What do to When You’re Just as Confused as Me About Your Program
By Gabrielle Henderson from Unsplash
If you’re like me, you find it unsettling when you don’t have a plan. While I will tell you that not everything has to be set in stone as you work towards earning your degree, I have found it extremely useful to turn to some of these resources to help me figure out what my interests are, what careers I might like to work towards, and how this translates into a program at UVic.
Keep in mind that I am not a professional in UVic’s wide student support services. What I am, however, is a student who knows how you’re feeling. And it is 100% okay!
I started off my first year with a completely different career and degree path in mind than the one I have now. To keep my options open, I told myself to branch out in the classes I had chosen to take to other topics that interested me. This was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made because it completely changed my expectations of the degree I want to come out of UVic with.
While for the past couple of months I have been very confused about what I want to do moving forward program-wise, here are some of the amazing supports that helped me get through it:
Academic Advising
I have this as number one because the Academic Advisors at UVic are extremely helpful. I have had the pleasure of talking through my academic plans with advisors in two different faculties, and it has provided nothing but clarity for me. They will encourage you with different opportunities to consider and empower you to find a program that fits within your interests.
Here is a great link with Academic Advising contacts.
Career Educators
If you feel at all concerned about what your career path will look like after you’ve completed your time at UVic, or how to get started on thinking about this, I highly recommend speaking with a Career Educator. Not only will the resources they provide you with blow your mind, but they will give you the reassurance that your program will lead to bigger things after graduation.
Professor Office Hours
Professors in the academic field you are interested in are a great source of knowledge, and can most likely provide you with advice from when they were in your position. Find out their Office Hours, and you’ll be surprised how much insight one chat can offer.
from Unsplash
UVic Website Resources
Finding out how your interests relate to courses and programs at UVic takes a bit of your own research as well. Take a look through the UVic Course Guide in the Calendar to see which classes are available to you and read a description of them — you’ll be surprised what you can find!
Keep in mind that many Departments offer beginner-level courses for non-Faculty students to explore different fields. Then, take a look at the UVic Programs List to see the options available to you.
Write it Down
By Cathryn Lavery from Unsplash
It never hurts to put thoughts on paper. Whether it be brainstorming careers or a pros and cons list, I am all about organizing my ideas.
One thing I found particularly useful once I found a few Minor/Major/General programs I was interested in, was to write down all of their required courses and electives.
Not only did seeing them visually in a way that made sense to me help me with the confusion, but physically writing them down forced my brain to make sense of it.
Talk to Friends and Family
Ultimately, what you do with your time at UVic is your decision, but when confused and weighing different options, I found it really helpful to talk to my friends and family about it. It was my best friend who suggested I look into Communications courses when I was first struggling with my program choices, and hearing that flicked on a light bulb in my head.
When stressed out our thoughts can become foggy, and it is easy to lose sight of what we really want. Sometimes those closest to us seem to know us better than ourselves!
