Lady! As a fellow inspiring writer, how did you pin yourself down into a major? I started in journalism and realized quickly it was not at all how I wanted to write.
Asked by
eyymandamarie
Hello, dear! Well, actually, for me the whole thing was very organic. Writing and literature-based arts have always been my strong point (or, rather, mathematics and science have always been as perplexing as witchcraft), and it felt natural to just continue with what I loved. I didn’t have any particular career in mind, only that I knew the thousands of dollars I would be spending on my education should go towards something that really resonated with my own character. The University of Texas only offers English as a liberal arts-based degree plan. Unfortunately, we don’t have an undergraduate creative writing program, which is truly where I could hypothetically imagine myself. Are you choosing between rhetoric, journalism and literature-based English? Perhaps the best way to discern what would be best for you is to consider what you do love rather than what didn’t work; for example, if you love to write creatively but also enjoy analysis, take equal parts literature and writing courses within a English degree plan. Or, alternately, if you see yourself writing for a magazine but are unsure of journalism as a full-on major, why don’t you try on a few rhetoric classes to see if those feel better? Honestly, college is all about finding what you love - and often, many people drop all connections to their major after graduation. So while you’re here, experiment. And don’t be afraid of mistakes. It’s the holistic education that matters the most, not the discipline lettered onto your diploma. Hope that helped! Let me know what you decide.
