Connecting Majors to Careers

Many parents think of the majors our students pursue and assume they transfer directly into careers. But that isn’t the way it always works. Further, moving from a majors to careers isn’t always a straight shot: it takes deliberate efforts, especially in today’s economy.

The Basics

I’ve worked with both high school and college students who talk about entering specific careers. And too many times when I ask them “how did you choose that major,” they tell me “because it will give me a good or lucrative job.” Fair enough. But these same students don’t have a clue what’s involved in either their intended major or that career. Engineering is a prime example. Many students tell me they want to major in engineering without knowing what engineers do on a day to day basis. They also cringe when I tell them the amount of high level math courses required for engineering majors.

Before your student chooses a major, ask them: why this major? What do you want to do with it? (Note: if the only answer is “to make a lot of money,” keep probing. Making a lot of money- or to put it more nicely, to “have financial security” is laudable. But doing that in a job you absolutely despise is not a way to live.

That can learn a lot about careers or connecting majors to careers through their guidance counselors, or if they’re in college, their academic advisor. I also suggest they connect with the career center as soon as they step foot on their college campus.

What is a Major?

A major is an academic focus that “students specialize in. Typically, between one-third and one-half of the courses you’ll take in college will be in your major or related to it.” They aren’t the only things students study in college, yet they provide a framework for a student’s future career. But so do all the other courses and experiences students have while in college, and this is important. Choosing the major isn’t the end of the career journey: it’s somewhere in the middle.

I often advise students who are undecided on their choice of major to reflect on what they enjoy doing for the fun of it, such as puzzles or problem solving. Others may be innately curious about languages, or the natural world. These varying interests can guide them towards a career in which they could pursue these interests full time. I ask these questions about interests to get students thinking internally first, rather than about salary or prestige. This is because success in any career is often connected as much to how they feel in that career and how it feeds them emotionally and spiritually than on its external rewards.

Pursuing a Career

Turning majors into careers requires work outside of the academic major. Let’s look at two items: skills and experiences. Many careers require generalized skills, such as critical thinking skills, analysis, problem solving, and effective communication. These are important enough that many colleges hold these skills as essential to the liberal arts. Check the curriculum of some colleges you know. I’ll wait. Students may develop and sharpen these skills not only in the major, but in other general education courses.

Experience is different. Does anyone want their veterinarian to have only spent time with animals while in veterinary school? (That’s an unfair question because I don’t know any vets who haven’t been passionate about animals since they were kids.) Writers often play with language from an early age, and aspiring engineers can’t stop taking things apart, and it’s best that they do so. So, if your student is thinking about a particular career, encourage them to gain some experience in that field through internships, shadowing programs, on-campus lectures and field experiences. Connecting majors to careers in this way gives them a taste of what’s to come should they pursue a particular career.

Help Them Become Proactive

Another excellent way to move from majors to careers is by interviewing people currently in their fields and asking them how they got there. Ask these folks for their advice on how to enter a career and the best way to pursue it. Students are often surprised to hear the insights these professionals give them. Many of my former students have decided against a career based on these interviews or field experiences. One wanted to be a dentist for years, but after a summer internship in a dentist’s office, decided against it. After a second field experience with an optometrist, he entered optometry school and is much happier than he would have been as a dentist. But it was only be being proactive that he was able to make this decision.

It’s Not The End

Even people who connect their majors to their careers and enjoy years of satisfying work may change careers later. That’s far more common today than in past decades. Let’s give our students the confidence to know that while they’re connecting majors to careers, they still have the opportunity change if they wish.