At this point, most students are already set their on their schedules for next semester. After meeeting with advisors, agonizing over major requirements, coordinating with friends and adjusting (and readjusting) potential schedules with the CDCS app, students are finally settling on a routine and workload they can live with. All that’s left to do is post the classes on Facebook and look forward to summer.
But how many can say that they are truly taking something next year that’s outside their major? Something purely for interest, with no plans to make it count toward a minor or a cluster? Something they always thought was interesting but never thought they had the time to actually study for?
The University prides itself on having an open curriculum that allows students to “study what they love.” But too many make the mistake of not taking full advantage of the opportunities. They isolate themselves to a few specific fields and only them, for the entirety of their college careers – that shouldn’t be the case.
For most, this is the only time in one’s life that can be devoted almost solely to learning; the only time someone will have the opportunity to study whatever they want; the only time they will have the luxury of spending a significant portion of the week on something completely enthralling, no matter its relevance.
Of course, many start college without a clue what they want to major in, and others quickly realize that the intended field just isn’t quite the thing to go with. In such cases, people are forced to branch out and sample the variety of options the University has to offer. This exploration is done with the goal of finding the thing that will become the new focus.
Students identify themselves and relate, in many ways, to peers based on their field(s) being without a label of any kind is terrifying. Those that must quest for a major, however, are typically fortunate enough to quickly escape the limbo-like state of uncertainty that is the unlabeled college existence.
These explorers are lucky enough to have a great advising staff and supportive community that can usually help them find the path they are looking for quite quickly. It may take a semester or two, but very few of these intrepid souls make it to the end of sophomore year without any prospects for an intended major.
As a senior doubling in Psych & Neuroscience with a cluster in Japanese, one might think back on freshman year with amusement – “remember when I thought I wanted to be a Religion major?” Or, as a junior majoring in History with minors in Women’s Studies and Computer Science, one might look back fondly on first semester sophomore year when they took “Cosmic Origins of Life.” With the happy nostalgia of looking back set aside, few look forward to taking “unnecessary” and “useless” classes.
Students don’t start out as pre-med freshmen with plans for minors in Public Health and ASL, excited to squeeze in “Intro to Geological Science,” “Creating Architecture,” and “Principles of Economics.” Why would they. The classes aren’t going to count towards anything; they aren’t related to future careers. But the real question that should be asked is: why not?
If it can be made to fit, why not take something for pure enjoyment? Why wouldn’t someone take a course that could potentially make them more knowledgeable and well rounded? What’s the harm in learning something that might have no future purpose other than a good story for the kids about “the time I took a sociology class in college?”
These are the formative years. We are “discovering who we are,” “making choices that will determine our futures”, and “becoming the people we will be for the rest of our lives.” What’s so bad about taking the cheesiness of these phrases to heart by discovering that there can be passion for more than a few topics, choosing to have an eclectic education, and becoming exceedingly interesting people?
The time is now to go ahead and take on a new subject, or weird class. Nothing’s stopping you from taking a chance and signing up for something different. So go out and make use of that open curriculum and explore!
