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Let us leave SM City Davao for a moment, and imagine that we are in
Wonderland with Alice and the Cheshire Cat. Alice says:
Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?
That depends a good deal on where you want to get to, said the
Cat.
I dont much care where said Alice.
Then it doesnt matter which way you go, said the Cat.
Coming back to our own individual realities, we may realize that at some
point in our lives, we find ourselves in Alices shoes, at the crossroads,
wondering where we should go. One such turning point is graduating from
high school and deciding what next big step to take. And when we reach that
point, an important thing to remember is that unlike Alice, we cant NOT care
where we want to go, because which way we go DOES matter. Which means
that the first question that we ought to ask ourselves is: Where do I want to
go?
For many, the next logical and expected big step after high school is going to
college. Unlike the move from primary to secondary school, however, where
there is really no other way to go but forward, college presents its future
recruits with a wide array of majors to choose from. Hence, there is a need
to begin with the end in mind; one needs to discern what discipline will bring
the
most
fulfillment
and
provide
ample
opportunities
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personal,
Technology. This is, undeniably, the digital age, and it will be to your
advantage to make practical use of your laptops, tablets and smart
phones in preparing for college. Go online and research about what
majors may be a good match for you, based on your reflection about
your interests and your strengths. The internet has a lot of information
about what courses are available, what skillsets are ideal for these
courses or majors, and what career prospects are available for courses
you are interested in, among others. Higher education institutions also
have significant online presence, and you may read about what
programs are being offered by the institutions that you are interested
in; what their vision, mission and core values are, and how these may
align with your personal values; what facilities they have; and what
scholarships are available. If the institution is near enough, it is a good
idea to actually visit the institution and experience your future
campus life; you may even come together as a group and request for
an orientation and campus tour. Request for a copy of the curriculum
for your course preference, to give you an idea of the subjects that you
may expect to take and how heavy your study load will be.
Reflection. To me, this is the most important part of the decisionmaking process. Take everything that you learned and realized from
your academic performance, tests, research, and conversations with
others, and think seriously about what all this information means for
your future. What subject or activity is interesting to you? What are
your strengths? What are your weaknesses? What kind of effort are you
willing to put in to overcome any difficulties that may come your way,
because of the choice that you made?
We have, at length, been talking about the process that one will need to go
through to make that ultimate choice of what course to take in college. It
may be a good time to talk a little bit about the various items on the
College menu, so to speak and there are quite a number to choose from.
Generally, these choices are classified into four main disciplines: Humanities,
which includes History, Linguistics, Literature, Philosophy, Religion and the
Arts, among others; Social Sciences, which includes Anthropology, Cultural
and Ethnic Studies, Economics, Political Science, Psychology and Sociology,
among others; Natural Sciences and Mathematics, which includes Biology,
Chemistry, Physics, and, of course, Mathematics; and the Professions and
Mahatma Gandhi once said, The future depends on what you do today.
Your tomorrows, therefore, will largely be determined by the planning that
you will do today and how you nurture the knowledge that you have gained
over the years. To the students here present, I give you a challenge also
posed by Mahatma Gandhi: Be the change you wish to see in the world.
And to answer that call, I quote Nelson Mandela: Education is the most
powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. So learn, reflect,
discern and see you in the tomorrow that you will make for yourselves.
Good day!