Making the Tough Choices: Colleges, Majors and Friends
by Dr. Anahid Kassabian
published for U-WIRE* March 12, 2001

*U-Wire member papers have full permission to reprint all or part of this column. Enjoy!

I currently go to a four-year private university that costs a lot of money. I like it here and have made a lot of great friends, but the money is a real issue. I am taking out a lot of student loans, and my GPA and extracurriculars aren't great enough to get good scholarships. I am thinking of transferring to a state college/university to see if that can relieve the financial burden. I think that I will like it at the state college, but I will really miss my current school and friends. How should things weigh out for me?

Obviously, I can't know what you've considered in weighing this decision, but let me offer a few questions:

1. Have you considered class size? Some students really *cannot* learn in large lectures, while for others it's fine. Think a lot about this one.
2. Have you thought about your interests? Does the state school have a better/equal/worse program in your major than the private school you're at now?
3. Have you thought about your geographical preferences? Can you work as well in an urban environment as a rural one?
4. Have you thought about the school's advising services? Do you need direct personal contact with someone or can you figure stuff out on your own? State schools often don't have as strong advising programs as small, private ones, though that's a generalization.

Going into debt is not such a horrible idea if you think you're getting the education you need and want. If at all possible, don't make a decision based on finances alone. This is your best shot at your education; make sure you take it seriously.

I was an electrical engineering student at a four-year school, but after deciding that I didn't want to be an EE for the rest of my life I went to a community college and signed up for classes that I thought looked interesting. I loved all of them, and got straight A's for the first time since high school. I decided to stay at the CC another semester and focus on commercial art, but now I am not enjoying myself as much as I did last semester, and I am probably not getting straight A's. I am thinking of returning to my four-year school and switching to a management of information systems major. While this degree would not satisfy my desire for a design career, it would probably allow me to get a degree in less than two years so I could graduate and start paying off some loans. I don't know what to do.

Yours is not an uncommon dilemma, and I have some pretty strong feelings about it. Based on my own experience, as well as years of advising students, I have come to believe that going to school for the sake of the degree doesn't make much sense. Going to school out of interest and curiosity without a goal is fine, but college is expensive - as you point out - and demanding, and you should be getting something out of it.

My sense is that you would be best served by taking some time off and trying to work in a design company. Even if it's just a support staff job, you'll get a feel for the industry and the climate, and you'll know better if it's what you really want to do. After a year, you should have a better sense of what you want and need from college.

Maybe you can get a job with a company that provides tuition benefits after a while. Maybe you'll decide you hate design. Maybe you'll decide you'd rather pursue specific courses than a degree program. But the work experience should help you clarify your goals.

I'm only a sophomore in high school, but my school really pushes knowing what your major is going to be ASAP. I'd like to do something in the fashion business and I know I want to do something with the French language, but I'm not sure what. I've talked to a lot of people who say just majoring in French can limit my possibilities, but I don't really even know what else I could double major or minor in to broaden my possibilities.

What kind of school are you going to? I know elite high schools do this, but I think it's a terrible idea. So please don't feel wedded to whatever you say to them; just give your best answer now, and remember that you can always change your mind.

That having been said, a great double major for your interests would be French and journalism or French and communication. That would give you both the language and culture you love, and the journalistic experience magazines look for. You could also study fashion design, if that interests you. Business is another possibility, or advertising/public relations/marketing.

But why not do what you like best? I just had dinner last night with two former students, both of whom majored in comparative literature. One is now preparing to be a financial analyst, the other is coordinating a graduate-study program. They were in no way limited by their apparently useless majors. I feel quite strongly that college is a time for studying what you love; worrying about jobs comes afterwards.

There are as many possibilities as you can imagine. And for anyone who's bugging you, take a deep breath and tell them I told you so.

Dr. Anahid Kassabian is a professor of communication and media studies at Fordham University in New York.

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