Need help with choosing a major? Not sure whether to play it safe by listening to your parents or follow your gut and pursue your passion? We’ve put together this guide to help you get through this stressful process.

The first step is understanding your strengths and skills. Knowing what you tend to be good at is a great way to identify majors that are better aligned with your aptitude.

A simple way to figure out your strengths is to look at your results in secondary school or Pre-U. Which subjects did you score well on? What classes did you enjoy the most in school? Answering these questions can help you gain more clarity.

Another way is to ask your family and friends for feedback. Being the people closest to you, they may be able to offer you a different perspective and help you identify areas you aren’t aware of.

While skills and abilities matter, what will help you sustain your motivation in the long run is your passion for the field.

The easiest way to identify your interest is to take a piece of paper, list down the hobbies and activities that you enjoy doing, rank them according to your preference, and spend some time thinking about what makes them fulfilling to you. For example, perhaps you enjoy playing Dungeons & Dragons because it hones your communication and improvisation skills. This can help uncover the underlying patterns that make up who you are.

If you aren’t sure about your interest, then it’s time to try new things. Use your free time to join student clubs, start new projects, engage in volunteering work, or even take on part-time jobs. Remember, the idea is to explore and widen your perspective instead of rushing to a conclusion.

The third factor to consider is the employability of your degree. After all, it unwise to invest in your education only to end up with a degree that is low in demand. So, ideally you would want to choose a major with a higher employment rate.

You also need to ask yourself how much salary matters to you. If you want a high-paying job, then choosing a STEM major may be better for you, but that doesn’t mean you need to exclude all non-STEM majors as some of them can be lucrative too.

So, how do you get info on the job market? The trick is to talk to someone with knowledge of the field. This could be your family, relatives, and professors. If you don’t know anyone in your social circle who fits the bill, consider reaching out to an education consultant for advice.

You may at this point have some options in mind, so you need to understand how their pathways differ and impact your goals. For example, certain fields only require a diploma to get started, while others require at least a Master’s degree.

You also need to consider the duration of your degree programme. A business degree is usually 3 years long, while an MBBS degree can take 5 years to complete (not including housemanship and compulsory service). Do you need to plan for postgraduate study? Is a bachelor’s degree sufficient? How many years are you willing to devote to your undergraduate study? Once you have a general goal, you will be able to answer these questions and plan accordingly.

Once you have narrowed down your options, you need to check whether you satisfy the requirements. For example, an MBBS degree requires you to pass SPM and score 5Bs in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics/Additional Mathematics and 1 other subject, on top of meeting the requirements for Pre-U. If you didn’t meet the criteria, your next option is to choose a major in the same field with lower requirements or one in a different field altogether. It helps to remain flexible in such situations, and who knows, maybe your other option suits you after all.

You may feel the pressure to pick the PERFECT major, and that is understandable. After all, this is one of the biggest decisions you’ll have to make in life. However, your major doesn’t define your entire future.

As a matter of fact, it is quite common for people to switch careers. Some do it because they want higher pay, others do it because they seek greater work flexibility or felt stagnant in their previous jobs and want new growth.

Life doesn’t happen in a linear way. So, you aren’t forced to stick to a single career path, and you definitely have the freedom to make new decisions as you progress along your journey.

Choosing a course can be time-consuming, so why not take the shortcut by engaging our free education counselling services? Our professional consultants are always ready to help guide you throughout the process so that you can kickstart your higher education with ease.