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SoCalMom
Member
| Joined: | Fri May 16th, 2008 |
| Location: | California USA |
| Posts: | 47 |
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Posted: Fri Jun 6th, 2008 03:59 pm |
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Getting a double major appears to be an emerging enough trend I thought this was worth posting. Interestingly enough, my DH had the student referenced in this article in one of his upper division math classes.
Students who decide to pursue the double major face the possibiity of elongating the time to complete their degree, which then of course increases the cost. Are there any statistical factors being reported by the universities on time to complete degree for double majors?
What do you think about the argument this is just resume padding?
SoCalMom
http://www.latimes.com/news/education/la-me-major3-2008jun03,0,6990713,full.story
Snippet from the article ....
More students opt for two or even three specialties, which some experts say reflects a more interdisciplinary world. Others dismiss it as resume-building.
By Larry Gordon, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
June 3, 2008
Laura Simurda faced a tough decision recently in choosing which of three simultaneous graduation ceremonies to attend at USC. After all, she was a triple major, earning degrees in astronomy, history and print journalism. Simurda finally chose to be among her astronomy classmates but doesn't want to be pigeonholed, because she found both science and the humanities stimulating. "It always seemed to keep my brain running in both fields," she said.
Such eclectic academic tastes are increasingly evident this college graduation season as students seek extra credentials to help them compete in a tightening job market. U.S. Department of Education statistics show an 85% rise in the number of bachelor's degrees with double -- and the relatively rare triple -- majors over the last decade.
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CarolynLawrence
Administrator
| Joined: | Sun Mar 5th, 2006 |
| Location: | USA |
| Posts: | 3316 |
| Mana: |   |
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Posted: Fri Jun 6th, 2008 05:52 pm |
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Double majors are common and encouraged at my daughter's college, Beloit. They have pretty minimal general education requirements, so it's fairly easy to do in four years. My daughter is doing a single major in studio art, but double minors in museum studies and anthropology/archeology. In her case, it has already paid off with a great internship at a museum this summer. They have let her know that what led them to choose her for the internship was her combination of major and minors. If she was just a studio art major, it is likely she would not have gotten the internship. Now, whether this all going to lead to a job upon graduation is another story....
On the other hand, at Reed, almost no one double majors. To do so, you'd have to pass the comprehensive exam at the end of junior year in both majors and write two theses senior year, a nearly herculian task. They also have pretty extensive GE requirements, so it would be hard to do it all in four years. My son, who has many interests, is already recognizing that might be a bit of drawback for him.
Last edited on Fri Jun 6th, 2008 05:56 pm by CarolynLawrence
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Shennie
Member
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Posted: Mon Jun 9th, 2008 08:11 pm |
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My son is at Oberlin doing double majors in biology and math with minors in chemistry and French. He is on track to graduate in 4 years. I think that double majors are fairly common at Oberlin. It helps that he went in with 8 AP math credits and 3 AP French credits.
He did not intend to double major. His initial plan was to major in biology and minor in French and math. However, as he started taking the math classes, he enjoyed them so much that he decided to go for the major. With the chem minor, he realized that after he takes the classes required for his bio major he only needs one more for a minor. The French he is doing because he loves it. The down side is that he was hoping to do a semester abroad and that will not happen if he wants to finish in 4 years. It is very difficult for people in lab sciences to do a semester abroad even if they are only doing one major. Oberlin does have January term and he thinks me might be able to at least do a month in Europe next January.
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CarolynLawrence
Administrator
| Joined: | Sun Mar 5th, 2006 |
| Location: | USA |
| Posts: | 3316 |
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Posted: Mon Jun 9th, 2008 08:15 pm |
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It's nice to see you, Shennie. 
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