Every year, freshmen face the most important collegiate decision they’ll make after deciding which college or university they will attend.
With about a dozen colleges at The University of Memphis and some 80 majors, not including concentrations, the choice of a major can prove to be daunting.
Yet, choosing a major earlier rather than later can be a wise move.
When should a student declare a major then? According to Dr. Carl M. Chando, the director of the Academic Counseling Center at The U of M, it’s important for students to have decided upon a major at the end of sophomore year, at the latest.
Chando said that undeclared majors need to spend time in activities that could lead to selecting a major. He also said they should go through career counseling and talk to professors.
“The decision making is a process, not an event,” Chando said.
The most obvious and important reason students should declare a major early is to graduate in a timely manner. Students who wait to declare a major could graduate later than they expected.
“The longer you wait to declare your major, the more likely it is to extend your graduation date,” Chando said.
While nearly all students take the same general education courses, the declaration of a major determines the specific, specialized classes required for work in different fields. The choice of major indicates what academic honorary organizations the student may join. It also determines where students can intern. Some fields, such as pre-med, require different math and science courses.
The choice can also affect a freshman’s transition from high school to college. It can be used to find strengths and weaknesses in core classes.
Lyncola Odell, a 24-year-old senior majoring in communication, said students should research their major.
“Major in something you have a passion and a love for,” Odell said.
Another reason to declare a major early is so that the student can change majors but still graduate on time or only relatively late. If students find the major they chose as a freshman or sophomore is not suited for them, they can change majors with most of their collegiate career ahead of them.
Jennifer Adams, a 20-year-old senior majoring in history and African-American studies, said she thinks freshmen should not be in a rush to declare their majors but should have some idea of what they want to do.
“Think about how your long-term goals will be impacted by your choice of major,” Adams said.
