Humans have a tendency to fear what they don’t know. It is an innate biological trait of our species, an instinct that makes us fear things such as the dark. In our day to day lives, the fear of the unknown doesn’t make too much of an appearance. We fall into a routine, going to the same classes, sitting with the same people, seeing the same faces. Monotonous maybe, but we know it’s safe. Although we know how to live our lives now, will we know what to do in the future? We don’t think about it on our day to day lives, but when college approaches over the horizon, suddenly you have the responsibility to choose your future, where you go from there, what you will do, and so much more. No one, not a single person in this building, can guarantee their future, and that’s terrifying to students not only here at Grant, but everywhere all over the world. Genevieve Torrey is a senior here at Grant and when asked if she was afraid of what’s after high school, she replied, “Yeah. I’m terrified.” She used to have a plan of what she was going to do in the future, what she was going to major in and an idea as to where she would go to school. “There was still an uncertainty, like, where I was going to go for school and stuff, but at least I had a plan. But now it’s like, okay, I don’t have a plan.” This is something many students go through, the feeling of uncertainty that their plans for the future are the best
for them as an individual. We can’t always account for changes in our interests, whatever may lay down the road. Some adults; whether it be parents, teachers, or relative strangers, will make it seem like you have to have your entire life planned now. “That’s one of the things that freaks me out the most when you’re talking to adults and they’re like ‘oh, what are you gonna do?’” said Genevieve. “And you have to answer that question. […] And some people are like, no, you have to know now.” However, that’s not really the case. Having a plan can give some students some sense of closure or control, but knowing exactly what you want to do out of college isn’t something you necessarily need to know before you go to college. A paper from the Penn State division of undergraduate studies wrote “An estimated 20 to 50 percent of students enter college as “undecided” (Gordon, 1995) and an estimated 75 percent of students change their major at least once before graduation (Gordon, 1995).” If you are someone who doesn’t have a set plan, don’t worry! You definitely aren’t alone. If you ever have trouble deciding on a major, just know that it is always possible to change your major. In fact, many colleges make it easy for you to change your major (depending on the program, of course). Sydney Mayhew is a freshman at college at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign and has already changed her major once, from physics to psychology. “I mean, I feel like it’s not that big of a deal if you switch majors,” she explained, “I was afraid of that at first, but now that I’m actually like, learning about the process, it’s really not that big of a deal.”No matter how many times you change your major, or even if you decide to not go into college, you can still be successful. Mrs. Balang, a teacher here at Grant, used to believe she would be a journalist. However, as time went on, she realized the best option for her was to be a teacher, and she is now fulfilling her goals, as she is an English teacher here at Grant. The question is, how do you make that leap from college to success? Sure, I’ve figured out my major, and my college, but what now? Well, both Sydney and Genevieve agreed that taking AP classes helped prepare them (or will prepare them, in Genevieve’s case) for college. Sydney described how she started college with 24 credit hours: 20 of which were from AP tests. “Because of this, I get higher priority for choosing classes than some other freshman because I technically have sophomore status.” Furthermore, she stated that the workload made the transition from high school to college easier. Although unrecognizable, success can come from anywhere you want it to come from. It doesn’t matter where you go to college, what you choose to major in, or how many times your future plan changes. Now that you’re at the age where you might have to start worrying for the future, know you aren’t alone. Every student here at Grant is in the same boat, and we are all planning for    our futures. If you are scared for the future, whether you don’t have a plan or you just don’t feel ready, just know that you will never be alone. We are all students here at Grant, and together we can make our way to the bright future we are all destined to have.