According to some experts, high-demand jobs tend to come from a few “college major clusters”; only about 15% of all majors offered. While there are over 300 college majors to choose from, available within 3000 colleges, ultimately leading to over 30,000 job titles, it’s no wonder that so many college-bound students and parents are overwhelmed.
Money isn’t everything, but employability will probably rank high in your mind when you choose a major. Your major won’t get you a job outright, but having it on your resume with a favorable grade point average sends a signal to employers that you’ve got what it takes to do the job successfully.
Your choice of major, though, has some influence on your options in the job market. Down the road, when you choose a related career field in which to pursue a job, you’ll also consider the lifestyle, work conditions, salary, advancement opportunities, and even your own interests.
In the field of academic advising, “college major clusters” are broad categories of academic interest. Getting familiar with “college major clusters” will help you zero in on field of study and improve your chances off success in your academics AND your eventual career. Through surveys or reflection, you can find out what clusters you fit into.
If you’re undecided about your major, it’s a good idea to start by identifying around four clusters. According to Michael Voillt’s “Great Colleges for the Real World,” examples of college majors clusters with high-demand jobs are: “applied quantitative”, “analytical/computational” and “quantitative”.
College majors themselves are more specific so you’ll have to do some research. Look carefully at the coursework. Talk to the professors who teach the classes during your college visit or on the phone. Ask to see the textbook and syllabus. Consider carefully if you can, and want to, do what’s required to good grades in this major and graduate on time.
To get you started, here is a list of 100 descriptions of majors. Try to get down to five majors by a process of rank ordering your preferences. Friends or family could make suggestions based on the list that falls under each of the clusters you identified. Remember that quite a few majors will be compatible with your career interests. But some majors are lead to a very specific occupation (like pre-med or pre-law)..
Picking the major is just the first step. You still have to evaluate the jobs that are associated with it. Will you be successful? If the tasks of the job appeal to you, and the lifestyle fits your needs, again, your chances of success are greatest. But that’s another article!
Here is a neat site that shows the career options that connect with majors at University of Tennessee, including potential employers, specializations and strategies for your plan of study.
Bottom line: Careful planning and reflection when you choose a particular college’s program will pay off. Making the right choices will motivate you and your confidence will grow even more as you succeed in your coursework. And that confidence will lead to success in the workplace.
Contact me at http://www.whatsyourmajor.netfor personal coaching for academic and career success!
My mission is to empower youth with: - The knowledge about career possibilities, and the education and training needed to attain them - The creative-thinking and emotional skills that make for good career decisions and which employers prefer; - And the resilience needed to flourish in life.
