The first article I wrote as a Freshman for the Denisonian was about being undecided in terms of what I wanted to major in. I viewed the ,ajor I declared as the end all, that was it. Once I started down that path I was locked into the rest of my life, with no room for change and not enough time to hesitate.

Now that a year has gone by, and I’ve learned a lot more about majors through resources on campus such as the Knowlton Center, staff members, and by talking to seniors, and what exactly a major means in regards to your future, I have an entirely different opinion on undergraduate degrees overall.

One of the more interesting things I learned this year was how unbinding your major actually is.

Like I said before, when I shipped off to college I had the impression that once I decided on a major and put pen to paper that was it; my future had been signed away and constrained to the jobs only those type of undergraduate majors could obtain. If I majored in a science it meant I had to be a doctor or nurse, if I majored in economics I was going to be looking at spreadsheetss forever, or if I majored in communications I’d be writing for newspapers.

This is such an incredibly flawed view.

The majors and minors we choose to explore during our time at Denison serve as a way for us to explore our interests and learn more about the world around us.

Of course if graduate school is something you have on your horison you need to be mindful of the courses you’re taking, and what those future schools will have required you to take during your time here.

But that means you can be a sociology major and be in a chemistry class. It means you can major in math and take time in exploring the arts.

This is because a major serves only as your initial guiding light, and it is amazing how many more opportunities await us in the world after receiving a quality, well-rounded education on the hill.

My advisor informed me the other day that her husband majored in history, and today he’s a dentist.

I don’t know about you, but that blew my mind.

It kind of amazes me how much we have available to us here at Denison to explore and learn about, all the while setting ourselves up for successful futures to come.

I truly believe that via the Liberal Arts education, students open so many doors to themselves in the future that they may not even recognize yet today.

Upon learning more about the education I am being offered, and all that I will be able to do with it given the hard be work is put in, I am that much more motivated to fully engage in my classes and see where they will come together to carry me after graduation in a few short years.  

That all being said, take advantage of your time on the hill. Take the classes you told yourself you never would, and challenge yourself. You never know what interests you might stumble upon.