Emily, a high school senior, feels overwhelmed by the pressure to choose a college major while most of her friends seem certain about their futures. She enjoys various activities but lacks a passion for any specific subject, leaving her unsure of what career path to pursue. Her parents encourage her to pick a practical major like business or computer science, while her counselor suggests a gap year, an idea her parents oppose. Emily feels torn between choosing a "safe" major, taking a risk on something she might enjoy, or delaying her decision altogether, fearing that making the wrong choice could impact her future.
Emily is about to start her senior year, and everyone around her is buzzing with excitement about college applications and future plans. While her friends seem confident in their career paths—Madison wants to be a doctor, Jake dreams of engineering, and even her little brother talks about being an architect—Emily feels completely lost. Every time an adult asks her, "So, what are you thinking of majoring in?" she awkwardly smiles and says, "I’m still exploring my options." The truth is, she has no idea what she wants to do. She says:
“I just can't figure out what I want to do. It sucks seeing my friends know exactly what they want to do, and I feel like I'm behind. I'm not even in college yet, so I still have time to figure it out. But there's just times where I wished I knew what I wanted to major in and not feel stressed out about it.”
Emily enjoys a lot of things—reading, hiking, hanging out with friends—but she’s never felt a deep passion for any particular subject. In fact, she feels paralyzed by the fear of making the wrong choice. Her parents, who both pursued practical degrees and have stable jobs, encourage her to pick something "safe" like business or computer science. But deep down, Emily doesn’t see herself fitting into those fields. She sometimes scrolls through Reddit forums, reading posts from students who have fallen in love with their majors or figured out their path by accident, and wonders why she can’t do the same. She even came across a post where someone suggested majoring in something practical if you're undecided, but the thought of being trapped in a boring major for four years terrifies her.
Emily’s counselor suggests taking a gap year to explore her interests, but her parents are strongly against it. They feel that delaying college would set her back and potentially waste a year of her life. Meanwhile, her best friend Madison is already filling out applications to top-tier schools, and Emily feels the pressure to make a decision. Should she listen to her parents and pick a "safe" major, even if it doesn’t excite her? Should she take a risk on a less conventional field, like sociology or creative writing, knowing that it might not lead to a stable job? Or should she push for a gap year to find clarity, despite her family’s concerns?
As deadlines loom and conversations with friends become more about the future, Emily feels the weight of expectation growing. She fears making the wrong choice could define the rest of her life, and she’s torn between pleasing her parents, finding something she enjoys, and just making a decision so she can stop feeling so stuck.
This dilemma was inspired by the following sources: