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I did a 180° academic turnaround when I decided to pick up anthropology (major) and art history (minor) although I'd already finished a bachelor's degree in marketing. I never enjoyed business studies and never gave it my best while at the same time feeling under pressure from my parents because they told me to do it. I got my degree but shortly after felt so empty.
So after some thinking I did what my gut feeling told me and that was to go back to uni and finally study what I truly like to learn about – culture and society (in the broadest sense). It's been the most emancipatory decision I've made in my life and now I finally feel like I'm on my own path instead of someone else's. On top of that, I feel really comfortable around the people I study with and they're all really sweet and inspiring. We read tons and learn to deconstruct, reflect and argue, that way acquiring skills and knowledge for all matters of life. And finally I really care about my studies and do well. I'm really proud of that.
Full disclosure: While I live in Germany and studying is basically free here I know for most Americans on here it would be much harder financially to extend their studies like I did. Still, if anybody reads this who feels drawn to a social or cultural science and feels unhappy with the more conventional path they took because of external pressure – I hope this encourages you to go where you need to go <3 happy to hear from other people's similar experiences
1d ago
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🤩I went into college thinking I would study political science or maybe sociology. I went to a really unique school where I didn’t have gen eds so I could take whatever classes I wanted starting from my first semester. I ended up taking Ritual Theory with a prof that came highly recommended and ended up taking another class and an independent study project with her the next semester.
By the time I actually had to declare a major, I had accidentally acquired a good chunk of my major requirements, so while I stuck with religion some of the other classes I took in anthropology, history, philosophy, gender studies, and art ended up counting towards my major requirements, too.
I’m gonna be so for real: your major is not going to impact your job security unless you intend to go into a very specific field anyway. The job market is challenging for literally everyone right now, but studying something you are interested in might increase your chances of sticking through school and actually getting the degree if that’s what you’re going for.
I went for a multidisciplinary approach in taking lots of other classes and doing research through more of a religious studies lens, and I currently work in an academic library where that experience definitely comes in handy. When it comes to majoring in the humanities, the skills you develop matter more than the general topic you study to employers (unless you hone in on something ultra specific and decide to follow that path, but I wouldn’t expect you to have a specific plan at this point).
I loved studying religion (and anthropology) because what people care about matters! How people live and what they live for matters! The humanities are so rich and meaningful and I hope that your college experience is a meaningful one, even if it is primarily a pathway to employment.
By the time I actually had to declare a major, I had accidentally acquired a good chunk of my major requirements, so while I stuck with religion some of the other classes I took in anthropology, history, philosophy, gender studies, and art ended up counting towards my major requirements, too.
I’m gonna be so for real: your major is not going to impact your job security unless you intend to go into a very specific field anyway. The job market is challenging for literally everyone right now, but studying something you are interested in might increase your chances of sticking through school and actually getting the degree if that’s what you’re going for.
I went for a multidisciplinary approach in taking lots of other classes and doing research through more of a religious studies lens, and I currently work in an academic library where that experience definitely comes in handy. When it comes to majoring in the humanities, the skills you develop matter more than the general topic you study to employers (unless you hone in on something ultra specific and decide to follow that path, but I wouldn’t expect you to have a specific plan at this point).
I loved studying religion (and anthropology) because what people care about matters! How people live and what they live for matters! The humanities are so rich and meaningful and I hope that your college experience is a meaningful one, even if it is primarily a pathway to employment.
Mar 9, 2025
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🎓Not sure if every college offers this, but I majored in Interdisciplinary Studies! My degree let me pick 2 main areas of focus and 1 minor. It's different than double majoring--you're not taking on double the credit hours since you're not doing the full coursework of two majors. Instead, you're doing basically half a major of each focus area, credits-wise. I think it made me very well-rounded and gave me a lot of flexibility in what I want to do. Some people pick focuses that go hand-in-hand, like Film and Creative Writing. Other people who have a huge range of interests have picked totally differing focuses. I knew one guy who did Comp Sci & Theater. Doing that can give you a really unique perspective at the intersection of two subjects. My only caution is that this major translates less directly into a specific job after graduation. But they do teach you how to market yourself and your skills before you graduate in the senior Capstone course. Could be a good way to explore your interests while still getting a degree!
Since you're passionate about Religion and Philosophy, you could choose those as your areas of focus! They usually make you choose a minor as well to make sure you're getting depth in a subject, not just breadth. Just make sure to get some sort of internship or practical experience in one of your areas before you graduate, if possible. I made the mistake of kinda coasting thru my degree without going for internships, so it's taken me a little longer to build experience post-grad. But I think you truly can make any major work for you eventually, as long as you're putting the work in. Experience seems to end up mattering more than the specifics of the subject. I know someone doing a Master's in folklore studies in Florida of all places, and she's getting plenty of opportunities! Follow what you're interested in and everything will fall into place. :)
Interdisciplinary Studies can seem kinda impractical since it doesn't create a specific career path for you immediately. But I think it becomes really useful in the long run, since employers like to see versatility and well-roundedness. In my mind, it's kinda the modern equivalent of being a "Renaissance Man" getting knowledge in different areas.
Mar 9, 2025
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😵I was set on a fine arts path for a long time, then wanted to combine that with my interest in psych and become a music therapist. Then I got stage fright during my clarinet scholarship audition and threw up on the stage and decided I could never show my face in the music department again. I stuck with psych and added anthropology.
I loved my social sciences classes but I decided to take a development class online during my first summer of college, and I loooooved it! I remembered how much the brain fascinated me as an organ and how neuroscience may be a better fit for me than psychology. So I emailed my advisor and we ended up changing my whole life around to build a curriculum that mimicked what I’d be taking if my school had a neuro major. Then, they developed a neuro major and I was one of the first to graduate from it! Took me an extra semester but oh well lol.
I got multiple job offers, and took the one farthest from South Dakota. I ended up in a random suburb in Maryland at a clinic/research facility that worked with children with abnormal sex chromosomes (XXY, XYY, X, etc) since that can significantly impact cognitive development. But this place was so shady and everyone who worked there was miserable, so I had to leave. I found my next job and worked at the old job less than 90 days!
But this new job would have me questioning myself and my intelligence on a daily basis. There were days when I loved it and felt like I was doing something really cool and special and interesting and important! But most of the time I was sad and scared and anxious and ended up really hating myself and the work. And this is unfortunately how a lot of grad students feel, but I wasn’t a student! People mistook me for one, or even for a post doc sometimes, but I just worked there!! I was going through all of that for 3 years of my life and I don’t even have a degree to show for it smh
So I thought about what else I wanted to do with my life and decided to go back to school for occupational therapy! I want to help people directly, and I know first hand that animal research really does help people (I’m on an antibody that was developed inside of rodents lol) but I want to do that more tangibly. And I still want to have it pertain to neuroscience in some way, and OT would allow me to help people recover from strokes or TBIs or maintain a level of autonomy during age-related cognitive decline! So I’m currently taking classes so that I can be ready to apply to the OT doctorate program in my state :)
But going back to the job…I lost the job last month… And now I haven’t been working in weeks and I’m about to get my last severance paycheck and the job search isn’t totally going how I’d hoped…but it’ll be okay, I’ll find a way through this chapter and I’ll make it into that program and it’ll work out eventually, right?
And if a patient likes to make music I might end up being a music therapist of sorts after all!
I loved my social sciences classes but I decided to take a development class online during my first summer of college, and I loooooved it! I remembered how much the brain fascinated me as an organ and how neuroscience may be a better fit for me than psychology. So I emailed my advisor and we ended up changing my whole life around to build a curriculum that mimicked what I’d be taking if my school had a neuro major. Then, they developed a neuro major and I was one of the first to graduate from it! Took me an extra semester but oh well lol.
I got multiple job offers, and took the one farthest from South Dakota. I ended up in a random suburb in Maryland at a clinic/research facility that worked with children with abnormal sex chromosomes (XXY, XYY, X, etc) since that can significantly impact cognitive development. But this place was so shady and everyone who worked there was miserable, so I had to leave. I found my next job and worked at the old job less than 90 days!
But this new job would have me questioning myself and my intelligence on a daily basis. There were days when I loved it and felt like I was doing something really cool and special and interesting and important! But most of the time I was sad and scared and anxious and ended up really hating myself and the work. And this is unfortunately how a lot of grad students feel, but I wasn’t a student! People mistook me for one, or even for a post doc sometimes, but I just worked there!! I was going through all of that for 3 years of my life and I don’t even have a degree to show for it smh
So I thought about what else I wanted to do with my life and decided to go back to school for occupational therapy! I want to help people directly, and I know first hand that animal research really does help people (I’m on an antibody that was developed inside of rodents lol) but I want to do that more tangibly. And I still want to have it pertain to neuroscience in some way, and OT would allow me to help people recover from strokes or TBIs or maintain a level of autonomy during age-related cognitive decline! So I’m currently taking classes so that I can be ready to apply to the OT doctorate program in my state :)
But going back to the job…I lost the job last month… And now I haven’t been working in weeks and I’m about to get my last severance paycheck and the job search isn’t totally going how I’d hoped…but it’ll be okay, I’ll find a way through this chapter and I’ll make it into that program and it’ll work out eventually, right?
And if a patient likes to make music I might end up being a music therapist of sorts after all!
May 29, 2025
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I went to the botanical garden in Porto and there was barely anyone except for a few university students reading in the shade. The place had a mystical aura, which I captured best with this photo, I think
6d ago
May 17, 2024