6 answers
jane
Student
Las Cruces, New Mexico
3
Questions
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if i keep my options open and try out a lot of different courses in my first year of college will i have to go an extra year after deciding what i want to do?
#college
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6 answers
Rob Friesel
Lead Software Engineer
13
Answers
Essex, Vermont
Updated
Rob’s Answer
Short answer: nope! (You might even NEED to do this...)
Longer answer: it depends on the college, but there are certainly quite a few out there that will have General Education requirements that have you taking classes across multiple disciplines. And if you choose a liberal arts college, there may even be an expectation that you'll be doing cross-disciplinary work throughout your time as a student there.
To put it into perspective with a real-world example: when I entered college, I intended to be a double-major of English and History -- but then the specific program I was enrolled in also piled on several required cross-disciplinary courses and modified General Education requirements. During my freshman year I became interested in Psychology and "switched" my major to that (though truthfully, I had not formally declared yet). Then as I prepared to enroll for my Sophomore year, I got interested in Computer Science, so I switched majors again. Then, midway through the second semester of my Sophomore year, it became clear to me that Computer Science (as a major) was not for me, so I switched back into Psychology so that I could manage to graduate within four years. And even having done that, I was still able to branch out during my last two years to do interesting projects with the Art and English departments.
Hope that helps!
Consider a liberal arts college and research a couple
As you narrow down college choices, get a sense of how broad their general education requirements are
If possible, ask a few students at those colleges what kind of flexibility they've had
Looks at what kind of credit load is necessary for several different majors at those colleges and calculate if there's enough flexibility to fit in some variety
Longer answer: it depends on the college, but there are certainly quite a few out there that will have General Education requirements that have you taking classes across multiple disciplines. And if you choose a liberal arts college, there may even be an expectation that you'll be doing cross-disciplinary work throughout your time as a student there.
To put it into perspective with a real-world example: when I entered college, I intended to be a double-major of English and History -- but then the specific program I was enrolled in also piled on several required cross-disciplinary courses and modified General Education requirements. During my freshman year I became interested in Psychology and "switched" my major to that (though truthfully, I had not formally declared yet). Then as I prepared to enroll for my Sophomore year, I got interested in Computer Science, so I switched majors again. Then, midway through the second semester of my Sophomore year, it became clear to me that Computer Science (as a major) was not for me, so I switched back into Psychology so that I could manage to graduate within four years. And even having done that, I was still able to branch out during my last two years to do interesting projects with the Art and English departments.
Hope that helps!
Rob recommends the following next steps:
Sharyn Madison
Program Manager
9
Answers
Chicago, Illinois
Updated
Sharyn’s Answer
Not necessarily! Many if not most students enter college not exactly sure what they want major in and just as many switch majors at some point. First year classes are often common core subjects (Math, Science, English) across many majors with a few electives. Use your electives to explore an interest/major in more depth.
Check out the course requirements for a few majors you a re interested in
See if there are any common required classes and start with those
Sharyn recommends the following next steps:
Angela D. Blaver (Suissa), Ph.D.
Retired
109
Answers
Daytona Beach, Florida
Updated
Angela D.’s Answer
Hi Jane! Excellent question! Okay, I'm going to give you a multiple step advice path, First, I recommend taking an aptitude/interest/personality test. Some of what these involve are questions such as: Do you like working indoors or outdoors? Do you like direction or working on your own? How outgoing are you? Your computer skills? I recommend speaking with your school counselor to see if s/he can arrange testing. If not, you can search on the web for some. One that provides some insight is the Myers-Briggs test for career self-assessment, among others. Many imitators are free. Next, what kind of job/volunteer experience do you have? What did you like/dislike? Third, what school classes did you enjoy and/or excel at? Enjoying something isn't the same as excelling at it. For instance, you may be really great at math, but love writing. Fourth, think about general fields...such as education (teaching, etc.), social work, law enforcement (forensics, police, etc.), medicine (lab work, nursing, Emergency Medical Tech, etc.), science (biologist, etc.), computers (security, webpage building/maintaining, etc,), communications/media, etc. After pondering on these things a bit, considering "shadowing" someone in the field you're interested in. What that means is speaking with or interviewing someone who has a job close to or the one you think you want. Your school counselor or family friends may be be able to help you connect with someone open to this. Lastly, just so you know...taking general education courses your first and second years of college is important. They count as part of your degree and you can work with your university guidance counselor to make sure that these fall into the proper categories so that you can graduate on time no matter what direction you choose. Your third and fourth years generally center on the degree you have chosen. However, having said that there are several rewarding occupations that only require a certificate, training, or two year degree (phlebotomist, HVAC tech, hair stylist, etc.).
If you need help with interview questions, just let us know. I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors, Dr. B
Testing
Self-assessment
Shadowing/Interviewing
Speak with a school counselor
If you need help with interview questions, just let us know. I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors, Dr. B
Angela D. recommends the following next steps:
Thank you so much
jane
KB Evans
Programming
8
Answers
Monroe, Louisiana
Updated
KB’s Answer
It depends entirely on how transferable those credits are. Many students take their "general" classes the first year - think basic math, English, history, art, essentially the things you take in high school. Those apply to all majors, and your college counselor can help you pick the right classes. If you are trying different classes in specific fields and find one you love, that will of course apply to your major too.
However, some majors only offer certain courses at certain times, or some classes need to be repeated. I knew someone who had to go an extra year because a needed class was only offered every other year. Another guy took summer classes to catch up. Yet another person took extra classes and graduated faster.
If you are going to explore, I suggest you look at the requirements for the majors you are thinking about and find what classes they have in common. Take as many of those as possible while trying the entry courses, just be careful not to overload yourself. Good luck!
However, some majors only offer certain courses at certain times, or some classes need to be repeated. I knew someone who had to go an extra year because a needed class was only offered every other year. Another guy took summer classes to catch up. Yet another person took extra classes and graduated faster.
If you are going to explore, I suggest you look at the requirements for the majors you are thinking about and find what classes they have in common. Take as many of those as possible while trying the entry courses, just be careful not to overload yourself. Good luck!
Anna Traykova
Education, Advising and Consulting Professional
26
Answers
Updated
Anna’s Answer
Jane,
a truthful answer to your question is 'it depends'. It depends on what are the requirements on the major you settle in, and how many free electives it allows for. It depends if the classes you are looking to explore can fulfill general education requirements. It depends on how many courses/credits you can comfortably take in a semester and whether you want to study during the summer as well. I am an academic advisor at a large public university. Some of the majors students can pursue include 12 credit hours of free electives and 12 credit hours of related electives - lots of exploration is possible; others allow for just 3 or 5 elective credits, and those are usually used up by lower level math courses for many of the students. Some full-time students take 12 credits per semester and that is the max they can comfortably support, others take 18 and even 21 credits per semester. Some institutions cap tuition at 15 credits, so taking 18 or 21 in one semester costs the same as taking 15 credits, and students can use this to both lower the cost of their education and the time it takes to get a degree.
If you have already been accepted to a university, or even if you are just interested in a particular institution, I recommend you speak to an academic advisor - these professionals can also be called academic counselors, student success counselors, academic guides, etc. They will be able to provide you with specific answers after learning the details of your situation, interests, etc. They can help guide you through the process of major exploration and career exploration. The university academic and career services offices may help with access and interpretation of various assessments that can help narrow down your choice and ultimately make an informed choice. I would advise you against using/trusting Meyers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) which has been largely discredited, but it is still very widely used. There are some new aptitude/interest assessments on the market, such as YouScience, which is what is used at my institution.
Also, you may be able to study independently and test out of various general education requirements, if your institution accepts CLEP or DSST exam credit, you can take free online courses to prepare for these though modernstates.org and khanacademy, i.e. and this way still graduate within 4 years while taking a year of exploratory courses.
If you have interests in different fields/courses that are not part of one distinct major, you may want to look if your institution allows for a self-designed major, or an interdisciplinary major of some sorts - these may be called differently at different institutions. At the institution I work for, this option is called 'integrative studies" - it does come with a set of requirements, but allows considerable freedom in choosing classes from different fields.
If I understand correctly, you are not sure which major will be a good fit for you and you want to explore. If your institution offers some life design/ coaching services or classes, similar to this one http://lifedesignlab.stanford.edu/dys these can help you immensely. Evans & Burnett, the creators of the Designing Your Stanford course I am referencing have also published a book, Designing Your Life, that some of my students have found helpful.
Hope that helps!
a truthful answer to your question is 'it depends'. It depends on what are the requirements on the major you settle in, and how many free electives it allows for. It depends if the classes you are looking to explore can fulfill general education requirements. It depends on how many courses/credits you can comfortably take in a semester and whether you want to study during the summer as well. I am an academic advisor at a large public university. Some of the majors students can pursue include 12 credit hours of free electives and 12 credit hours of related electives - lots of exploration is possible; others allow for just 3 or 5 elective credits, and those are usually used up by lower level math courses for many of the students. Some full-time students take 12 credits per semester and that is the max they can comfortably support, others take 18 and even 21 credits per semester. Some institutions cap tuition at 15 credits, so taking 18 or 21 in one semester costs the same as taking 15 credits, and students can use this to both lower the cost of their education and the time it takes to get a degree.
If you have already been accepted to a university, or even if you are just interested in a particular institution, I recommend you speak to an academic advisor - these professionals can also be called academic counselors, student success counselors, academic guides, etc. They will be able to provide you with specific answers after learning the details of your situation, interests, etc. They can help guide you through the process of major exploration and career exploration. The university academic and career services offices may help with access and interpretation of various assessments that can help narrow down your choice and ultimately make an informed choice. I would advise you against using/trusting Meyers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) which has been largely discredited, but it is still very widely used. There are some new aptitude/interest assessments on the market, such as YouScience, which is what is used at my institution.
Also, you may be able to study independently and test out of various general education requirements, if your institution accepts CLEP or DSST exam credit, you can take free online courses to prepare for these though modernstates.org and khanacademy, i.e. and this way still graduate within 4 years while taking a year of exploratory courses.
If you have interests in different fields/courses that are not part of one distinct major, you may want to look if your institution allows for a self-designed major, or an interdisciplinary major of some sorts - these may be called differently at different institutions. At the institution I work for, this option is called 'integrative studies" - it does come with a set of requirements, but allows considerable freedom in choosing classes from different fields.
If I understand correctly, you are not sure which major will be a good fit for you and you want to explore. If your institution offers some life design/ coaching services or classes, similar to this one http://lifedesignlab.stanford.edu/dys these can help you immensely. Evans & Burnett, the creators of the Designing Your Stanford course I am referencing have also published a book, Designing Your Life, that some of my students have found helpful.
Hope that helps!
Joseph DesMarais
Digital Sales
8
Answers
New Jersey, New Jersey
Updated
Joseph’s Answer
I was general open-options Business my first year of college. There are many introductory courses required across all Business degrees, so they can be good to get a feel for what you may be interested in and want to set as your focus. You can still graduate within the typical four years taking this approach. I was able to.