Major-Phobia aka fear of your major
So, I should start by saying that i am a first year computer engineer
and so far I love it! I didn't always feel that way though. Before I
started taking classes, I was so worried that i was not going to make
it considering computer engineering has the highest drop out rate (by
drop out i mean change to another major). I thought that everyone was
going to have a background on the major and I was not going to
understand anything while everyone else would be getting easy A's.
Fortunately, I did not let my fears get ahead of me. None of the
classes expect that you already know anything. They all start off at
square one. Although, I was very apprehensive when i started, coming
into this major and having this feeling was a good thing for me because
it encouraged me to work extra hard and want to succeed even more!
The one class that takes up a majority of my time would be Computer Science. I have taken this class first and second quarter and now i am taking CS 3. Though it is very challenging, I feel extremely accomplished after looking back at how much I have adjusted. When I started taking computer science one, I knew that this was the class that everyone had the background in. Many people took CS in high school so while everyone knew what they were doing, I kept my head in the books and studied! After the first week, I started to catch on and started to enjoy computer programming. Although, this was "a walk in the park" for many people in the class, I continued to study and have constant trips to the tutoring center.
Once Computer science two came around, many people still felt that it was going to be a breeze to get an 'A' but CS 2 has a reputation for being the "make or brake" for people in the computer engineering field. Because I spent many hours in the tutoring center, and hearing how hard Computer Science two was going to be, I was preparing myself for the worst. This was a class that started with about 25-30 people and by the end of the quarter, about half the class changed their major.
Succeeding in Computer Science two is the main reason why I love computer engineering so much! I felt so accomplished in this class and now computer programming is simple to me. From this class, I taught myself that I can do anything i put my mind to. It just takes time and dedication.
The moral of this long and boring story is that DO NOT let your major intimidate you because all of your classes will start off at square one. Although some people may know what they are doing in the beginning, you will soon catch up to them and everyone will be in the same boat. Just study and work hard and don’t let your fear get ahead of you.
The one class that takes up a majority of my time would be Computer Science. I have taken this class first and second quarter and now i am taking CS 3. Though it is very challenging, I feel extremely accomplished after looking back at how much I have adjusted. When I started taking computer science one, I knew that this was the class that everyone had the background in. Many people took CS in high school so while everyone knew what they were doing, I kept my head in the books and studied! After the first week, I started to catch on and started to enjoy computer programming. Although, this was "a walk in the park" for many people in the class, I continued to study and have constant trips to the tutoring center.
Once Computer science two came around, many people still felt that it was going to be a breeze to get an 'A' but CS 2 has a reputation for being the "make or brake" for people in the computer engineering field. Because I spent many hours in the tutoring center, and hearing how hard Computer Science two was going to be, I was preparing myself for the worst. This was a class that started with about 25-30 people and by the end of the quarter, about half the class changed their major.
Succeeding in Computer Science two is the main reason why I love computer engineering so much! I felt so accomplished in this class and now computer programming is simple to me. From this class, I taught myself that I can do anything i put my mind to. It just takes time and dedication.
The moral of this long and boring story is that DO NOT let your major intimidate you because all of your classes will start off at square one. Although some people may know what they are doing in the beginning, you will soon catch up to them and everyone will be in the same boat. Just study and work hard and don’t let your fear get ahead of you.


Major-Phobia aka fear of your major
Comments (4)
Thanks Chad, I'm going to be a game design major next year and was having the same fear of not knowing how to program.
Thanks Chad am also going to second year transfer student with no experience in computer programming and had so many fears about all the CIS class i would have to take at RIT but by ready your post I have an idea of what to expect an maybe when i get to RIT you probably could share some of knowledge with me thanks
Hey Chad, I have a question about majors. Is there anyway possible that I could do like a double major or something like that in Computer Science and Film? I love both subjects and I don't want to have to choose between them
well double majoring is something that would take a long time to do. Because the two subjects that you find interest in are very different, getting a double major would require about 8 years. The best thing I would say to do would be is choose whichever one is your favorite then you can take a minor in the other subject. Hope this helps!
Chad Rossi