My Rough Start

I’ve learned a lot about myself since I started college. Last year was quite an experience for me and it was also a stressful time for my parents. I was a fresh high school graduate who was attempting to navigate through a wild and crazy new world. I thought that my dream was to go to art school and pursue animation and story-boarding, then while at school I thought that I would like to pursue photography which was a whole different story. My parents questioned my decision to attend the Minneapolis College of Art and Design but when I got my acceptance letter, they told me I could go if that was what I really wanted to do. My first semester was amazing and I thoroughly enjoyed my classes and professors. I had made a few good friends also, which was rare for me, so I started thinking that I was in the right place.

My mind changed during the beginning of my second semester. I wasn’t enjoying what I was doing and I discovered that even though I loved art as something to do in my free time, it wasn’t what I would enjoy doing as a job for the rest of my life. I was scared of what my parents would say to me so I never really wanted to bring it up to them. This was a common thing for me as I am quite the tight-lipped person.

I finally told my mom that I needed to do something different with my life. When I called home and told her this, I was already on my laptop, the transferring student page of the University of Minnesota glaring across the brightly lit screen, filling out forms to officially apply to transfer. Yes, she was upset, but she still supported me which was exactly what I needed. She allowed me to apply and from there I sat in wait to see if I would even get accepted.

I had applied to the College of Design within the University of Minnesota with the idea that I was going to major in interior design and one day I would create beautiful home for people. I actually found out that I was accepted while I was at the U of M for a tour. The transfer adviser told me that I had been accepted into the interior design program at the U. When I got back to my apartment, I opened my mailbox and tore open my acceptance letter just to reassure myself that the adviser hadn’t read something wrong to me. I was ecstatic.

I started attending the University of Minnesota in September of 2016 and I was loving it. I loved the new people I was meeting and the classes that I was taking. First semester was going by perfectly until I got my grades back. I am not proud of how I had done that semester and I knew that something had to change. But what?

Going into second semester, with a new year starting and new courses, I had scheduled an appointment with my adviser to discuss choices of how to go about raising grades and my overall GPA. We talked about things I could do better, what I could focus on more, and then the ultimatum got brought up. Should I change my major?

I thought that I had everything figured out but now I was thrown into another wormhole. I decided the best thing to do this time around was to tell my parents right away. They weren’t happy and even threatened to make me move back home but I was having none of that. I wanted to stay at the U of M so they decided to meet up with my adviser and I to discuss options for me.

After that, I began looking into other majors and minors at the University of Minnesota. And this is where I currently stand with the whole matter:

I love the University of Minnesota. I have grown so much as an individual and I have met a lot of wonderful people that have been helping me through this time. I currently am dropping my interior design major and am now undeclared at the College of Design. With past mistakes made about school I have reached out to many different people here at the school and I am grateful for all the help that I have been receiving. I am now looking into majors and minors associated with my interests and talents. The majors I am now looking at include English, Animal Science, and Journalism. I am also looking into getting a Marine Biology minor.

It has been a long and hard process and I only hope that I can be widely supported for the current changes and struggles that I am dealing with. I am discovering who I am as a person and I believe that that is what truly matters about this entire ordeal. And yes Mom and Dad, I know you told me to pursue English or Science when I started looking at where I would go to college but I guess I needed to figure it out on my own even if I caused you terrible amounts of stress. I’m just glad that I am finally figuring out my place in this crazy world.

Kaelyn Spencer