Breaking down stereotypes of NGU’s majors
Photo courtesy of Unsplash.com
Lane Koch, Social Media Director
What is your major? Whether it’s someone you haven’t seen since high school graduation or someone you just met in the café, you will tell people your major constantly.
The problem with this is people outside of your major think they know what you do.
If you are an ODEL major they may say something along the lines of, “Oh so you slackline all the time” or if you are an English major you may hear, “So you just read books all day.”
The stereotypes are numerous and there is one for every major. Some are true and some aren’t. But either way, there is always a difference between what people think you do compared to what you actually do.
Mass Communication is one such major.
“They assume I’m lazy and don’t really know what I want to major in,” said Georgia Gay, sophomore Mass Communication major and managing editor of the Vision Online. “It’s the “easy” major.”
And just like many other majors, it is far more than it appears from the outside looking in.
“Mass communications,” Gay continued, “is a collaboration of many different skills and talents that affect how information is shared to the masses.”
But as Georgia could tell you, the major is far from easy and really requires a calling.
“I pursue my passion just like anyone else in a different major,” Gay states.
She pursues her passion every time she interviews someone, writes a compelling lead or someone reads her story. And whether that passion is graphics design, photography, social media, journalism, broad casting or radio hosting—mass Communication has it all.
Another major that draws skeptics is sport management.
“When people think of sport management they usually think of coaching,” said Robert Holley, junior sport management major. “But it is more of the business side of sports,” he continued.
The major, like many North Greenville offers, is broken into segments of sport ministry, business and coaching.
“It’s really learning how to manage people and business in the best way you can,” said Tysonna Hutchinson, junior sport management major.
So don’t think sport management is just something your high school P.E. coach took. It will incorporate marketing, business, accounting and many other business relevant classes—it may be harder than you think.
When students think about English majors they usually flashback to their freshman 1310-1320 English classes where they edited endless sentences and studied grammar rules that they will never remember.
But just like those freshman English classes, “The major itself is so much more than grammar,” explained Aaron Ledford, a senior English major at North Greenville University.
“More than that,” Ledford continued, “People think that the only career option is teaching but the truth is English teaches you to think critically, analyze and view from different perspectives, which is beneficial for a myriad of careers including editing publishing and pre-law programs.”
It seems easy to forget that English is the basis for most other majors and that the students in that major do not take it lightly.
Another major that is often criticized is education.
“People think we are cutesy, creative, not smart, husband hunters,” said Devon Worth senior Education Major. “Education is actually confusion, frustration, laughter, long days—it really is the hardest job you’ll ever love.”
Every major should be something you are called to, but education more so than the others.
“You are around these kids with a home life you may never understand,” said Worth. “You are their only hope. You are constantly researching better ways to teach and connect with students. It isn’t a career it is a lifestyle,” she continued.
Education is narrow in the sense of career options, but with multiple specialties. Specialties include behavioral, reading, special and a particular subject.
Every one that chooses their major does so by looking within themselves and judging their skills and passions. It is a personal and important decision. Whether you are meeting other majors or choosing your own, remember there is more to people than the stereotype surrounding them—the same goes for their major.
