Finding Your Road

Trying to choose a major? Choose the answers that best describe you:

1. I enjoy learning most when I’m

a. working in a lab or in the field gathering data and conducting experiments.

b. reading articles and books related to my field of interest and writing about my own ideas.

c. practicing and refining my creative and artistic talents.

d. working through mathematical equations, problem sets, and other types of logic problems.

2. I am interested in

a. interpreting human or natural history and discovering what we can learn from the past.

b. analyzing the state of the world today and figuring out what can be done to influence it.

c. creating or extending knowledge that will impact the future.

d. dealing with theoretical or abstract concepts and models.

3. I would prefer a program of study that

a. has a curriculum focused predominantly on my major and closely related subject areas.

b. allows me a great deal of choice in terms of the courses I will take, so that I can develop a greater breadth of knowledge.

These are 3 of the questions posed by MyRoad, the free, on-line assessment available through Career Services for students seeking to find a major. Based on your answers to these questions and the remaining questions in the assessment, MyRoad suggests majors you can explore, provides you with in-depth information about those majors, then links you to information about different careers that might use that major. To complete the test, go to http://www.myroad.com, click Sign up Today, and under the School Programs heading, click the box and enter your school code (BWG646). The code is not case sensitive. Once you’ve completed the registration form, you’ll be notified by email that you’re ready to log in and start the test. A small number of majors will be suggested to you.

How do you pick between them?

In some cases, majors will be suggested that aren’t offered at UCSB. In this case, you should read more about those majors in MyRoad, and if you’re willing to change schools, you can look at which ones offer the majors you’re considering. In some cases, it might be worth relinquishing the prestige of graduating from a UC in order to get into a major that is more tailored to your likes and needs. For instance, if you’re graphic design came up as a major for you in MyRoad, you could stay at UCSB and try to cobble a study of graphic design into the Studio Arts major. Or, you might be better off going to CSU Long Beach, where they have a great graphic design program

If you are unwilling to change schools and/or we offer the majors that interest you here, you can explore further by visiting our Careers by Major web page. You can click on any of the majors listed and find career information, internships, graduate and professional schools, professional associations (a WEALTH of info on different fields) and job listings for career related to that major, as well as a link to the academic department. You can see which careers might track from that major, what the job market is like for those careers, how much jobs in those careers pay, etc.

Still unsure? Here are some ideas for further clarifying your options:

1) Talk to undergraduate advisors in departments your are considering. Ask them what kind of students do well in their major, what are the challenges in the major, what kind of jobs do students land from their major, etc.

2) Go to the textbook section in the bookstore, find a major that is on your list, sit on the floor and, one-by-one, pull out books required for classes in that major. Look at the table of contents, and scan the text for 30 to 40 seconds. If you find yourself interested in what you’re reading, this is a good major to consider. If you’re falling into a coma from boredom, maybe not.

3) Talk to the advisors in the College of Letters and Science. They know about all the different majors and can help you look at questions of double majoring, finishing in time, etc

Lastly, come by and talk to a career counselor. We have all kind of resources to help you make this major decision.

Micael Kemp is the director of Career Services at UCSB.