“Hold on a second here,” you say. “I’m not even in college yet! This is the Admissions blog! I have to state a prospective major on my application before I get admitted, it’s way too early to be thinking about changing my major!” Is it?
You’re right, you don’t need a backup plan; you don’t even really need to apply with a major, I know plenty of people who came in as Undecided. But changing your major could be an important decision in your future, and while you’re choosing a college you should consider how the different environments you’re looking at will support you throughout your academic journey. Resources for exploring your academic career are helpful even if you’re not looking to change your major!
Sophomore year is when decisions are made. You don’t have to declare before the end of the spring semester, but many students will declare earlier in the year (or later, depending on how much time you have to meet with your advisors). When you become a sophomore, you’ll be welcomed by the Sophomore Committee, a group of University staff from all sorts of different departments, from Advising to the Registrar to Academic Honesty. The Committee sends reminder emails to keep you on track for figuring out how you’re going to meet the curriculum requirements, and they host events throughout the year geared toward students who are exploring their options. There’s a big celebration on Major Declaration Day with cupcakes, a photo booth, and swag for the newly-declared students.
But you’re not bound by that choice forever. As long as you can graduate in time to fulfill the requirements of at least one major, you can change your major whenever! You can also change your intended major as frequently as you like, which allows you to connect with the advisor within that major for future students.
My story, like all Rochester students, is a little interesting. I came in intending to double major in Molecular Genetics and Philosophy – I was great at bio and philosophy in high school, and genetics was my favorite topic. However, after two semesters of Organic Chemistry I realized that I was much more interested in the molecular side of things than in genetics. I switched my intended STEM major to Biochemistry, and then I declared both Biochemistry and Philosophy in the summer between my freshman and sophomore years. Life continued on until senior fall, when I decided to not complete the last class for my Philosophy major, and drop down to a minor. I will be graduating this spring with my Bachelor of Science degree in Biochemistry, two minors in Chemistry and Philosophy, and a cluster in Linguistics.
In no particular order, here are five things that I wish I’d known before declaring my major.
- Academic advisors for a major are usually appointed only for a limited period of time. When I declared my Biochemistry major, the faculty advisor that I met with did not end up being my advisor for the next three years, as the responsibility was being passed on. I liked my next advisor, but I wish that I’d waited until the spring to declare so that I could have built a relationship with my actual advisor from the start.
- There are so many academic fields out there that you probably won’t be aware of in your first year. I love my major and I don’t regret my choice, but I now feel like I could have really connected with an engineering field and I wish that I’d given myself the space in my schedule to try out an engineering class.
- I came in so intent on double majoring: the flexible Rochester curriculum is truly excellent for getting more than one degree. I really enjoyed saying “Biochemistry and Philosophy” – how cool is it to have expertise in two completely opposite fields? But over the course of my junior year, I realized that in the realm of academia, specialization is more desirable than breadth. I knew that I wanted to go into bioscience research, and although I believe that there is intrinsic value in learning for learning’s sake, my interviewers were bemused by the Philosophy major. Sure, it’s valuable to know how to think, but that skill set didn’t set me apart among bioscience applicants.
- Academic minors are great. Five to six classes is a good number for getting an in-depth understanding of a field without having to fully commit. Minors are also typically more flexible than majors: to be a Chemistry major, you have to take a pretty narrow set of classes, but for the minor I just took six courses that interested me. I was able to focus on the specific aspects of Chemistry that intrigued me, and had applications relating to my biochemistry and research interests. I have taken a fair amount of elective courses in pharmacology, physiology, bioinformatics and signal transduction: while there is no existing minor that I can declare, I have functionally accomplished a “molecular mechanisms” minor. You don’t need to be a double major to get an expansive education.
- Pick the major based on the classes, not the title. At the end of the day, you need to have a major to graduate. If you pick something with fewer required classes, you have more space for electives. But electives does not have to synonymous with frivolous: some of the most difficult courses that I have taken (PHP 403: Human Cell Physiology) were electives that I pursued because I had space in my schedule. Give yourself the freedom to challenge yourself on your own schedule, and to try the hard things that you know will be interesting. A wise Biology faculty member frequently tells students that if he had to go back and do college again, he would pick a B.A. in general biology to have the freedom to explore what he would be interested in. So pick a major where you’re excited about most of the classes, and you know you’ll get to pick electives to find what makes you fulfilled. Remember: it’s your degree, and it’s all flexible anyway!