Learning Target: Bust some myths about selecting a major and gain the basic information required to begin your major exploration.
A major is a specific area of study or subject area that you want to focus on while in college. Typically, during your first 2 years of college (4-year college) students complete general education courses that all students (regardless of major) enroll in. Once you are done with your general education requirements, your courses will focus on your major selection. Some students choose to attend a community college and receive an Associate’s Degree and then transfer to a 4–year college to earn a Bachelor's Degree.
If you are a junior or senior in high school and think you know what your intended major is, fantastic! If you are unsure, that’s ok! Truth is that many college students change their major while in college (which is fine), but this is usually due to a lack of research and/or preparation before college.
Major Basics
-
Typically, between one-third and one-half of the courses you’ll take in college will be in your major or related to it
-
At some colleges, you can even:
-
Major in two fields (double major)
-
Have a major and a minor (a specialization that requires fewer courses than a major)
-
Continue into a 5th year and receive a Master’s degree
-
Create your own major (requires college approval)
-
Not every major is available at every school
-
You are allowed to change your major
-
Majors can be divided into categories - each with its own subcategories. For example, the Arts and Humanities category has the following subcategories:
-
Arts, Visual, and Performing
-
English Language and Literature
-
Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics
-
Philosophy and Religion
Selecting / confirming your major
-
At most four-year colleges, and in the case of many majors, you won’t have to pick and/or confirm your major until the end of your sophomore year.
-
This gives you plenty of time to check out various subjects and see which ones interest you. Some majors — like areas of engineering and nursing— are exceptions to this rule. You have to commit to these fields of study early (when applying) so you have time to take all the required courses.
-
College applications typically require you to select 2 major options, a primary and an alternate - if you are not admitted from your 1st choice, they may offer you admission for 2nd choice.
Choosing your major
-
Exploring majors can help you weed out colleges / elevate others.
-
The major you choose can also determine which schools you should and shouldn’t apply to. For example, a student with a 3.2 GPA who wants to major in Engineering may have a very difficult time being accepted at a UC Engineering Program but could get into a CSU Engineering program.
-
If you feel strongly about an area of study, it is a good idea to apply to college with a declared/chosen major (gives you registration priority to courses within your major).
Undeclared/Undecided Option
-
If you feel unsure about what you want to major in, do a little more exploration, but know that you can apply undeclared/undecided!
-
Undecided / Undeclared IS AN OPTION at most schools - applying to college with an undeclared major will not increase or decrease your chances of admission.
-
Pros:
-
You are not tied down to a particular major
-
You can take a wide variety of classes to explore your interest
-
More time to explore your passions
-
Become somewhat certain of what you want to pursue as a career
-
Save some money by not taking classes you are not interested in
-
Cons:
-
Can be difficult to declare certain impacted majors after your freshman year (ex. Engineering and nursing)
-
May choose to attend a school that does not specialize in your intended major (ex. You find out you want to major in Business but your school does not have a strong Business program).
-
Have last priority for certain classes reserved for declared majors only
-
May take you longer to graduate if you do not decide on a major within your first 2 years
-
Cannot apply to scholarships reserved for particular declared majors
-
NOT all schools have undeclared/undecided as an option
Bachelor of Science (BS) or a Bachelor of Arts (BA)?
-
Within some areas of study, you will have the option to earn a Bachelor of Science or a Bachelor of Arts degree. At community college, this translates to an Associate of Science or an Associate of Arts degree.
-
Some majors only have a BA option - for example bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing (major is creative writing).
-
Some majors give the option of earning a Bachelor of Arts degree or Bachelor of Science degree - example is psychology.
Double Major or Dual Degree
-
A double major is when you're studying two fields in a one-degree program - for example a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a Bachelor of Arts in History.
-
A dual degree, or double degree, is when you study two, usually very different, fields at the same time and receive two separate degrees (one per discipline).
-
For example, if you studied psychology and business in a dual degree program, you'd graduate with two degrees (that is, two diplomas): a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Psychology and a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA).
-
Dual degrees typically confer two different types of degrees, such as a BA/BS combo, a BS/BFA, a BS/BBA, etc.
-
Dual degrees require more credits than single degrees.
-
Finally, because you're working on two degrees simultaneously and need more credits than you would for a single degree, you'll very likely need to spend more time in college, often five to six years.
Joint Bachelor’s / Master’s Program
-
Some colleges offer joint bachelor’s and master’s programs for highly motivated students.
-
Students typically need to apply to the master’s program while already enrolled in the bachelor’s program.
-
An example is UCLA’s 5-Year Bachelor of Science / Masters of Science program in Computational and Systems Biology:
