You don’t have to know your major before you start college.
My ideas before college
I was thinking about pursuing dance in some capacity and also pursuing either business, education, or nursing. I went into freshman year undecided — in the Undeclared: Open Path for Exploring Majors program — with a dance minor.
Courses helped me decide
I absolutely loved the connections I made and the experiences I had with the dance program here at Naz. Second semester, I took a course called Argument & Research and did a research project on holistic nursing and I was convinced that nursing would be a perfect career for me. Now I look back and realize that it was a part of the journey. What I thought was meant for me at the time isn’t now, and that’s more than okay. You adapt and change to the new versions of yourself in undergrad. Naz makes it easy to cross over and transition to a different major that’s suitable for you, whether you start in Open Path or in a specific major. Freshman year is for learning.
I like that Naz has classes to cater to your needs in terms of self-reflection to meet your personal and academic goals, such as Academic and College Success & many Perspectives-Enduring Questions courses to choose from based on your interests. I appreciated the Exploring Self, Majors and Careers course that encouraged us to take multiple personality tests to figure out what career paths best fit our individual personalities.
Enrolling in courses that I was interested in helped me explore. An entrepreneurship course helped me narrow down my options. Instead of majoring in business, I took what I learned from that course and created my own business on the side. Everything you learn from Naz will be useful to you in life; your time and energy are never wasted and you become a more well-rounded version of yourself.
Life experiences helped, too
My life experiences also helped my decision process. Going into sophomore year, I had severe anxiety and stress. I was double majoring in dance and nursing. I dealt with severe mental health problems the first week of classes and ended up taking a leave of absence. I didn’t want to leave college because I felt like a failure, but in reality, I wasn’t, and it was the best thing I could’ve done for my well-being. If you need a break for your mental health, it’s okay to take time to heal and recover. If there’s one thing I learned, it’s to prioritize your mental health. When I took a leave, I never thought I could step foot on campus again and thought I was inadequate for college. I realized it’s not a race, it’s your journey, and you decide what’s best for you. After recovering, I realized nursing was no longer for me, and I was able to move forward in my decision-making process with the help of my family and my professors.
My plans now
During my leave, I started a new job working as a pre-K teacher at a local daycare. I loved it! I’ve worked in childcare throughout high school and college, and I always thought about working with kids, but I kept myself from seeing it as a career because of how underpaid teachers are. I knew I was ready to declare my major: dance studies and inclusive early childhood education. I plan to get my master’s in dance education and possibly a doctorate. I could go on to be many things: a professional dancer, an elementary school teacher, a dance teacher, etc.
Naz emphasizes the option of double majoring or minoring and the opportunities it grants you to have expertise in multiple fields. You can connect your interests to find a path suitable and unique to you. I am so excited for what the future holds and am very thankful to Naz and everyone who helped me along the way.
Ava Sproba completed her second year at Nazareth as she reflected on her journey to selecting majors.
