For senior Mahesh Duvvuri, choosing the right college major has been one of the hardest parts of the college application process. As deadlines approach, he said the decision feels more stressful than ever.

“I feel like whatever I pick now could end up deciding what I do for the rest of my life,” Duvvuri said. “It’s a lot of pressure, especially because I’m not even one hundred percent sure what I even want to do.” 

Every year, many seniors experience similar stress as they fill out their college applications. Choosing a major is not only picking a field of interest, but also weighing future career opportunities, salaries, and social expectations—all factors that contribute to the uncertainty of making the right choice. However, this uncertainty is common. According to Drake University, 20–50% of students start college undecided, and about 75% change their major at least once before graduation. 

Melinda Stephan, College and Career Resource Center programming coordinator, said students experience varying levels of stress while choosing their majors.

“Some students are feeling the pressure related to the decision, and they come in stressed and feeling behind. Others are excited about the prospect of going to college and exploring the options, and taking the necessary steps to make a decision.”

Stephan added that, overall, the stress is mostly an impact of the need to make a choice.

Duvvuri said he finds himself somewhere in the middle. While he said he is excited to explore his options, he is also torn between two career paths. 

“I’m interested in both the premed route and biomedical engineering,” Duvvuri said. “It’s exciting having options, but at the same time, it’s also stressful trying to figure out which path makes the most sense for me and my future.”

External pressure only intensifies this stress. Stephan said family and friends also play a large role in students’ decisions. 

Stephan said, “There are certainly external factors that add to the pressure students feel to choose a major….There are a lot of conversations, opinions, and comparisons about college choice, major choice, and career choice.” 

Stephan said that these comparisons with classmates or parental expectations create pressure for students to already know which career they want to pursue.

Senior Drew Kim said he agrees that the social aspect only adds pressure.

Kim said, “Seeing friends who already have their majors picked makes me feel like I need to know exactly what I want right now, even though I know that there’s still time.”

Financial factors also increase stress for students. Stephan said many families hope that an early decision on an intended major will reduce costs. 

“College is expensive, and often students and parents feel that if a student knows exactly what they want to study, that will translate to on-time completion of a degree, which in turn saves money,” she said. She added that although students can still graduate on time even if they switch majors during college, it remains a stressor for many students.

Beyond external factors, Stephan said many students also face internal pressures. The transition from high school to college is a major milestone in life, and seniors, she said, often feel a personal need to do things right.

“Students stress about when they don’t know exactly what they want to do for the rest of their lives,” she said. “It’s not uncommon to be undecided, nor is it a negative thing. It’s OK not to know, it’s just not OK to do nothing about it.”