r/Advice•
Girly_Attitude

I don't think I like accounting (my major). Unsure of what to do next

So I'm in my third and final year of undergrad (graduating early), and I'm majoring in accounting with minors in data science and cyber crime. I though accounting would be good because I like math and numbers, and it makes a good amount of money. Turns out, it's *incredibly* boring. I don't really like my tax class (which is like basically what I'd do) and I hate (read: *hate*) my auditing class. My original plan was to be a forensic accountant. I was planning on doing an online master's in forensic accounting after graduation. Now? I think I need to work somewhere I can do hands-on work.

I absolutely love baking. It's a stress reliever and I love that people like what I make. I always bake cakes for any occasions in my family, and I often bake just because I can. I've been baking since high school. Everyone said I should become a baker, but my rationale was that they didn't make a lot, and I didn't want my hobby to become my job. Now I'm not so sure.

Would it be absolutely crazy to take a gap year and spend my time working in a bakery? I can live with my parents to save money, so housing isn't an issue. I was going to do that anyway while I went for my master's (they're fine with it). I don't have any student loans or other expenses because I was fortunate enough to have my parents be able to pay for my education, which raises another issue.

How do I tell them that they put thousands of dollars into my education just for me to go "well I don't like it"? I feel incredibly guilty, like I'm letting them down. I have an almost perfect GPA, I'm succeeding academically, graduating a year early, but I hate what I'm doing. I don't want to be miserable; I don't want to do what my dad did and spend almost 30 years working in a job that he hated just to make more money. He eventually was able to switch careers and does what he loves now, but I remember him as a grumpy, unhappy mess whenever he came home from work.

Basically, accounting isn't my dream job. It's not even close. If I had to pick another career, it would be writing, but I'm way too insecure to think I'm good enough for that. That's for another day. Whenever I think about getting an internship in accounting or spending my days in an office, I feel dread. I just need help figuring out if this is a ridiculous, stupid move or if it's viable. I know an accounting degree can be applied to many different fields; I just don't know what would make me happy.

Posted Oct 28, 2025, 5:00 PM UTC

10
Loading comments…