Many flagship state universities have built strong brand recognition. So strong that that they attracted students from outside their regions, not just the neighboring states. However, many sk students to choose a first-choice major, maybe a second choice. Or, they ask prospective students to choose an undergraduate school within the university, though they may enter undeclared.
But what if a student enters undecided on a major–or has interest in majors offered by two different schools? What should those students do?
Some flagship state universities offer exploratory/undeclared pathways. Through this pathways a student will choose courses with the help of an academic advisor. Hopefully, the right choices will enable the student to make a decision about which school as well as which major to pursue.
Depending on the courses chosen, and the potential majors, an exploratory student should be able to choose a school, and possibly their major, by the end of their freshman year. They should also be able to complete some general education courses at the low (100) level so that they can concentrate on their major during their junior and senior years.
Do exploratory paths always work out?
They seem to work out ok when a student is prepared to choose an unrestricted major within a college of arts and sciences. But internal transfers into programs such as business, computer science, engineering and nursing might have more stringent requirements or not be possible at all. I made a handout with a sampling of schools to help explain this better. The more stringent requirements might not only be prerequisite courses; they could also be a high GPA in these courses or overall.
Are there alternatives to flagship state universities worth considering who you’re undecided?
It depends.
Some private universities and many liberal arts colleges are “single doorway” institutions.
This means that accepted students are admitted to the school, not a specific major. Case Western Reserve University (OH), the University of Rochester (NY) and Harvard are examples of “single doorway” schools.
Prospective students should look at schools that have a combined College of Arts & Sciences to see if there are multiple majors that do not require an internal transfer.
For example, a student interested in finance, but has no experience in finance, might want to consider studying Economics along with Mathematics or Statistics, Some universities put computer science within a College of Arts & Sciences. Rutgers-New Brunswick is one example, offering BA and BS degrees in the major..
Colleges of agriculture and environmental sciences offer majors that combine these disciplines with courses in business or engineering. Here’s one example from Ohio State, and another from Illinois.
These schools tend to be catch-alls for majors that either complement studies in agriculture or the environment or do not fit within one of the other schools at a flagship state university. For example, Rutgers-New Brunswick offers a degree in Business Economics within its School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, The University of Delaware places their Sports Performance Analytics major with their ag school. Indiana University-Bloomington does not have an ag school. However, it uses their School of Public Health in much the same way to be a catchall of varied and similar majors.
Can you self design a major that connects with multiple interests?
Some private colleges such as Drexel University in Philadelphia allow students to design their own major from multiple disciplines in different schools. Drexdel takes this one step further and tries to help their students to gain co-op experiences around their self-designed program. Rochester Institute of Technology (NY), another co-op focused school, has created a School of Individualized Study around self-designed majors. NYU has a School of Individualized Study, too.
These schools can be a fall back versus a declared major. However, current and prospective students need to find out the rules for entry into the upper-level courses. NYU, as one example, makes it tough for undergrads outside of its Stern School of Business to take upper-level courses in Finance.
Examples of public universities that offer individualized majors include IIndiana University-Bloomington, the University of Connecticut, University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Coincidentally, these public universities graduate 70% or more of their freshmen within four years, excellent for very large public schools.
So, one key when looking at a larger public flagship as well as some larger private universities is to see if they have multiple pathways when you’re undecided on a major. It’s quite likely for an entering freshman to change their major at least once, maybe more than once. However, not every large school is equally flexible.