Monthly Archives: February 2009

Not All of Us are Meant to be Great Mathematicians!

decision-main_Full.jpgI started college a math major. Ha! That lasted through one semester of calculus, where I realized that being good at balancing a checkbook didn’t necessarily signal a predilection for higher math. So began my search for a college major.

I wasn’t alone. Nationally, statistics show that between 50 and 66 percent of all students who come to college WITH a major change it once they are here (that’s my group). Then there are the hoards of students who have no defined major when they come. At Seton Hall University last year, 55 percent of our freshman class came to college in that category. About half those students are truly undecided while the rest are students interested in declaring a highly competitive major but need to complete a series of course prerequisites.

All these statistics are on my mind because we’ve been planning our annual “Declare your Major Day.” It’s that time of year when students who have been mulling a course of study need to make a commitment. Sounds like a marriage proposal, huh? Unfortunately, too many students treat it like that and show cold feet when that’s just not necessary.

A college major is NOT a lifetime commitment. It’s just a commitment to tolerate a field of study until graduation. Then, all bets are off. I know a former admissions director who was a music major; history majors become journalists; biology majors go to law school; and, English majors become mentors in Freshman Studies!

The student who majors in art history ends up a college graduate who enjoyed learning about art as he or she moved toward graduation. Some art history majors continue for an advanced degree and some make their way to the workforce. In other words, a college major is a means to an end, the end being that all-important college degree.

Too many students today are afraid to make a commitment, but with the declaration of a major comes a home and a family. The sooner a student embraces the major, the sooner they feel the sense of belonging in their department, the better the college experience.

Students who are slow to declare a major also might have difficulty choosing courses. The math classes you take, for example, depend on what your major is. Biology students need Calculus; art history majors need Math Perspectives.

A little indecision, however, is a good thing. I have always thought that the undecided students have a leg up on the rest of us. They know that they don’t know while the rest think they know but really don’t! While obviously there are students who do indeed know what they want to be and do from early childhood, so many students think they have a career plan only to discover they really don’t like the courses needed to meet that initial goal.

The psychology department is offering a special topics course next semester, titled Career Decisions, which should help undecided students focus in on what they love and what they are good at. That course, coupled with advice from professional counselors in The Career Center and supplemented by sound guidance from Freshman Studies mentors, academic advisers, a beloved professor and other resources should help students find their way.

Encourage your undecided or derailed students to think about the classes they liked best, the classes where they performed best. What did they like about these classes and why? Have they ever had a job or volunteer activity where the time flew by? What were they doing then?

Too many students are so unfamiliar with the concept of self-exploration that they aren’t in touch with what they love and what they don’t. They also don’t realize that they already have made choices. Do they want to major in Chemistry? Do they like Physics?

Doors close, too. A student who has performed poorly as a freshman has most likely lost the opportunity to go to law school. A student who has failed to advance through a math curriculum will not major in business. While the sound of these negative doors slamming shut is depressing, it also provides an audible signal that it is time to move on.

We parents can help by asking probative questions that help shut doors and open windows. We can facilitate work experiences for our sons and daughters that help them experience working in an office, a retail establishment, a hospital, and such.

And, for those whose lack of academic success demands that they shift gears, our job is to be firmly supportive as we talk them through the disappointment and help them come to terms with that necessary wakeup call (I think the term epiphany sounds so much nicer!).

As for myself, I spent a semester exploring possible majors in psychology and sociology before my “aha!” moment when I realized that my facility with words and my inquisitiveness naturally led me to the Communication Department. And, for the record, I haven’t balanced my checkbook since college!

By Tracy Gottlieb, Ph.D.

Dean of Freshman Studies and Special Academic Programs