Mistakes In Picking A Major: What Did Students Do?

Diana, Diana and Roebianto, Adiyo and Christy, Christy and Guntur, Irene (2022) Mistakes In Picking A Major: What Did Students Do? In: International Conference on Assessment and Learning (ICAL), 13-15 Oktober 2022, Anvaya Hotel, Bali.

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Abstract

According to the Minister of Education and Culture (MoEC) statement, almost 80% of undergraduate students' work does not match their college majors. It was an interesting result compared to the number of students who have graduated from college. Based on this data, there is something to be explored regarding the cause of why they took the wrong major in college. This study aims to find the main factors that impact choosing a college major. A 1239 (n = 1239) undergraduate students participated in this study. They were freshmen, sophomore, and third- year students from some private and public universities in Indonesia. The results showed that almost 30% of students admitted that they chose the wrong major. Of 30% of students had lower knowledge domain (both self-knowledge and occupational knowledge) (μ = 42.67; t = 20.376, p < .05) and help-seeking behavior (μ = 47.89; t = 5.336, p < .05) compared to those who chose the right major. Moreover, girls had a higher proportion (n = 263 / 69.39%) than the boys (n = 116 / 30.61%) in terms of choosing the wrong major. In terms of the type of university, a 274 students come from public universities (n = 274 / 72.29%) and a 105 (n = 105 / 27.71%) students from private universities. From this study, the percentage of students who took the wrong majors is less than stated earlier. They chose the wrong majors mainly because they lacked self-knowledge and occupational knowledge. They are also least likely to seek help from their surrounding. It is believed that before they choose a major, they should be more proactive in finding information about themselves (interests, skills, values) and occupational knowledge (majors, jobs and/or career path) from credible resources.

Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Major, Wrong Major, Self-Knowledge, Occupational Knowledge, Help-Seeking
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology
Divisions:	Faculty of Psychology > Department of Psychology
Depositing User:	Ester Sri W. 196039
Date Deposited:	05 Sep 2023 08:30
Last Modified:	05 Sep 2023 08:30
URI:	http://repository.ubaya.ac.id/id/eprint/44886

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