Just because I don’t major in science doesn’t mean I have it easy
There is more to any major than what meets the eye
When first getting to UT and meeting new people, there are three things that you are asked: what’s your name, where are you from, and what’s your major? Then depending on your answer, you can get some pretty different responses, some positive, some negative, and others kind of confusing. For right now, I’ll focus on the negative.
When I tell people that I am majoring in journalism I sometimes get comments like, “Must be nice,” or “Lucky you.” Excuse me, what is that supposed to mean exactly? I worked super hard to get into that major. Sure, I may not be super great at math or science, but studying journalism can be tough sometimes. We have to remember ethics, think critically about how society might react to something we write, decide what is good in an article or video, what facts are more important than others. We are constantly thinking, just like the STEM majors, but in a different way.
I am not the only one who has been told things like this, I am constantly hearing how the COLA students “have a lot of time on their hands,” or how it must be “so easy.” Now, I am not a student of the College of Liberal Arts, but I get the feeling that those statements might be wrong, I mean everyone knows how classes here at UT can be, right? They’re not easy. The work load may be different but that does not mean it’s easier.
The same goes with all the Fine Arts majors. Dancing, acting, creating music, its not easy. My sister is a Theatre and Dance major, and I have seen first hand how people react when she tells them that fact. Some people think it’s the easiest thing to do, when in reality, it’s very difficult. My sister stays up till late in the night memorizing things, planning her next audition, analyzing characters, thinking about how a performance can impact the audience. I have seen all the work she puts into it and how tired she gets. There is nothing easy about it.
We all came here with different goals and dreams. We all have different things that interest us and that we are good at. I personally hate everything that is science and math, but I have met others who love it with all their heart. We are all gifted with different affinities towards different things an none of them is less then another.
There is no “easy” major. If there was, it wouldn’t be a major in the first place.