AP®) courses and getting involved in a number of extracurricular activities in order to be attractive candidates for top colleges.

"Many of these students are completely burned out by graduation," said Goldman. "They need to take time off to find out who they are, outside all the packaging." Such students often go through the college selection process and defer for a year once accepted, an arrangement most colleges find perfectly acceptable.

Uh, I Dunno

So a year off isn't necessarily going to banish your kid to a lifetime of dissolution. But here's another dilemma: What if he doesn't want to go, but he doesn't have a burning desire to do anything else either? Don't despair. Most teenagers aren't ready to make the life-forming choices college can force on them; yours may just be more honest than most.

The only thing that can resolve this dilemma is time, and experience. Just about any kind of experience—travel, work, volunteering—can help your child through this identity crisis. If yours is an indifferent student, a year trying to support himself on low-paying work is usually a strong encouragement to go further.

On the other hand, reluctance may simply be your child's way of expressing anxiety about the changes graduation brings. In either case, it's best to follow two tracks, applying to colleges while planning for a year off. That way if your child changes his mind, he'll still have the option of school, and you can rest assured that, either way, he'll be off to a good start.