It’s the middle of the semester’s busiest season, seven projects were handed out this week, work scheduled you overtime and just when you thought things couldn’t get any more overwhelming, someone says, “Your major isn’t even hard.”
It doesn’t do any good to tear others down for how their academic journey compares to others because all majors are hard.
Among students, it can sometimes seem like a constant competition of who has it harder – which majors are the most demanding, have the most tests or the biggest projects. On top of that, many argue over who is the busiest with extracurriculars and work commitments.
By debating over who has it the hardest, we miss what is really true.
Every major is challenging in its own way, and every one of us has a million things going on.
It’s not about who has it harder, because every student’s plate is not just full, but overflowing. Making a comparison of majors and busy schedules is unreasonable because we are all being challenged uniquely. Plus, every major is needed and valuable, so no major should be seen as any less.
If an art major went to a STEM class, it would be much more challenging for them because it’s not aligned with their talents. On the flip side, if a STEM major went to an art class, it would be just as difficult for them because it is outside of their wheelhouse. The same could be said for anyone who took a class outside of their major.
Some of our staff members have also heard the comparison of project-heavy majors versus exam-heavy majors. It’s easy to think that one is more demanding or challenging than the other, but the amount of time one student puts into studying is equal to what another student puts into completing a project. No one should be looked down on for having projects instead of exams, and vice versa.
What one person needs to get out of their college experience to be prepared for what comes after graduation is different from what someone with a different degree needs. Some majors need to take a lot of exams because they need to have more head knowledge for what comes next. Others need to do more projects because they need to have skills mastered by the time they graduate.
When each of us chose our majors, we chose what came with it. Therefore, we shouldn’t be dwelling on how our workload compares to others.
As the age-old saying goes, “Comparison is the thief of joy.” Comparing doesn’t do any good and ultimately makes us feel worse. Life already throws enough negativity at us – there is no reason to create more in our lives.
Each one of us is working hard. We are all striving for a degree at the end of the day, and it is not a competition. Our paths may look different, but they are all challenging in their own ways.
Rather than comparing your own path to someone else’s and tearing someone down because they have it “easier,” we should be lifting each other up.
Lopers, no one knows the struggles of being a student like students themselves. Encourage and support your peers. They need that encouragement just as much as you need it.
