College Major is a Major Factor
Your college major is an important factor in where you attend college. We’ve seen students make two common mistakes: 1) Students selecting a major and attending a college where the program is not quality or robust. 2) Students selecting a college before checking the quality of the major. While all colleges may offer most majors, not all academic programs are equal. Researching the particular program of study at a specific college may help you narrow your college choices. If you are unsure of your choice of major, make sure your top colleges have the majors you may be interested in so you can prevent transferring to another institution.
Find Answers to Important Questions
Here are some questions to guide your research and decision making in choosing a college based on your major.
- Is it the only program in the state or the nation? It is a unique program that few colleges have? Some majors are not available at all colleges. Many states are consolidating majors at state institutions meaning that they may be only a few colleges in the state that may offer a particular program or major.
- Are you entering into a profession which requires a professional licensure (nursing, athletic training, education)? What’s the rate of passing exams? The health of programs or majors can be reflected in the number of students who go on to pass important professional exams and/or receive their certifications. Exams and certifications are needed to work in the profession if you are pursuing careers such as teaching or nursing.
- Is there a national accrediting body associated with major? Is the actual program accredited by a national organization? National organizations may recognized the quality of certain programs. This is called program accreditation. Music, engineering, technology, education, nursing, business, art, social work are among those programs that have national accrediting organizations. These organizations have rigorous standards. If a program has received accreditation by an organization then you can be sure that their program is quality.
If the answer is yes to at least two of these questions then you may want to let your major play a larger factor in your college decision. College major should be in your top two deciding factors.
If you answered no to a majority of the questions then your major may play a lesser role in your decision. However, college major should be in your top five factors when choosing a college. All students should be concerned with the academic quality of your major.
Check out our other Preppy articles to help your narrow down your college choices. Visit mymajors.com to find majors that may interest you.
