Should I stay with being an English major or switch to a more practical major?
820758
English is plenty practical, it just depends on what sort of work you're open to.\n\nI'm a Biology major with a secondary major in English, which I actually considered to be my "backup" in case I had trouble finding work in the sciences.  \n\nAs with any field of study, teaching is always an option.  That can be angled towards a more general knowledge on lower levels - middle and high school.  To teach at the university level, you'll likely need a PhD (the exception being certain positions at junior colleges, etc, but those are limited and not very involved).  That's several extra years of school and commitment, but it also provides the best opportunity to continue studying/analyzing what you're interested in the most.  As an English professor you'd be expected to not only teach but part of your position would also involve researching a certain author/time period/style of literature that interested you the most.\n\nWhen it comes to working with literature itself, teaching is the primary option.  If you open yourself up to writing though, you'll find a great number of career possibilities.  A person who can write well and analytically or technically is an asset in almost any business, corporation, or, well, anywhere.  Communication is an essential skill for which people will always be hiring.  I'm still pursuing biology myself, but I know that friends in the English department haven't had much trouble finding positions after graduation, and certainly not any more or less than most other areas of study (except for maybe theater - wouldn't really recommend that one.)\n\nIf you really want to know more, I'd suggest seeing if your school has a Career Center of some kind.  People there would be able to tell you exactly what kind of work other graduates are looking into and getting. Otherwise, you are a freshman yet, and even if it seems like the real world is drawing close, four years is still a long time and there will be a lot of classes between now and then to help you make up your mind.  Leave yourself open to other possibilities, and try not to let the career control your decision too much.  It's certainly important to find a job later on, but it's more important now to find out what you enjoy.  That way, regardless of the difficulties in the work world to come, you'll be more willing to keep going, even if it does get tough.\n\nAs far as your motivation is concerned - that's something I think everybody goes through.  You get to college, and you feel burnt out from already studying through so many years of school just to get there.  It certainly doesn't get any easier as it goes, so use what you have of this first year to really figure out how much effort you're going to need to put into your studies to get the grades you want.  One or two low grades at the end of the semester certainly shouldn't be the end of the world, but if you take those too lightly now, it'll be a lot harder to get your study habits back on track later on.  Once you get past your gen ed requirements too, hopefully the more specialized classes will be able to get your interests and motivation up.  Those are the classes that matter more in the end anyway.  Just make sure you find a balance with your social life, your free time, and your study time, and recognize that you'll probably have to make a few sacrifices on all three fronts, but you'll probably be able to manage better in the future because of it.  \n\nYou've probably been told that college will end up being some of the best years of your life.  Make it so.  Enjoy yourself, work hard, and when it comes to what's not in the immediate future - keep it in mind, but don't stress out about it, not yet anyway.\n\n(sheesh, that was long.  sorry - English major habits. ^^)
902040
I strongly suggest meeting with an academic advisor. By talking with one, he/she may be able to help you figure out what your interests are, and from there they can help you decide on a major.\n\nIf you're still not sure, just make sure the classes you take will transfer towards all (or at least most) degrees so that you're not wasting time and money.\n\nGet involved. By working different jobs or joining different clubs/organizations, you may discover your passion for something, and from there you can decide on a major.\n\nI strongly recommend majoring in something you love. I am a math major (with secondary education emphasis). I want to teach math. The classes are hard, and the pay is not the best. But I'd rather be happy with my job and making little money than be miserable at work and make a lot of money.\n\nGood luck with the major deciding!
1027767
Change your major. I have a poli sci degree and had to get a MPA to get a good job. Good luck.
190140
You might major in communications, English, drama or journalism, although people who wirte sitcoms had all sorts of college majors. Consider choosing a field which genuinely interest you.
160290
I majored in Economics and I have found it to be very helpful in my career. Majoring in any of your choices will most likely net the same starting salary. However, I think the benefit of majoring in Economics vs. Business or Intl. Bus is that you learn to analyze and think about business decisions, government policies and personal financial decisions. Economics also allows you to consider the social impact of Business decisions. A business major is good, but it is very cut and dry and doesn’t truly force you to think and consider real life decisions. If you are conisidering graduate school of some type, it doesn’t matter which major you choose, just make sure to get good grades. Also, I think Economics is a more difficult major than Business or Intl. Business.
1095857
My best friend does Eng lit and RE. She likes them but says the style of writing for english is very different and much more mature. They study Dickens and ''A Streetcar Named Desire''. RE is a lot of hard work she says, with lots of notes and learning of Bible passages, but they get to discuss moral subjects as well.\nI wouldn't recommend RE personally, as it is not particularly useful for getting a job unless a minister or something :-S. Me, I chose Physics, Chemistry, Maths and Art. I like all of them except Physics which is awful so I'd say stay clear! AS maths is quite easy so if you like it at all I'd recommend it.\n\nHope this helps!\n\n\nGood luck with your choices.
912631
Follow your heart. Don't make yourself unhappy to please others. If anything, see if you can compromise. Change your major to something that may help you in real estate, like economics, business, management, or even communications (like public relations). Overall, I think you should follow your heart and do what will benefit you.
440235
I'd recommend going to a liberal arts school, not just a school with a liberal arts major.  Realistically, people are going to want you to major in a specific discipline (Art, Music, Theater, pre-Vet...) while you're in college, but a liberal arts school will give you the chance to try lots of different things before you decide.  Also, many employers understand that, if you go to a liberal arts school, you will be trained in lots of things outside of your major.  That way, even if you decide you don't want to make a career of your major (not a big deal, promise!) you'll have lots of good general skills.\n\nMost generally, I'd say - don't feel like you have to figure it all out now.  It's a *good* thing that you are interested in lots of things.  It means that you could have any number of careers and have a happy life.  No matter where you go to college and what you major in, no matter what your first few jobs out of college are, as long as you keep working hard and trying new things, you'll find something that fits you and that you're successful at!
1116015
You are able to study whatever you choose.  If you wish to change majors, that is a possibility in every educational system that I am aware of.
725449
I suggest you talk to an advisor.  You can take some of the requirements at your community college, but you have to make sure that the credits will transfer.  Definitely talk to an advisor though and you will need to complete those courses and take a standardized test.  You could also ask your brother for some advice.\n\nAnd I don't think that majoring in communications has set you back too much.  You may need to do another year of undergrad and take some courses over the summer so you don't overload yourself, but you can do it.
1045055
In my experience you need an English major to be an English professor.  An education degree probably won't make any difference.   I suspect the program you are describing prepares students to work in the faculty of Education, not English.
715283
OK, I have a lot to say about this, so please give this a read. \n\nI have three college degrees. One is an associate's (I went to a community college), one is a bachelor's, and one is a master's. I didn't decide on my major until my junior year of college, and even then, I wasn't sure if I made the right decision. \n\nDO NOT let anyone tell you that you have to decide right away. You don't. Declare yourself a liberal arts major and take as many different classes as you can. Take what sounds interesting. Take internships. Take as much as you can! The only way to find out what you want to do is explore and experiment. \n\nAnd you don't have to know what you want to do for a living right out of high school OR college. I'm 28, and I've just decided what my "calling" is. It took me a long time, but I finally made it. \n\nBut I also want to go back to school for more education in areas where I didn't get to take classes. So, please, explore and don't let anyone pressure you into choosing a major.\n\nBy the way, I majored in English, and the only reason I did it is because I love to write. I didn't make the decision for careers because I'm certainly not making a lot of money off of my writing. :)\n\nGood luck, and my best to you with whatever decisions you make!
415994
I think you should pick a major, and look for a school that has a good program for your major.
5566
No. What's more important is that you learn things that interest you. If you learn how to learn, then you can change what you do throughout your life. I know an economics major developing software, a political science major managing a multimillion dollar division of a corporation... what's more important than what these people studied, is that they learned how to pick up new skills, and they jut kept learning things that interested them.\n\nLife will take you lots of interesting places, and you don't need to plan them all before your freshman year of college.
1093311
Well, you COULD double-major, depending what university/college you're attending and if they allow that. However, it's really what you have the greater passion, talent, and love for doing.\n\nNeither industry/field of career is easy to "make it big" in. So either way, you'll be treading down the road to either making it or breaking it. \n\nAlso, there's a difference between having talent and having passion. Some people have both, some one or the other. You may have a passion for filmmaking, but the industry really cares whether or not you're good at it. By all means, I'm not trying to debase you or anything. I personally think that if you have a passion for filmmaking, go for it.\n\nAnother thing, having a degree in filmmaking doesn't necessarily guarantee anything. Most people within the film industry have degrees ranging from business to English to things even like Philosophy. As an alternate route, get a degree in theatre, but keep working on your love for filmmaking outside of your studies. Should you choose to give up filmmaking, you'd have the degree in theatre to fall back on. Hope this helps.
676284
I would suggest majoring in one or two languages, and minoring in something like business or poli sci.  These are not topics that make me jump for joy either, but they help you keep your options open.  Foreign languages can be used in a variety of settings, so it's always good to be flexible…and, let's face it, a majority of the careers that you will find with a degree in foreign languages will be related to business, government, or education.  The reason I don't suggest a minor in education is that it wouldn't help you post-graduation; you'd have to major to get your teaching credentials.*\n\nIf you majored in Spanish and live in the US, you certainly could do some kind of work with community or non-profit organizations.  \n\nWith languages, diplomatic work also suggests itself as a possibility. \n\nAnother logical choice–not the best choice, necessarily, but something that logically flows from studying several languages–is a graduate degree in linguistics, comparative literature, or the literature of one particular language.  I've studied several Romance languages and Latin, and this is the career path I chose.  Unless you go into linguistics/language acquisition, jobs tend to be hard to come by.\n\nHope that helps.\n\n-Fuz\n\n*One more thing: if you know of some field that you are interested in besides languages, minor in that instead.       Say you like art; minor in art or art history.  That could open up careers in museum/gallery work, for example.
866412
Well, my freshman year of college I was an insturmental perfromance major in a music conservatory because they gave me a good scholarship. It was the wrong reason to go school, and I hated it. I ended up transferring (which is a horrible process) and I'm now a history major, which I love. When I decided to choose my major, I decided on something I was very interested in (history) and that required skills I have... reading, writing, research, etc. Making lists might help you- but chances are you know what you're good at. \n\nIf you are really undecided about what to major in, as in you don't even know what interests you, take curriculum made of up of general education credits- all liberal arts schools require a certain amount of "gen-ed" credit, and it allows you to take a wide variety of classes on different topics. You might find something that really interests you, and then you can look into futher pursuing it. Don't feel pressured to choose a major right away. Most people end up changing theirs at least once during college, if not more.\n\nIf you DO have an idea of what you might like to do, take a few entry level classes in that topic and see if it's still something you're into. Ask yourself "Can I handle the level of math/english/science I will need for this major? Am I interested in devoting the amount of time necessary in these areas to be successful, or would I rather spend my time on other interests?" \n\nIt is also useful to have a plan of what you might like to do after school. Do you want to go to grad school and continue your education? Do you want a job right out of school? This plan doesn't have to be hugely detailed, but it is good to have an ultimate goal as to what you want to do with your education. \n\nI hope that was helpful. I remember what a stressful time it was applying to schools as  senior. It sounds like you already have a good start by listing things, but don't feel like you have to be locked into one major for the entire duration of college.