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jleopold  ·  3384 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: A guilty request, I'm not even adding tags because I feel it's self-indulgent.

I'm just starting my senior year of high school. My friends and I are being asked to make the biggest decisions we have ever made. And I don't know a single one who knows exactly what they want to do. When it comes up, we may list a couple different colleges, and the at least two majors, widely different. In the past three years, I've probably changed my expected major half a dozen times. A few weeks ago I was on some college visits out East, and most people hadn't cemented down what they wanted to do. It seemed that often times, the parents had more concrete expectations than the students had dreams. The point is, you sure aren't alone here. Undecided is the most popular major in the US.

I was born in Ft. Collins, so I know more about CSU than I do about CU, but you should look into general majors and self-designed majors. A general humanities major could work well for you, or, if CU offers it, you could try to design your own major, maybe mixing public service and psychiatry (or psychology, since psychiatry would require med school) or something like that. In the long run, the less specific major may hurt you career wise, but you can hopefully supplement it with specific skills and qualifications in a chosen career.

Before you start though, if you can support yourself for a bit, check out Colorado some. Mesa Verde, Great Sand Dunes, and Rocky Mountain National Park are all great. Go whitewater rafting if you can. I missed out on a lot of the 'touristy' stuff while I lived there, and had to go back the next summer to catch up on it. Eventually, even the mountains become less breathtaking and more helpful for finding West (or East, depends where you are).

Which actually brings up another point. CO has some great opportunities for outdoor jobs. Check with the park services, or wilderness firefighting, or guiding. Heck, learn to train llamas and use them as pack animals (they're allowed more places than horses or donkeys). These sort of jobs often take a wide range of skills, but little in the way of certification and you can try them out for just a season before really commuting. It may be that you have to settle for a career with only a few things you love, but I'd say keep looking while you can.