What should I major in? 

Sometimes I’m envious of other classmates who already have obvious preferences in choosing their major. Like a friend of mine aims to study English. She never hesitates in answering this question and she strikes for a clear goal, which is gaining high scores to enter the English Department.  But, I get my own edge too. I’m open to more possibilities and I can analyze different choices rationally before making the decision. Right, let’s do it now.

First of all, I’m amazed by diverse subjects available in College of Liberal Art and Social Science. There’re 14 of them. It’s nice to have so many possible choices but on the other hand, it’ll turn into a real headache if I analyze all of them.

So firstly let’s categorize them into the Social group (including media, applied science etc.) and the Language group (including Chinese and English). Then, it’s easy to let go of the latter one because languages are only tools for me rather than interests. Also, I prefer studying about the society which allows me to relate myself to the world. Although some people warn that studying Social Science is difficult to seek a good job as it’s not professional enough, it’s what I love. I believe people only success in what they enjoy, and I decide to follow my heart.

After the elimination, I should pick the 3 most interesting subjects for detailed analysis. They’re Psychology, Asian and International Studies (ASIS) and Digital Television and Broadcasting (TVB). Without a doubt, I’m interested in all the above topics and I’ll study by heart whatever I enter. The question is which one should be ranked no.1.

Regarding this, I’ve thought of some criteria in choosing a major: it’s able to broaden my horizon; it’ll be useful for my future career; it’s able to keep my interest for a long time. The one subject that satisfy my needs best will be chosen. Hence, I need to take a glance about the programmes learning approaches and tell my feelings about them.

The first subject is ASIS. It emphasizes on theoretical thinking and practical analytical perspectives. It’s of similar learning approach with secondary school’s subjects like Liberal Studies, and I feel comfortable with it. It lets me reflecting current issues and deepening my perspective which is really meaningful to me.

While the TVB focuses more on technological skills. It allows students to gain first-hand experience in producing a programme in lessons! They will have a lot of work, but also a lot of fun. However, those skills may be unhelpful if someday I decided not to engage in TV production. It’s possible as I’m not sure about my career path yet.

As for Psychology, it stresses on doing research in the study of human behavior. On one hand, the topics arouse my curiosity. It fascinates me when I can get an insight about how individual behaves. But on the other hand, it’s sort of unimaginative to study human like an object in scientific ways. After all, when I finish a novel and sigh, “Why did the poor do that?” I’d prefer someone answers me like, “Because he is desperate”, rather than “According to the Marlow’s hierarchy of needs, his basic needs is not satisfied…”…

In short, taking the TVB does seem insecure in helping my future career, and Psychology may not be as attractive in the future as it seems now. Meanwhile ASIS teaches regional knowledge that could be useful everywhere. In addition, the diverse topics covered like politics, economics and culture can never bore me.

Therefore, I’ve decided. I should aim at the Asian and International Studies.