For a project in my Honors Exploration Survey class, we had to interview either an upperclassmen or a professional with experience in the major we are considering. I interviewed a senior named Olivia, and this interview turned out to be way more insightful than I imagined it to be.
Interview
Interviewee: Olivia Bobb, Senior, Psychology Major
- When and why did you choose this major?
- “I chose to major in Psychology after being in the exploration program for a while. I chose this major because I find it fascinating how people work and love that there are so many options for people who graduate with a degree in Psychology. The possibilities are endless and so I found that allowed me to be in a major but also kept my options open for the future.”
- Did you start in this major? If so, did you ever question your decision? If not, what was/were your pervious major(s) and how did you decide on this one?
- “No, I did not start as a Psych major. I actually came in as a pre-Nursing major, which I quickly decided wasn’t for me. I am a first-generation student and had pressure from my family to pursue a solid career, which was nursing in the beginning. After realizing how much I disliked nursing, I then switched into the Exploration program to search for a major that suited my interests. I discovered how much I am interested in Psychology and went from there.”
- Have you participated in any research while at Ohio State?
- “I have not taken part in any particular studies, but I have a job at a research lab. Working in the lab heled me realize that I do not want to do research for the rest of my life. I highly recommend that if you don’t want to participate in research quite yet, get a job in the lab. You can learn more about your interests within psychology while also earning some extra money.”
- What kinds of extracurricular experiences (research, internships, co-ops, student organizations, study abroad, etc) have you had?
- “I am currently in a sorority and also traveled to South Africa this past summer through a teaching program called WorldTeach. I have made lifelong friends and have so many connections through my sorority, and my experience in South Africa was incredible. However, I wish I was more involved in extracurricular during my time here. It is so important to get involved to become a well-rounded candidate for future jobs.”
- What are your plans for after graduation?
- “I have two different opportunities through Teach for America that I have to decide on for next year. One is in Cleveland and the other is in Chicago, and both are programs in which I will teach special needs students. I think it’s so cool that I have this opportunity because it is a true testament to how many different things you can do with a degree in psychology. I have friends who have gone into business, pursued medical school or law school, and so much more with a psychology major.”
Synthesis Questions:
- How did you find this interviewee, and why did you choose to interview this person?
- I found Olivia through the Senior Bank, which I learned about through a Policies and Procedures assignment in Exploration. This resource was extremely easy to figure out and allowed me to filter through seniors based on their majors. I chose to interview Olivia because her major is what I’m interested in, and her minor (Human Development and Family Sciences) sounded intriguing. In addition, she was one of the only results that is still a student here, and I thought it would be more convenient to meet with someone who is already on campus every day.
- How has this interview influenced your major and/or career exploration?
- I feel much better about where I’m at in the process of finding a major after talking to Olivia than I was before. She kept assuring me that it’s normal and okay to not know what I want to do right now. She also encouraged me to reach out and explore research opportunities, extracurricular activities associated with psychology, internships, and shadowing. I am shadowing a school psychologist over Winter Break because of her encouragement.
- Did you learn anything unexpected from the interview? If so, what? If not, which ideas did the interview reinforce?
- I learned about the many different opportunities to get involved in psychology at OSU. After meeting with Olivia, she sent me an email with a bunch of links to research studies going on, events for potential and current Psychology majors, study abroad opportunities, and more. Not only did she teach me about the major, but she also encouraged me in areas other than the major and that was a great experience.
- What do you feel you still need to learn about this major/career before being able to make a confident decision?
- I don’t think I need to learn more about the major itself as much as what minors I want to pair with it and what career I want to pursue with my studies. I am pretty confident in my choice of majoring in Psychology, but next semester I will be taking classes that allow me to explore minors I am also considering.
- Which major exploration tools/activities/resources that you utilized this semester were most helpful to you and why?
- I enjoyed the activities that allowed us to discover our academic strengths and interests. Through this, I learned that I care so much more about people than I do anything else, and that’s why I think Psychology would be a great fit for me. I also enjoyed getting to meet other people in survey because it was encouraging to know that I am not alone in not knowing what I want to do with my life.