A major is the area of study that you decide to specialize in. A major does not dictate your career after you graduate. Rather, a major can help you develop the necessary skills to be marketable in many different careers and allow you to gain transferable skills to help you prepare for the world of work and navigate through career transitions.

Explore KU Majors here.

The KU catalog is a great place to explore what majors and degree programs are offered at KU. In addition to degree options and majors, you will find information on possible minors, certificates, and potential graduate level degrees and certificates that may be of interest in your future! This is also a great resource for seeing what the degree and major requirements are for any of your potential majors so you can get a taste for what your academic future may hold.

Take the HawkQuest Major Assessment here. 

HawkQuest is a free quiz that evaluates your skills and interests to match you with a list of KU majors and suggested careers that are the best options for you! The quiz takes approximately 15-20 minutes to complete, and the results will be emailed to you, so you have access to them after you log out. Check your spam folder in your email if you don’t see your results at first. All of the majors that HawkQuest recommends are majors offered at KU, so you can rest assured that you will find something that will fit your Jayhawk goals!

Take the PathwayU Career Assessment here. 

PathwayU is a free online assessment for KU students that can help match you with a list of possible careers. There are four self-assessments that ask questions related to your personal interests, personality, values, and workplace preferences. When you finish your assessment, you will be given a list of career categories ranked by how well they fit you. Each category will also have a list of specific careers that will also be ranked by how well you match with them. Each career will have detailed information including what the day-to-day looks like in that career, what skills will be useful, and what to expect for a salary in that career. With this information, we can work backwards to pair potential career interests with a major at KU that will set you up to succeed in whatever career you choose!

Explore Career Interests here. 

This page from the University Career Center is helpful for seeing what types of careers are common for different interest areas. Each interest area lists several major options as well as possible career paths. Clicking on a major will take you to a page with more information about what that major looks like at KU and will give you a more specific list of career paths that are common for graduates with that major. Clicking on a career will take you to an external website that will breakdown all types of information about that career – skills needed, work activities and context, required knowledge, as well as wage and career growth potential. This is a great resource for seeing what a career in your chosen field may look like on a day-to-day basis!

Checking out external job board sites is another great way to find potential career and major ideas. If you find a career that looks interesting, take note of the education requirements, preferred set of skills, and qualification requirements. You can use this information to tailor your college experience to fit the needs of your desired career. You can also use these sites as an exploratory tool to see different kinds of jobs that may be too specific to list on a site like the University Career Center.