At this time of year, college students are beginning to develop degree plans as they prepare for the spring semester.

For some students, considering the future can be confusing. According to collegeboard.com, most students change majors at least once, and many switch several times before they decide on one.

It's very important to develop your plan early; a degree can greatly impact your life since it helps decide your future career.

I just finished the long and grueling process of developing my degree plan, but I know the hard work is going to pay off in the end.

Creating forks

Planning my degree was something I began in high school as a dually enrolled student taking both high school and college classes. I already knew the subjects I wanted to study, my possible career choices and also my passions and skills. Knowing these factors helped me focus my plan.

One of the first steps in creating a plan is to take an aptitude or personality test. This helps you to make decisions by placing forks in your path. These different forks, or decisions, give you options in your career path. However, choosing the right fork is often the hardest part.

The results of my tests indicated that I had stronger abilities in air travel, truck driving, computer programming and architecture.

I already knew that I was a problem solver, analytically minded and introverted. With this knowledge, I was able to choose a path that would use these three characteristics and other natural talents that God has given me. Since I wasn't interested in moving around a lot with truck driving, I went with one of my passions: drawing. Linking my passion with the results of the tests led me to think about architectural engineering, which is what I'm studying now.

Developing the branch

Developing a good plan ensures that you will have fewer surprises later in your college career. I was able to see exactly which classes I would have had to take in each degree path.

I knew what path I wanted to pursue, but I knew that in order to reach my goal I'd have to get some help from teachers and advisers. Academic advisers are employed to help you choose the right career path. It was reassuring to know I wasn't alone when I created my degree plan.

Reaching the goal

My number one goal at the beginning of this process was to graduate from college having learned all that I could about my field and having improved all that I could about myself.

My experience in preparing my plan has been much easier having gone through the proper steps first. I've just finished creating my degree plan and had it signed and approved by my academic adviser. I'm now prepared to move forward, confident about the classes in my schedule.

A spiritual lesson

These steps can compare to our journey with God. We have to prepare ourselves spiritually and be ready to make the proper commitment to our number one goal of the Kingdom of God, keeping it first and foremost in our minds.

Jesus Christ told a parable of the 10 virgins (Matthew 25). Five wisely planned for their future and met the bridegroom. The other five foolishly did not plan ahead, so when they knocked on the door, they found that it was closed to them.

For more useful planning tips, check out "Got a Decision to Make? Read This First!"

While the journey is not easy, God is there to help you along the way. As our Creator, He offers His wisdom, strength and a helping hand to guide us down His path toward our goals. We must prepare for our future in this life because it teaches us how we should prepare for our ultimate life goal. VT