Making a Major Change

Changing your major in college is an important decision that should not be made lightly. Even so, about half of all college students in the U.S. will change their major at least once. Why do so many students do this, especially when changing their major can mean taking longer to graduate and incurring significantly higher costs?

Students change majors for a multitude of reasons. Many times, it's that they put more thought into what college they wanted to attend than what major would best suit their interests and career goals. Other students grow bored or disillusioned with their major and decide they want to pursue something more interesting or relevant. Some decide to change majors after a single bad experience in a major course with a particularly difficult or unreasonable professor. Still others find themselves struggling academically in a certain major, and aim to find another that is more suited to their strengths.

Before you make up your mind to change you major, there are a few things you should think through. First of all, have you sat down with an academic adviser and learned exactly how much longer it will take to get your degree if you change your major? Changing majors dramatically — such as from an arts major to a science major — halfway through college could tack years on to your time in college. Changing to a more related major — such as from music to music history — may not take so much longer, especially if you make up your mind on the change early on. You may decide to re-think your decision, however, if you learn you'll have to spend an extra year in school.

Another thing to think through is whether or not you are changing your major just because you want any other major than the one you're in now. This isn't a good reason to shift gears because you may end up in the same exact boat a semester from now. Really sit down and ask yourself why you are choosing the new major and what careers it might open up.

Changing majors is usually a wise decision if you are struggling academically in your current major. For instance, if you chose to major in computer engineering, but the program is simply too rigorous for you, you may decide to switch to computer science or mathematics. Just make sure that the reason you are doing poorly has to do with your ability to grasp the material and not your failure to apply yourself to the courses before you switch majors.