You hear it all the time: "Why don't you choose a major that will pay the bills?"
"You'll never find a job with that major."
And, perhaps the most common of all: "So … What are you going to do with that degree?"
From reputedly "easy" majors such as education ("You'll never find a job.") to hard sciences like astronomy ("It's impractical; completely useless."), you constantly hear the nagging of parents, relatives and even friends who think you've completely lost it for choosing a College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) major. Instead of encouraging you to pursue your passion, they urge you to go into something more stable or lucrative, perhaps something like business or engineering. They lecture you about competition, responsibility, practicality, etc., and you may come to the same conclusion I did. The horror stories don't end, and there will always be that doubt in the back of your mind, forever dreading the dead end in the future that so many people have instilled into your thoughts as inevitable. I suppose it's time for the creative writer to switch into a lifetime of accounting, or otherwise face the writer's block that will be the entirety of her life if she decides to major in English.
That's where CLAS is Starting steps in: you can find a job you love, you can stop distancing yourself from your dreams and be competitive with a CLAS major. How would you like to believe that? Now you can.
The UF College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Sophomore Leadership Seminar will hold the first CLAS Colors Week, April 6 to 11, on the UF campus and in the surrounding Gainesville community to instill a sense of pride in all CLAS students. Every major has a worthy purpose.
CLAS Colors Week aims to reverse the stigma students in the college often face, embrace their education and encourage others to pursue a subject they've always loved. After presenting their idea and a budget proposal to Dean Paul D’Anieri, students in the seminar were granted permission and financial support to host the week of events.
To kick off the week on Sunday evening, midtown area restaurants Pita Pit, How Do You Roll and Relish will give CLAS students discounts and small, colorful buttons to recognize their CLAS majors. Other events during the week include a resume workshop, networking opportunities with CLAS alumni from popular majors and a penny war between the majors. All proceeds from the events will be donated to the Sidney Lanier Center for special-needs students, and anybody can participate in any events regardless of which college the person falls under.
Now that you've heard, show your true colors, because CLAS is starting!
More information on CLAS Colors Week can be found at the following websites: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
