I am a junior majoring in Gender and Women’s studies, but when I first came to Scripps, the GWS major was not even on my radar. Even during my first semester, when I was still extremely undecided, I had two new friend/mentors (both class of 2012 and no longer on campus) who told me that I should look into the GWS major because it seemed like a really good fit for me. I listened to their advice and that is a large part of what got me to where I am today, but not everyone has older friends who can advise them that way, and I certainly didn’t pick my major on their recommendations alone. I had a system. And so, I bring to you today my 5 steps to picking a major that will (most likely) be the right one for you.

1. Make a list (written or mental) of departments and majors you think you are interested in.
2. Add to that list any other major that others have suggested might be a good fit for you (these can be peers, mentors, family – but probably shouldn’t include that major that your parents or guardians wished you would do but honestly have no interest in.)
3. Look at the department pages (found on the Scripps website under Academics -> Departments and Courses of Study, or click here) and actually read what the department has to say about itself. Their goals as a department might give you a new understanding of what the major is about.
4. [THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP] Read through the major requirements and truly imagine yourself taking all of those classes. If a lot of them are electives (as in my GWS major), look at the kind of courses that can fulfill those and pick a few as if you were setting up your schedule. If half of the classes sound boring to you, it might not be the right major.
5. If you’re still having trouble narrowing down the list, you could start playing around with combinations of dual or double majors, or majors and minors that would still enable you to study what you love. This is where those semester-by-semester plans are key. You might realize that you can only pull off the double major you want by starting the very next semester, or you might have a little more wiggle room.

Here is a key point to picking your major (at least with my method): if you think it is going to be boring or make you miserable, you should probably look for something else, because that disinterest is going to show in your work for your classes, and you are not going to want to do a thesis in that subject. While senior thesis can seem really far away and indistinct to a first year student, it doesn’t hurt to think ahead in a general sense. Senior thesis is going to be a lot of work, but it should to some degree, be something you’re excited about- I know I am! But that’s because I found a major that I really loved.

If you picked your major with a different method, tell me about it! Did you ever try something like this? And can someone please tell me that I am not the only person excited about doing thesis?