With NSU welcoming its largest incoming class yet, we asked our staff to reflect on their earlier years in school and explain “how did you know that your major was the one for you?”
Madelyn Rinka, news editor,
“I came into school as a communication major which is completely different from my current major of environmental science. I didn’t really feel like my classes were interesting, and doing my homework was a chore. Now, I love going to each of my classes, and I get excited to learn about the subjects they cover. Also, I think having a minor or two is a great opportunity to study things that might be outside your major, if you have other interests as well. My minors in GIS and anthropology allow me to take a break from my environmental science class and learn about other things I’m passionate about.”
Christina McLaughlin, opinions editor,
“When I came to campus last year, I was a marine biology major. But after the first semester and creating my four year plan with my professor in UNIV I discovered that I really wanted to be an environmental science/studies major. The course were more in line with what I wanted to learn about and what I wanted as a future career option. My best advice to freshman or anyone else deciding on their major is to really sit down and think about what your passion is. Find something that you would love to do and you’re willing to deal with the consequences that come with it because it’s something you are passionate about.”
Carli Lutz, chief of visual design,
“I didn’t know immediately that my major was the one for me. From freshman year to just about the middle of my junior year, I was an arts administration major, but now I am art & design major. I was pretty close to finishing the bulk of my major requirements while also taking graphic design classes as that was my minor at the time and I realized that graphic design was something I’d rather be doing because I had a lot more fun doing it and it was something I was genuinely good at. Since I was little, I’ve had a weird obsession with color and with fonts and I felt like I was just kicking my true passion to the side as an arts administration major.”
Mario Lorrimer, business manager,
“In my junior year of high school, I decided to take ProStart, a culinary class. Broward College had a joint program with Atlantic Technical College, where I got my Associates in Culinary Management. One thing that stuck with me was what a teacher said. She said that just because you are in culinary school, it doesn’t mean you have to be a chef. If the culinary side didn’t work, I could always fall back on business. Now I am getting my Bachelor’s in Business Management, and one day I want to own a restaurant. There are a variety of paths that you can take just by opening one door. Remember, there are no dead ends, only side streets.”
Skylyr Vanderveer, multimedia manager,
“I ended up stumbling into my major by taking an elective in high school. The class had us students work behind the scenes of our student TV station. I immediately fell in love with the process. When it was time for college applications, I knew I was going to be a communication major. I then struggled to pick the focus of my degree. I loved all three tracks offered. I loved editing, writing and public speaking. I wanted to do everything! After taking some PR focused classes, I knew it was the right track for me.”
Kathleen Crapson, visual design assistant,
“To be honest, I am still on a path of discovery. Growing up, I wanted to be an author. Looking back now, I realized that I occasionally would get in trouble for focusing on the fonts on my assignments, rather than creating content. I went through a journalism magnet program in high school that also focused indirectly on design. During that time, I fell in love with drawing, art history, graphic design and writing. It was like having my own renaissance. Allow yourself to have your own renaissance; where you are learning as much as you can about yourself and the world around you.”
Farhan Shaban, It and social media manager,
“When I first started here at NSU I wanted pursue a career in dentistry. Freshman year was experientmental year for me and as I was study all the science courses I was thinking ‘is this all this really worth it?’ So, I decided to talk to my biology professor about the process of becoming a dentist and what dental practices look like today. As she was explaining to me all this information, it overwhelmed me and I decided to change my major to marketing and a minor in digital media production. My reasoning behind this path is because of a tv show called “Mad Men”. “Mad Men” is show about an advertising firm in the 1960s and the one thing that stand out to me were the creative designer characters. They worked and implemented their art and design to what the customer wanted and at that moment I said to myself ‘that’s exactly what I want to do!’”
