How do I choose the right college major when I have no idea what I want to do?

First, the pressure-releaser you need most: your major is a far smaller life-determinant than it feels like right now, and 'not having a passion at 18' is the norm, not a defect. Most people don't have a clear calling — the 'follow your passion' advice assumes a passion exists and is identifiable, which for most 18-year-olds is simply false. Passion is usually BUILT through getting good at something and seeing its impact, not discovered fully-formed beforehand. So 'I don't know what I want' isn't a problem to solve before choosing; it's the normal starting condition. And the data-backed reassurance: a large share of people work in fields unrelated to their major, and career-switching across a lifetime is now standard. Your major opens doors; it rarely locks you into a room. So decide well, but decide knowing it's a strong first step, not an irreversible identity. How to actually decide without a passion: 1. Optimize for OPTIONS and TRANSFERABLE skills, not a specific dream job. When uncertain, majors that build broadly-useful, flexible skills (strong analytical, quantitative, writing, or technical foundations) keep the most doors open. You can specialize later once you know more; it's easier to narrow from a broad base than to broaden from a narrow one. 2. Choose by what you can tolerate doing a lot of, not just what sounds exciting. Every field has boring daily reality. Ask 'which subjects' actual daily work — the reading, the problem types, the tasks — can I sustain without hating my life?' Interest you can sustain beats passion you'll burn out on. 3. Sample before, and during. Talk to people actually working in fields you're considering — not about the dream, about their Tuesday. Take intro courses in a couple of directions early. Most programs allow switching in the first year with little cost; use that window as designed rather than treating the initial pick as final. 4. Weigh practical realities honestly. Job prospects, earning potential, and cost matter — not as the only factors, but as real ones. It's okay to choose a practical major and pursue interests alongside it; 'do what you love' is a privilege that assumes no financial pressure, and it's fine to be pragmatic. 5. Use elimination when selection is hard. You may not know what you want, but you likely know some things you DON'T — cross those off. Narrowing from the 'no' side often reveals a workable 'maybe' cluster. The reframe that dissolves the terror: you're not choosing your entire life — you're choosing what to study next, from which many futures remain reachable. There's rarely one 'right' major and a cliff of 'wrong' ones; there's a range of fine choices, and what you DO with the years (skills built, experiences sought, people met) matters far more than the label. Pick a reasonable direction that keeps options open, stay observant about what energizes vs drains you, and adjust as you learn. The people who 'wasted years' mostly did so by disengaging, not by picking the wrong subject. You can't see the whole path from the trailhead — nobody can — so just take a good next step.