When pursuing a bachelor’s degree, you’re going to often hear the question from family members and friends, “So what are you majoring in?” Choosing a major is required at most colleges and universities across the United States (though there are exceptions). Students also might consider minors, too. But what is the difference between a major and a minor?
How should you go about selecting one? And do you have to choose just one? We’ll answer these questions and more below.
What is a Major?
A major in college refers to the area of study you will be pursuing. Common examples of a major include Chemistry, English, History, Engineering, Theatre, and Art. Many schools will also offer niche majors within these broader topics including Organic Chemistry, American English, World History Before 1800, Electrical Engineering, Sound Production, and Painting.
Majors usually require between 30 to 36 credits. Many schools require you to take very specific courses in order to graduate with a degree in this area of study, but they will also often have room for electives as well.
How Important is Your Major?
Your major in college is extremely important. First, it will dictate what you will spend the majority of the next four years studying! You will have to take several courses in that area of study in order to graduate with your bachelor’s degree.
Second, it will impact your career and education choices after graduation. While you could absolutely land a journalism job even though you studied engineering, it is less likely that you will. You are more likely to become a journalist or writer if you studied English or Journalism. Your major should be seen as a stepping stone into your dream career.
What Should You Major In?
It’s completely up to you! A major is a personal decision. You may have career or education goals in mind that dictate the types of majors you should pursue. For example, if you wanted to become an archaeologist, you might study History or even Archeology. After graduation, you may be required to pursue a master’s depending on your goals.
If you’re not sure what you’d like to major in, here are some questions to ask yourself:
- What classes have I enjoyed the most during high school?
- Do I have any dream careers? If so, what majors are necessary for those careers?
- Can I see myself working in that field for decades?
- What are my strengths?
- What are my passions?
- What are my weaknesses?
- What majors will give me the best opportunities and the most options?
- What are my other career and education goals? Think return on investment, salary, work-life balance, etc.
- Will my dream career and major require other degrees or certifications even after I’ve earned my bachelor’s degree?
- Am I okay with attending school for more than 4 years?
- Would a broad or niche major work better for me?
Choosing a major is a big decision, and it’s important to take time to decide. It’s not something you should rush!
Tips for choosing the right major
- Take a few courses in the area of study to see if it’s interesting to you.
- Many students enter the field and then discover it’s nothing like they imagined.
- Shadow someone in your intended field of study.
- If you can, reach out to an employer or work through a school program to shadow an employee for a day. This will give you an accurate picture of the employee’s day-to-day – it may also be different than you imagined!
- Meet with your high school guidance counselor or college advisor to discuss your options.
- Ask family and friends.
- Asking them their opinions about various majors and careers, especially if they already work in the field, can be invaluable, too!
- However, some can be very pushy about what major you should pursue. It’s always important to make this decision for you. This is your life and future career – you want to be sure you’re happy with the decision.
- Visit your college’s career center for advice.
- Search our major’s database to see what might be a fit for you.
When Do You Have to Declare Your Major?
In most cases, students will not have to declare a major until they are ending their sophomore year of college or starting their junior year. That doesn’t mean you can’t take classes related to your major’s requirements beforehand (and you should), but you don’t have to officially declare it until either one of those dates (it can vary from school to school). Many schools will often let you change your major even after you’ve “declared it” or declare your major well before the deadline.
However, there are exceptions. First, some college programs are very competitive, such as Engineering. For these particular schools or programs, you will be required to declare your major when you send in your college application. These programs tend to have much lower acceptance rates when compared to the school’s average. If you decide at a later date you’d like to enter Engineering or a similarly competitive area of study, you could find you are not able to either due to limited spots or losing out to the competition.
Second, some schools don’t have majors in the traditional sense! There are colleges and universities in the country that simply offer one major, such as Liberal Arts, and all students take the same courses. Other colleges may offer interdisciplinary majors for all students or as a particular major if a student would like to create their own unique area of study.
Before even submitting your application to a college, be sure to know their guidelines regarding major selection. You don’t want to be locked out of your desired program before you even receive your acceptance letter! Knowing this information will also help you plan for the future.
What is a Minor?
While a major is your main focus, a minor is a secondary specialization. They only require 10 to 30 credits and may or may not require you to take specific courses within the program. There are plenty of options, broad and niche, for minors, too!
How Important is Your Minor?
A minor is not important in the same way as your major. A major is often required to graduate with a bachelor’s degree. A minor is not. You could actually graduate without ever declaring one!
However, the minor may be important to you. It gives you the opportunity to put some study towards a different discipline altogether or to supplement your major. But if you’ve reached your senior year of college and realized you never declared one, don’t worry. It won’t hurt your graduation chances.
What Should You Minor In?
What you minor in is completely up to you! You could choose to supplement your existing major with something related. For example, if you’re majoring in American English, you might want to minor in Creative Writing or Journalism. This can help ensure you’re getting a well-rounded education within your field and have the skills for other positions if you don’t get into your initial dream job.
On the other hand, you could absolutely choose to go in a completely different direction from your major. If you’re majoring in History, but love Art, you could absolutely look into pursuing a minor in Painting, Drawing, Sculpture, or something else. You could even minor in Art History which manages to go in a different direction while also supplementing your existing education. Choosing a different discipline for your minor, however, allows you to pursue other passions and interests of yours, even if it’s not directly related to your future career.
And, of course, you could choose not to major in anything. Those 10-30 credits can instead be put towards random electives or additional credits within your major.
When Should You Declare Your Minor?
While you don’t have to declare a minor in order to graduate, if you want to get recognition for your minor on your college transcripts, you do need to declare it. When you’re required to declare it can vary from school to school, so be sure to talk to your advisor before you graduate. Your minor will not appear on your diploma.
Understanding the difference between majors and minors, how important they are to your education and future career, and when to declare them is essential to planning out your college education. We hope these tips and details will help you decide on a major (and minor) to help you pursue your goals!
If you’re stuck on choosing a major or aren’t sure what schools out there have the best programs for your intended area of study, we can help! Our College Major search tool gives you information about various programs, the best colleges, and universities for those majors, popular career fields, and more. Use it for free here!
