By Chelsea Carr

What are you going to do with that? How will you get a job? Those are the questions that almost every student hears when they are telling their parents what their college major is. The focus for many college students these days is job security, so much so that many are not following their original dreams. But for Hillary Arsenault, becoming an actor is her goal and she has a plan to get there.
A senior at Fitchburg State University, Arsenault is majoring in graphic design and minoring in theater. “Graphic design will let me make my own schedule,” Arsenault says, “it’s a lot of freelance work.”
Being a graphic design major doesn’t take away from her acting, though. In fact, she found inspiration in one of her favorite actors, Alan Rickman, who was a graphic design major in college as well. But the graphic design classes Arsenault is taking don’t take away from her theater minor. “I’ve taken a lot of theater classes,” she says, “my performance classes were very helpful.” Arsenault also said that a few of her classes focused on preparing students for the practical part of theater.
So even if acting isn’t her main career, Arsenault thinks she can combine graphic design and theater to work in advertising. And she isn’t too picky about possible roles, Arsenault states, “I want to be versatile.” On stage or on screen, whether it’s television or movies, she “[wants] to make a living acting,” says Arsenault.
It’s one of the most difficult things to come up with a career path before you’re even old enough to vote or drink, but having a supportive family can make all the difference. And having a parent that can appreciate your life choice is even better.  With a father who is a musician, an actor, and a director, there can be no doubt that Arsenault was better able to follow her dreams.