Comments on: Advice On Choosing a Major http://www.rikinontheweb.com/advice-on-choosing-a-major A blog about how digital media and the internet are effecting our lives. Tue, 23 Mar 2010 18:16:39 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9 hourly 1 By: rikin http://www.rikinontheweb.com/advice-on-choosing-a-major/comment-page-1#comment-289 rikin Fri, 10 Jul 2009 08:46:18 +0000 http://www.rikinontheweb.com/?p=535#comment-289 I was actually thinking something similar but I was wondering what it <br>would have been like if I had a little bit of real world experience <br>like an internship BEFORE deciding a major. Sometimes I even think <br>the idea of apprenticeship should some how be incorporated into higher- <br>education to ensure that we're choosing the right industries and <br>careers for us.<br><br>I agree the jump from high school to college is pretty drastic but I <br>enjoyed that jump because it brought an added excitement to the <br>experience. I was actually thinking something similar but I was wondering what it
would have been like if I had a little bit of real world experience
like an internship BEFORE deciding a major. Sometimes I even think
the idea of apprenticeship should some how be incorporated into higher-
education to ensure that we're choosing the right industries and
careers for us.

I agree the jump from high school to college is pretty drastic but I
enjoyed that jump because it brought an added excitement to the
experience.

]]> By: Elisa Doucette http://www.rikinontheweb.com/advice-on-choosing-a-major/comment-page-1#comment-288 Elisa Doucette Fri, 10 Jul 2009 08:19:31 +0000 http://www.rikinontheweb.com/?p=535#comment-288 The more important question on choosing a major...why do we expect people to go from having Mom wash their soccer gear and teachers granting "extra credit" in June to being on their own and deciding what to do for the next 40 years or so when most don't even know who they are? That's why we have so many non-trad students and mid-life crisis career reassessments. What we are good at and "seems like a good idea" straight out of high school is not always the life that we would have chosen had we known then what we know now. I wonder sometimes "what would have been" if I had taken time off between, though I'd be worried I wouldn't have gone. The more important question on choosing a major…why do we expect people to go from having Mom wash their soccer gear and teachers granting “extra credit” in June to being on their own and deciding what to do for the next 40 years or so when most don't even know who they are? That's why we have so many non-trad students and mid-life crisis career reassessments. What we are good at and “seems like a good idea” straight out of high school is not always the life that we would have chosen had we known then what we know now. I wonder sometimes “what would have been” if I had taken time off between, though I'd be worried I wouldn't have gone.

]]> By: rikin http://www.rikinontheweb.com/advice-on-choosing-a-major/comment-page-1#comment-287 rikin Fri, 10 Jul 2009 06:29:05 +0000 http://www.rikinontheweb.com/?p=535#comment-287 I agree Ben, it's definitely a difficult choice and one that could have some serious repercussions. If a school offers the flexibility I discussed I would definitely opt for that. For example, a double major in Marketing and Design would have been perfect but unfortunately unattainable for me. If a school doesn't offer that opportunity then I guess there's the guaranteed way to a good GPA and there's the difficult more risky way of challenging yourself but potentially receiving a low GPA but could have a very high payout. Again, you'd be a force mejeure. <br><br>I think the fact that schools don't make it easy to create your own curriculum and neither schools nor companies reward those who take this type of risk is a big issue. One that I hope is being tackled. I agree Ben, it's definitely a difficult choice and one that could have some serious repercussions. If a school offers the flexibility I discussed I would definitely opt for that. For example, a double major in Marketing and Design would have been perfect but unfortunately unattainable for me. If a school doesn't offer that opportunity then I guess there's the guaranteed way to a good GPA and there's the difficult more risky way of challenging yourself but potentially receiving a low GPA but could have a very high payout. Again, you'd be a force mejeure.

I think the fact that schools don't make it easy to create your own curriculum and neither schools nor companies reward those who take this type of risk is a big issue. One that I hope is being tackled.

]]> By: benjamintwilcox http://www.rikinontheweb.com/advice-on-choosing-a-major/comment-page-1#comment-286 benjamintwilcox Fri, 10 Jul 2009 05:56:14 +0000 http://www.rikinontheweb.com/?p=535#comment-286 I agree with you on this subject to a certain extent. I think that universities spend too much time keeping students separated into small majors and classes with no mixing of those in different majors. The fact that someone who studied marketing didn't get a photoshop class is unsettling. I studied engineering and heard through the grapevine that I was able to forgo learning about ancient art history and instead take a class in Photoshop and Flash that counted towards the same art credits. I guarantee that I had much more fun in the Flash class than I would have in the former. <br><br>However, I think that the advice to tell people to study one of their weaknesses could have two major problems. It is possible that they will not be able to excel at their weakness major the same way that they were able to if they had chosen what they are good at. This would then lower their GPA and place them at the bottom of the list when it comes to get a job. Secondly, if the weakness major was pursued and a year later they found out they should have been doing what they were good at all along, then there is a year of tuition almost wasted on a major they will not continue to pursue. I agree with you on this subject to a certain extent. I think that universities spend too much time keeping students separated into small majors and classes with no mixing of those in different majors. The fact that someone who studied marketing didn't get a photoshop class is unsettling. I studied engineering and heard through the grapevine that I was able to forgo learning about ancient art history and instead take a class in Photoshop and Flash that counted towards the same art credits. I guarantee that I had much more fun in the Flash class than I would have in the former.

However, I think that the advice to tell people to study one of their weaknesses could have two major problems. It is possible that they will not be able to excel at their weakness major the same way that they were able to if they had chosen what they are good at. This would then lower their GPA and place them at the bottom of the list when it comes to get a job. Secondly, if the weakness major was pursued and a year later they found out they should have been doing what they were good at all along, then there is a year of tuition almost wasted on a major they will not continue to pursue.

]]> By: rikin http://www.rikinontheweb.com/advice-on-choosing-a-major/comment-page-1#comment-219 rikin Fri, 10 Jul 2009 03:46:18 +0000 http://www.rikinontheweb.com/?p=535#comment-219 I was actually thinking something similar but I was wondering what it <br>would have been like if I had a little bit of real world experience <br>like an internship BEFORE deciding a major. Sometimes I even think <br>the idea of apprenticeship should some how be incorporated into higher- <br>education to ensure that we're choosing the right industries and <br>careers for us.<br><br>I agree the jump from high school to college is pretty drastic but I <br>enjoyed that jump because it brought an added excitement to the <br>experience. I was actually thinking something similar but I was wondering what it
would have been like if I had a little bit of real world experience
like an internship BEFORE deciding a major. Sometimes I even think
the idea of apprenticeship should some how be incorporated into higher-
education to ensure that we're choosing the right industries and
careers for us.

I agree the jump from high school to college is pretty drastic but I
enjoyed that jump because it brought an added excitement to the
experience.

]]> By: opheliaswebb http://www.rikinontheweb.com/advice-on-choosing-a-major/comment-page-1#comment-218 opheliaswebb Fri, 10 Jul 2009 03:19:31 +0000 http://www.rikinontheweb.com/?p=535#comment-218 The more important question on choosing a major...why do we expect people to go from having Mom wash their soccer gear and teachers granting "extra credit" in June to being on their own and deciding what to do for the next 40 years or so when most don't even know who they are? That's why we have so many non-trad students and mid-life crisis career reassessments. What we are good at and "seems like a good idea" straight out of high school is not always the life that we would have chosen had we known then what we know now. I wonder sometimes "what would have been" if I had taken time off between, though I'd be worried I wouldn't have gone. The more important question on choosing a major…why do we expect people to go from having Mom wash their soccer gear and teachers granting “extra credit” in June to being on their own and deciding what to do for the next 40 years or so when most don't even know who they are? That's why we have so many non-trad students and mid-life crisis career reassessments. What we are good at and “seems like a good idea” straight out of high school is not always the life that we would have chosen had we known then what we know now. I wonder sometimes “what would have been” if I had taken time off between, though I'd be worried I wouldn't have gone.

]]> By: rikin http://www.rikinontheweb.com/advice-on-choosing-a-major/comment-page-1#comment-217 rikin Fri, 10 Jul 2009 01:29:05 +0000 http://www.rikinontheweb.com/?p=535#comment-217 I agree Ben, it's definitely a difficult choice and one that could have some serious repercussions. If a school offers the flexibility I discussed I would definitely opt for that. For example, a double major in Marketing and Design would have been perfect but unfortunately unattainable for me. If a school doesn't offer that opportunity then I guess there's the guaranteed way to a good GPA and there's the difficult more risky way of challenging yourself but potentially receiving a low GPA but could have a very high payout. Again, you'd be a force mejeure. <br><br>I think the fact that schools don't make it easy to create your own curriculum and neither schools nor companies reward those who take this type of risk is a big issue. One that I hope is being tackled. I agree Ben, it's definitely a difficult choice and one that could have some serious repercussions. If a school offers the flexibility I discussed I would definitely opt for that. For example, a double major in Marketing and Design would have been perfect but unfortunately unattainable for me. If a school doesn't offer that opportunity then I guess there's the guaranteed way to a good GPA and there's the difficult more risky way of challenging yourself but potentially receiving a low GPA but could have a very high payout. Again, you'd be a force mejeure.

I think the fact that schools don't make it easy to create your own curriculum and neither schools nor companies reward those who take this type of risk is a big issue. One that I hope is being tackled.

]]> By: benjamintwilcox http://www.rikinontheweb.com/advice-on-choosing-a-major/comment-page-1#comment-216 benjamintwilcox Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:56:14 +0000 http://www.rikinontheweb.com/?p=535#comment-216 I agree with you on this subject to a certain extent. I think that universities spend too much time keeping students separated into small majors and classes with no mixing of those in different majors. The fact that someone who studied marketing didn't get a photoshop class is unsettling. I studied engineering and heard through the grapevine that I was able to forgo learning about ancient art history and instead take a class in Photoshop and Flash that counted towards the same art credits. I guarantee that I had much more fun in the Flash class than I would have in the former. <br><br>However, I think that the advice to tell people to study one of their weaknesses could have two major problems. It is possible that they will not be able to excel at their weakness major the same way that they were able to if they had chosen what they are good at. This would then lower their GPA and place them at the bottom of the list when it comes to get a job. Secondly, if the weakness major was pursued and a year later they found out they should have been doing what they were good at all along, then there is a year of tuition almost wasted on a major they will not continue to pursue. I agree with you on this subject to a certain extent. I think that universities spend too much time keeping students separated into small majors and classes with no mixing of those in different majors. The fact that someone who studied marketing didn't get a photoshop class is unsettling. I studied engineering and heard through the grapevine that I was able to forgo learning about ancient art history and instead take a class in Photoshop and Flash that counted towards the same art credits. I guarantee that I had much more fun in the Flash class than I would have in the former.

However, I think that the advice to tell people to study one of their weaknesses could have two major problems. It is possible that they will not be able to excel at their weakness major the same way that they were able to if they had chosen what they are good at. This would then lower their GPA and place them at the bottom of the list when it comes to get a job. Secondly, if the weakness major was pursued and a year later they found out they should have been doing what they were good at all along, then there is a year of tuition almost wasted on a major they will not continue to pursue.

]]>