Choosing a major is a significant step in your college journey. It’s what sets you on the path to graduation.
Fortunately, deciding on a major (or two) is not an all-or-nothing decision. You can always change it later on or even try a completely different subject in grad school. But even with this flexibility, you still need to make a choice.
UC Davis has more than 100 majors to choose from, which might feel overwhelming. Use this quiz and guide to help narrow down the options to the interest areas that best suit you.
How to choose a major
Create a future plan
Regardless of what stage in life you’re at now, if you’re deciding to go to college or change majors, there are some things about your future you need to consider first.
Goals: What are my life goals?
Do you have a goal in life? Some people’s life goals include helping others, being financially independent or traveling the world. Your goals can provide insight on what kind of major you’d like.
For example, if your life goal is to travel the world, you might want to consider a major like international relations or international agricultural development.
If you don’t have any life goals, think about the moments in your life that made you feel the most alive and happy. Write down those moments in great detail. Why did those moments stand out to you? Try turning those reasons into your life goals.
Location: Where should I live?
Some people stay in their hometown for their entire lives and are very content living there. Others want to live as far from home as possible. What major you choose could determine where you live after you graduate.
If you love living by the ocean, consider majoring in . If you know you want to major in computer science and engineering, would you mind living in Silicon Valley or working from home?
If you’re someone who craves human interaction, choose a major like community and regional development, which would allow you to connect with others in a big city. Would you rather directly support people in need? Try sociology.
Income: What is a good salary for me?
If your life goal is financial independence or to earn a high salary, consider majors that lead to high-paying jobs straight out of graduation like biomedical engineering or animal science.
Just remember there are many more options than doctor, lawyer or engineer that can lead to a career with a high salary. Ask an academic advisor about the many choices that are available to you.
On the other hand, not everyone’s goal is to make a ton of money. For instance, those who major in political science — public service will likely have careers in government.
While working for the government doesn’t usually result in higher salaries, it often comes with solid benefits and the personal satisfaction of helping people, especially those who experience systemic oppression.
Make a ‘favorite things’ list
If you still haven’t narrowed down a major you like, try making a “favorite things” list. Your interests should indicate what majors you’d like.
School subjects
Do you love English and hate math? Or do you like both? Your favorite K-12 subjects shine a light on your natural talents.
But K-12 education just covers the basics of every subject. You can dive deeper and specialize with more than 100 majors at UC Davis.
Maybe you’re the kind of person who generally likes biology, but you really loved that one class that went into detail about how dolphins sleep with half their brain. For majors, you could try out marine and coastal science—marine ecology and organismal biology or neurobiology, physiology and behavior.
If you do happen to love both mathematics and English, try double majoring! Or choose one as your major and another as your minor.
Hobbies and activities
Do you have hobbies or activities you enjoy doing in your free time? It’s up to you whether you want to turn these into a career.
The downside is that your hobbies will become work. But if these activities make you happy and you can see yourself doing them for the rest of your life, consider choosing a similar major.
For example, if you love photography or ceramics, consider majoring in art studio, where you can choose to specialize in these or other forms of media.
Interested in brewing your own wine or beer? Try majoring in food science with a specialization in fermentation science and choose the brewing science option.
Maybe you read Shakespeare in high school and became obsessed with the medieval era. Well there’s a major for you too! It’s called medieval and early modern studies.
Feelings and values
If you don’t have a specific school subject you like and don’t want to turn your hobby into a career, ask yourself this question. What do you care about the most?
Do you care most about eliminating systems of oppression and supporting marginalized communities? Then you might enjoy gender, sexuality and women’s studies, African American and African studies or political science.
Do you care most about religion and its role in society? Then you’ll like religious studies.
Do you care most about all humans and animals being physically and mentally healthy? Well, you have many options for health studies.
And if you’re thinking, “All I care about is sleep, food and video games,” there are majors for all of those too!
- For sleep, you could major in psychology or neurobiology, physiology and behavior.
- For food, you could major in food science or nutrition science.
- For video games, you could major in cinema and digital media, computer science and engineering or design.
Write down the top three things you feel most passionate about, and take a look at our full list of majors to see what matches up.
Be flexible
If you’re still unsure what major to choose, don’t worry! Many students choose their majors up to two years into college and switch their majors multiple times. The key is to remain flexible and to stay informed.
If you happen to be a UC Davis student, you’re lucky! UC Davis is one of the most flexible and supportive universities for students unsure of their major.
Apply as undeclared
At UC Davis, undeclared students go through a college-wide program that helps students:
- Sample a wide range of courses
- Complete general education requirements necessary to graduate within four years
- Decide on a major
First- and second-year students may choose to enter one of these undeclared programs: