Changing Majors For many students, choosing the right major can be difficult , requiring aduice from both friends and teachers. As of last fall, 465 students were undecided majors . How can it be that so many students have so much doubt as to what the ir major will b ? The truth is , even those who have decided on a major hav doubts. Pam Shearer, a junior, who had finally decided on sales, w ent from on end of campus to th other trying to find the path that best suited her. Shearer cons idered pre-law, English, higher educa ti on, psychology , sales and marketing. "My parents encouraged me in business and doing something with p ople," Shearer said. She also got advice from fri ends. "They saw me in business someday but also understood that I want a home." One place that helped Sl1earer with her decision wa the Career Planning and Placement Office. One of the first things they did for her was assess her personality needs. Th home was very importan t to Shear r and the d c ision process b came easi r once she realized this. Dr. Ed Higginbotham, director of Career Planning and Placement, said that , wh n h helps a student, he allows them to rank in order of importance, money, advancement , job security, personal fulfillment, time away from the job , e tc. The Placement Office also offered students literature to aid the ir decisions, inc luding an encyclopedia of careers tl1at provided details sucl1 as job requirements , related occupations, earnings and social and psychological fac tors for a specific job. While Shear r seemed to have many majors she would have enjoyed, others had a narrow r field. Jordan House, a sophomore advertising major , originally came to Harding to be a pediatrician. l:3rc1111u CrUL '!J - Sµr ingbm11 Springs. Co lo. LoRcw Cruwfo rcl - woocls1ock. Ga A nno Cro n/Jeru - Bryan . Tf'xas /\lurk Cross - Borger. Texas Se t/1 C rll/ll - Ca111011. OlliO ./os/1 Cllnllill f} IJUm - aslw1l le. T f' nn . Louro Curry - Bunonsville. Mel . Mica C llrr!J - Will ard . Mo . Sretien DolJ/Js - Nf'wpon. Ark. Lynn Da/Jney - Ceclar Falls. Iowa L a ne/o n Dale - Wf'Sl Mf'mph is . Ark . .Jonutlwn Dunny - Topf'ka. Kan . A lis/Ju Ca!J Daniel - Rose lle . Ill . .Jessico Daniels - San 1\ngelo . T exas Becky Durnell - Srn1111, ·ille. i\rk . Tonia Datwnpon - Pla111a 1ion . Fla . Berry Du l1 iS - worll11ng1on . Incl. Bree Dallis - Linden . Texas Pe o p I P I 12 F r e s /1 Ill e 11 House said that he was going int o medic ine for tl1e financ ial security. "l started realizing I didn't enjoy it and heard my fri ends talking about their communication c lasses so I talked to some of the communication teach rs. " Then House sought the advice of his father and was told that it was "a long road to be ing a doctor" and ev n with good grades he could get "burned out." He also advised l1im to do wl1at he rea lly enjoyed. "I l1ad all biology c lasses . 1 dropped every c lass on Monday and added commun icat ion classes on Tuesday, " was House's response. Junior Shannon Sullenberger also came to Harding with a major in mind. She thought she wanted to teach English . However , when she vis ited the e lementary school where her mother taught in Angleton, Texas, and saw how much fun the ch ildren had learning , she questioned her original goal. Her moth r suggested that she change her major to elem entary educa tion. "Id c ided that , more than anyth ing e lse, I'd ratl1er see a child smil e because he learned some thing .·· Every student who entered college had some idea of what , his or her likes, dislikes , hobbies and goals w er . Even though a confused student may not have rea lized what his or her longterm goals were, a fountain of resources and advice flowed all around. With Career Plann ing , friends, teach rs and parents, even students who bounced from accounting to nursing found the right careers . - Georgia Choate
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc5NA==