9. 做好二手准备。有些学生，尤其是小学校的，他们确实是选择自己喜欢的专业，但学校并不提供这个专业。如果你想学的专业不在官方的专业单子上，那么考虑为自己定制一个专业：很多学院允许交叉学科或是自主式的学习模式。如果你发现学校处事并不灵活，没有办法达到这个目的，那么看看同城的大学或其他的学院组成的大学联盟是否允许交叉注册(cross-registration)(例如，马萨诸塞州 Amherst的Five College Consortium(五所学校联盟)或是哥伦比亚大学和Juilliard音乐学院或Manhattan音乐学院的交换项目)。

　　如果这一切的努力都失败，那么就做好转到你理想学院的准备：缺少专业在招生办看来是你从小学校跳到大学校的最好理由之一。

　　9. Settling for second best. Some students, especially those at small colleges, pick a major simply because the major they'd really like to take isn't offered at their school. If what you want to study isn't on the official list of majors and programs, consider constructing your own major: Many colleges allow the possibility of interdisciplinary or self-directed programs of study. And if you find there's just no way to make it work given the puny offerings at your school, consider consortiums of schools or other colleges in the same city for which your school allows cross-registration (for example, the Five College Consortium in Amherst, Mass., or the exchange program between Columbia University and either the Juilliard or the Manhattan schools of music)。

　　If all else fails, consider transferring to a college that has what you want: Lack of a major is viewed by admissions officers as one of the best reasons for trading your little college for their ginormous university。

　　10. 只为职业理想而选择专业。当然，在紧缩的经济形势下选择专业时最好将眼光放在获得职位上。但这不应当成为你选择专业的唯一考虑。首先，专业和职业之间并没有一一对应关系：你不需要因为在商界发展而选择市场营销或是商学院的专业；同样你也不必因为选择哲学或政治学专业而继续去读法学院。确实有很多的职位是要求专业背景的，但是更多的职位并不看重你所学的专业，他们看重的是你的数学、写作、沟通、外语或是分析的能力，而这些各个专业的学生都可以锻炼获得。

　　10. Picking a major only because of its career prospects. Sure, in a tight economy it makes good sense to pick a major with an eye to what jobs you can get. But that shouldn't be the only consideration in picking a major. For one thing, there's not a one-to-one relation between majors and careers: You don't need a degree in marketing or business for a career in the corporate world or a major in philosophy or political science to have the inside track to law school. Indeed, there are a slew of jobs-perhaps most jobs-for which a particular major is not required, but what's needed are skills in math, writing, communication, foreign languages, or analytical thinking that could be acquired in any number of different majors。

　　Also, it's very difficult to bet on what the most lucrative or prestigious jobs will be three to 10 years from now or the amount of time needed to complete a major and, in some cases, postgraduate training. Maybe you think disease mapper, robot programmer, information engineer, radiosurgeon, and Second Life lawyer will be five of the hottest careers in years to come (according to CNN Money). But what will happen when programming is wholly outsourced to India, surgery is all done by physicians working for a nationalized health service, and Second Life has gone the way of Pac Man?

　　11. 因为职业梦想而错选专业。你可能会对这种情况感到惊讶。我们刚刚还碰到一个学生想去大学教书，而不想要教育专业的学位的(这是为初级学校的老师准备的)，而想成为大学人类学专业的“布道者”(在这个专业领域的工作对他而言显然是不可能的)。

　　所以，如果你想要讲你的专业和职业挂上钩的话，一定要先问问这个领域内的行家——例如，这个系里面最受欢迎的教授或是大学生辅导员——哪个职业和专业相关。

　　11. Picking the wrong major for the career you want. You'd be amazed that this happens. We've recently seen a student wanting to teach on the collegiate level unwittingly taking an education degree (intended for elementary-school teachers)， and a would-be missionary about to major in anthropology (a field in which mission work is a complete no-no)。

　　So, if you're matching majors to careers, be sure to ask an expert in the field—for example, a favorite professor or the undergraduate adviser in that department—which careers go with which majors。

　　12. 拿个双学位。尽管有很多城市传奇，但是选择双学位(double major)没什么好处——相反，还有很多坏处。繁重的任务要求会让你窒息，你会在这些对自己或是自己的职业没有什么用的课程上死的很难看。坚定！只选择一个专业。不要让你的优柔寡断或是内心的矛盾在选择专业上犯错误——选择两个专业。

　　额外事项。同样也不要着眼于选修专业。一个更好的办法是放弃很多系为吸引更多的学生而提供的“选修课”，而去选修几门你感兴趣或是对你的专业有用的课程。主修艺术史的Lynn对文学感兴趣，所以对她而言，可以将选修英语——诗歌，创造性写作或是古代文学，这些Lynn一点都不感兴趣的课程——的时间放在选修莎士比亚，乔叟(Chaucer)，欧洲小说以及几部伟大现代书籍上。

　　12 . Piling on majors. Despite urban legend, there's no advantage in being a double major—and there are many disadvantages. You get smothered under tons of requirements, and you can end up taking many courses that aren't of interest to you or of value for your career. Be resolute. Pick one major. Don't externalize whatever indecision or inner conflict you have by doubling (or tripling) up on majors。

　　Extra Pointer. There is no cachet in piling on minors, either. It's usually a better idea to pick the four or five courses that interest you or support your major rather than taking the prepackaged "minors" that many departments offer to attract additional students. Lynn, who majored in art history but was interested in literature, had a much better time picking courses in Shakespeare, Chaucer, the European novel, and great modern books than she would have had taking the English minor, which included courses in poetry, creative writing, and ancient literature that Lynn had no interest in。

　　13. 别将走路的时间也花在选择专业上。不要走入死胡同——认为自己的专业选择事关重大，而事实上并非如此。你的专业不能预示你的未来，或是让你走上哪条不归路。劳动部的数据显示美国一般员工的职业会在人生中变上三到五次。所以，放松点！拿出最好的选择，顺其自然！

　　译后记：一个国家对大学生大学所选专业的尊重是一种最人本的关怀，无论这些学生以后是否会感到后悔。中国处于历史的原因，严格化了专业的区分，培养社会的有用人才，但国家最近的中长期规划纲要的举动，反映了国家在这方面的现实举动。其中取消文理科的想法我是支持的。

　　尽管中国现在的学习环境较之历史上的中国是非常之好，但是国民的素质却是有目共睹，更有甚者认为中华民族越来越像是一个无根的民族，我觉得这种人本主义对社会的关怀精神是需要从教育做起的。

　　13. Obsessing every waking hour about what major you ' re going to pick. Don't tie yourself into knots by thinking that your choice of major is a bigger commitment than it is. Your major does not dictate your future or put you onto a career path from which there is no escape. Department of Labor statistics show that average American workers change careers three to five times in their lifetime. So, relax. Make your best pick, and enjoy where life takes you。