Reaching for higher education is something every parent wants from their kid, especially if the school is one of the best learning institutions in the country, like Tech. With this excitement, any type of family gathering involves one or more parent heavily bragging about their child going to a great university that will have them set for life. And this constant bragging can create pressure on the student to stick with the path they created for themselves, regardless if the student picked the right major path.
I can only speak on my previous high school and high schools like it, but I was ill-prepared for college. I went to a below-average school with lackluster test scores, low funding and only strived to meet the bare minimum. And I’d like to think that there are a lot of other high schools like this. There are a lot of students who don’t pursue higher education unless they are an outlier who had real-world experience. The students that wanted to pursue higher education had little to no frame of reference for what they wanted to do. So these students must make the hastily decisions to choose a major and follow that path, or choose undecided, which opens another layer of complications.
So we are now back at the dinner table, first week of classes is in the books and we find ourselves as an uncertain student who has chosen an uncertain path. As the academic years roll on, the student joins clubs, experiences different cultures, and goes through exponential personal growth. The best part of pursuing higher education is going from the small pond that is your high school in your hometown, to the massive ocean that is a living on your own, in a new city, at a large university. Us Tech students are so fortunate to attend such a diverse school in a state that isn’t exactly known for its diversity. With this personal growth, along with a couple of years of classes, the student realizes their true passion is different from the academic path they chose. But being two years deep into a major and following the same narrative of a student coming from a low-income household, making a drastic switch really isn’t a viable option financially. The financial loss of dropping out coupled with the pressures family letdown pushes the student to continue forward pursuing a degree they don’t want.
I have found that this narrative or variations of it are common amongst Tech students and college students in general. And it is disheartening to pursue something you aren’t passionate about, but it’s okay.
Regardless of major, a 4-year stent here at Tech teaches us students a lot about life, work ethic, efficiency, and grittiness. Tech is a fiery crucible that builds strong-willed students with its academic rigor and stress. Along with the intense conditioning, Tech has so many amazing communities and opportunities to explore talents and passions at a very high level of execution and quality.
It is something that makes me so thankful for transferring here. So regardless if you love your major, Tech provides a wealth of knowledge that more than prepares you to pursue your true passion.