“…i don’t have any particular interest in anything…”

First email:

Hi, this is my second year in UofT but i had dropped out first year, first because i had family matters to look after and second Iam glad becuase Iam pretty sure that i would’v failed every class i had taken. Iam not sure what program of study i should go into i have no paticular interest and everyone i ask for her help tells me to go into whatever m interested in.
?
i was thinking of doing B.com but iam not a big fan of math and don’t know anything about calc. then i thought of criminology but they have a 2.50 avg req which i doubt i can get then i thought bout english but al the courses have so many essays and writting asigments.Also everything is so hard therefore i was wondering if u can offer any advice i want to do something that I can make a career out of in the future. Please help on what you think i should do becuase m pretty sure m not the first person to be lost although Iam going to go insane.

?

?

?

Hello so lost,

?

As you can see, I did receive your first email, and I hesitated to respond because a) you did not make any star wars references, and b) answering this question drained askastudent?s living essence.??

?

If you have fewer than 4.0 credits you are technically a first-year student. This means that you do NOT declare any subject POSts. You really shouldn?t be freaking out about committing to one. You don?t need to choose a POSt until the end of the session in which you have completed your 4^th credit. Even once you are enrolled in some, you can always change ?em up.?

?

So, as a first-year who doesn?t think they have their entire career path figured out, your priority is to take courses that will maximize your subject POSt options in the future.

?

I understand your reservations about Math/Calc, and I can?t imagine how you could then consider a B.Com (numbers are like oxygen to those people).

?

Regarding the prerequisite CGPA for Criminology? you are just begging for the ?with THAT attitude? speech aren?t you?! Well, I won?t indulge your sick fetish for condescension. You CAN get a 2.50? period.

?

Yes, I agree. English courses involve much writing ? and everything IS hard. What do you want me to say here? If you intend to graduate with an Honours degree from UofT then you have to expect many challenging methods of evaluation. Intellectual challenge is the point. Easiness undermines the credibility of the institution and, by extension, the degree that you are investing (an incredible amount) in.

?

You seem fixated on finding a ?nice career.? This is the most remarkably ambiguous descriptor I have ever heard in reference to a career (which btw is quite ambiguous in itself). Morally, I can?t advise you to float through/scrape by undergrad with zero passion or intention. You can do this, (too) many people do, but it ain?t my style.

?

Why don?t you start by defining what your so-called nice career entails? This might inform which post-secondary route is best for you. Do not exclude college or apprenticeship options. For some people university is great. It can elevate you to a higher pay bracket, it can hone your critical analysis skills, it can expose you to new academic fields, and open new doors. It won?t be kind to your finances and it may not guarantee you a secure job in a relevant field.

?

If you decide that a university degree IS the best path toward (your definition of) a nice career, then try to approach it with some passion. Please.

?

If you don?t have any obvious interests at this point (and don?t worry if you don?t), take first-year as an opportunity to SAMPLE around. There are over 300 programs of study in the Faculty of Arts & Science. Excluding Commerce, Math and English, enrol now in prerequisites for any of these 297 other options. Do yourself a favour and keep an open mind as you try out various disciplines.

?

If, by the end of the year, UofT still hasn?t inspired any interest in you? then either a) you have no personality, or (more likely) b) a theoretical approach to education is not for you? and no one has the right to judge you for that.

?

Go take the Sun and its Neighbours and leave me alone.