by 
by Jessica
My school doesn’t offer my major – and I love it!
I have chosen to go to a school that doesn’t offer my intended major. Unlike many other universities, Yale does not offer Education as a major. What was I thinking when I chose Yale?
I was probably wasn’t thinking about anything except, well, Yale. I’m not going to lie; I was won over, in part, because of the prestige, and I prized the school itself over the different fields of study offered.
And I’m glad I did.
It’s much more reasonable to change majors than it is to change schools. Plus, knowing that I can’t lock myself into a major early on gives me the invaluable opportunity to explore different fields that I might not have even considered before.
Hoping to make the best of what Yale does offer, I applied and was admitted to a special freshman program called Directed Studies, a selective interdisciplinary program that accepts 125 students to enroll in three year-long courses that focus on the literature, philosophy, and political history of Western civilization. This subject range will help me explore the humanities and social sciences so I can figure out what I want to do with the rest of my life. If not for DS, I don’t think I would’ve taken up any class on Herodotus, Plato, or any other famous dead white men, really. Thanks to the program, I’ve already discovered that I make a pretty lousy philosopher (no Jessica-isms for me!), but just because I’m bad at a subject doesn’t mean I can’t concentrate in it. New worlds have opened up for me in each branch, and it’s only a matter of time before I have to decide between the endless options.
And through it all, Yale does offer Education Studies as an interdisciplinary path, so I can pursue that as a side concentration. Call me a happy soul.
