Initially, I came as an undecided major but a lot of my friends were in pharmacy and I looked the career opportunities up and the high-pay and job security seemed really attractive to me. For me, the pharmacy major pretty much describes the career path. In choosing a major, I wanted something challenging and wanted to make sure Buffalo had a good program in it. I researched my program via the net. I don't do much outside of my academics but medicinal research of some sort seemed kind of promising. For those undecided, I couldn't stress enough that it's alright, give it some time. I personally know at least two people who came into UB wanting pharmacy and have already changed because they weren't ready for the workload. On top of that, their GPA suffered greatly. I'd tell an undecided student to take GEN ED courses. More specifically, if they are even remotely interested in the sciences, they should take CHE 101 as it is required for all engineer, pre-med, pharmacy, and health majors. Another course I'd recommend is PSY 101 because it's required for many of the majors. Throughout the course of the semester, an undecided student will encounter the work of his/her friends and whatever seems interesting may click, it's what happened for me. If there's anything I know of, it's that you shouldn't pick a major if you have absolutely no interest in working for it.
The decision to enter a major can be an overwhelming process. Entering my Sophomore year at UB, I was still unsure about which major to explore. English? Psychology? Business? I felt lost and confused. I considered a double major, a major and two minors, creating my own major but every solution purposed more questions and more questions set me back to square one. I also tried talking to friends and family members but it seemed the more options and opinions I gathered; the more complex the decision became. I was often told I over analyzed the process and to just pick a major already. While there were times I considered this; I thought how can I over analyze decisions about my future? Looking back, I am proud of myself for considering all the exciting opportunities UB has to offer me! If it was not for the careful evaluation of all my interests, I would not be experiencing the satisfaction I currently reap from my unique collaboration of programs. My decision to enter the Social Sciences Interdisciplinary major with a double minor in Education and Human Resources Management is exactly the combination I was looking for! While I would like to take full credit for my decisions, I must acknowledge the assistance of the Student Advisors I met with and the continuous guidance UBE 202 (a career development course) provided me with.
At first I thought I wanted to be an Architect but once I saw the schedule, the summer before freshman year, I really thought about it and I knew I wouldn't commit the time needed. I then was thinking of other options that UB offered. I ended up taking 101 classes my first semester and decided I wanted to major in Communication after taking COM 101 and talking to my cousin who is the Public Relations field. I think that if you are undecided and need to choose a major, think of something that you are at least interested in and go with that. Take different introductory classes and see what is out there. Don't be scared to change your major at anytime, or even add to it with a minor. Use the advisors! They are a resource to help you decide.
When I came here to UB I knew where I wanted to end up, but knowing how to get there was a whole different story. I always wanted to go into cancer research as a child but when I came to UB it seemed there were 50 different routes to get there. I started out reading the major descriptions in the undergraduate catalog before even entering college. I printed them out and did further research for each on the Internet. This was a good start and much effort to try and decide where I'm suppose to go for the next four years but it turned out to be inefficient. I rounded the majors down to Biochemistry, Medicinal Chemistry, and Biochemical Pharmacology. For the next two years I switched between these majors. Each time going to the individual advisors, yet the decision was still not easy. What finally made my decision a little less ambiguous was when I decided to participate in Medicinal Chemistry research over the summer. I thought that this was exactly what I wanted to go into. It turned out that I couldn't be more wrong. The research atmosphere did not contain the person to person interaction that I was looking for. From that point a series of serendipitous events lead me to the decision to become an Osteopathic medical doctor. Once I figured out where I wanted to go deciding on what major I wanted was easy. I picked the one I was most interested in, psychology. This decision was considered easy because by going to medical school I would be able to acquire the knowledge in my various fields of interest. To be perfectly honest with you although I'm satisfied with the decision you can never be absolutely sure about anything in life. You should never let your desire to be something prevent you from being eclectic. I'm currently signed up to take the MCAT this April but even now when people ask me what kind of doctor I want to be it's like choosing what major to have. The bottom line is that you will never know where you want to be until you try it out. So I tell anyone that asks as soon as I do my clinical rounds I'll give you an idea.
My decision to pursue a special major in comparative literature was simple, though the process was not entirely so. As one who enjoys classes in anthropology, political science, art history, and philosophy, I could not miss the opportunity to relate what I was learning in those classes with my affinity for postcolonial literature and theory; thus, a special major in comparative literature was inevitable. It complements my career plans, since I plan to attend graduate school to attain a Ph.D. in comparative literature and hopefully remain in academia as a university professor. Moreover, the path I have selected is ideal for students with unique visions and lofty ambitions, whose intellectual curiosity has gone beyond the realm of a single major. I am very appreciative that the University at Buffalo offers this invaluable option for students.
I arrived to the University at Buffalo having no clue about what type of career I wanted, and thus was an undecided major. This could have been a frightful experience, but by utilizing various resources such as career and academic counseling, the internet, and people in the world of work, I was able to make a sound decision. But these resources would have meant nothing had I not identified my values, my preferences, and my personal abilities. My final step in this decision making process was gaining first hand experience, and it was one of the most important steps.
Last updated: April 24, 2009 4:30 pm EST