Proud to Be Undeclared

Hello! My name is Ellen and when I grew up I wanted to be a mermaid. Now you must be thinking, “Ellen, you can’t get a degree in being a mermaid”. Trust me, I know, and I was heartbroken when I found out. So, with my mermaid dream crushed, I was forced to ask myself, “What do you do when you’ve always been a jack of all trades, but passionate about none?”

The last two years of high school, I struggled with this question. I had always been one of those kids who excelled in their classes, but that was pretty much all I was good at. But what do you do when all you’re good at is being a student? I had already crossed all of my childhood aspirations off of my list. Teacher, singer, police officer, and, begrudgingly, mermaid.

Going in undeclared was really the only option I had left. Stepping into my first Connections and Decisions class, I didn’t really know what to expect. But I certainly did not imagine the level of support that I received. I was able to start accepting that it was okay that I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I wasn’t alone.

While I was still bitter about the whole mermaid thing, I was feeling very encouraged by my first Connections and Decisions class. I couldn’t wait to start the first semester. I was taking classes in sociology, psychology, English, and communications. It was fantastic. However, I realized something very early on: I hated sociology. It was very interesting, but I loathed the class. So, it quickly made it on the list of things that I didn’t want to do with my life. English soon joined it. While I loved my class, I couldn’t picture myself writing analytical essays for the rest of my career. It had to go.

The next semester I took a combination of communication and psychology classes. As much as psychology fascinated me, I knew I didn’t want to do any of the research involved in it. However, I couldn’t bear to put it on the reject list completely, so I decided to keep it as my minor. And so, I was left with communication studies. I was never sure what communications entailed; it seemed like a broad and vague major to me. But while taking Communication Theory my second semester, I finally understood what it was like to be passionate about a subject (Thank you, Dr. Mello!). I was always excited for lectures and I knew that I couldn’t wait to take more classes in the communication major. I knew I found the one.

When I first came to Northeastern, I never thought I would be proud to say I’m undeclared. It always seemed like something to hide, until I realized that there was a large community of undeclared students just like me. While I’m a very happily declared communications major, the Explore Program will always have a place in my heart. And maybe, just maybe, that’s better than being a mermaid.

By: Ellen Foley