Before You Pick a Major, Try This First - with Shellee Howard
About this episode
Valerie Alston and Shellee Howard discuss strategies for students to choose a college major and school by gaining real experiences and building confidence.
How to Pick a College Major & School: Try, Test, and Build a Real Plan Host Valerie Alston continues her conversation with college-planning expert Shelly Howard about helping students move from a future vision to choosing a major and school. They emphasize building confidence by trying real experiences, shadowing jobs, volunteering, and leadership roles, to discover both what students like and what they don’t, while also gathering stories for applications. They discuss balancing passion with practicality, including return on investment and realistic expectations for careers like professional sports or influencing. Howard outlines key admissions factors: rigorous GPA, aligned test scores, meaningful service, extracurricular depth, leadership, recommendations, and a strong essay, and explains how her “College Ready” village reduces stress by providing a roadmap and support for both students and parents. They close with conversation prompts on who leads the process and what type of college environment fits best. 00:00 Pressure to Decide 00:21 Meet the Hosts 01:22 Vision to Next Steps 03:19 Try It to Know It 06:46 Athletes and Reality Checks 09:26 Passion Versus Paycheck 11:17…
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