Why You Should Double Major | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Student Life

Why You Should Double Major

It's not just for nerds.

228
Why You Should Double Major
stateuniversity.com

Whether you have crazy varied interests, are still searching for the ideal degree plan or want a great way to impress future employers, you're uniquely you and want a college degree that reflects your strengths, skills and dedication. Double majoring will offer you the versatility and real-world application you need a college degree—and you'll never have a boring day.

1. Double majoring lets you create your perfect course of study.

Think of double majoring as creating your own personalized degree plan. Regardless of preset degree plans or advising sheets, you are ultimately in control of what you study. When you declare a double major, you choose to pursue two fields you fell equally in love with. Whether it's athletics, art, music, business, optometry, psychology or ichthyology, your interests are undoubtedly varied and totally unique to you. Shouldn't your college education be the same?

2. Double majors can be surprisingly complimentary.

Yes, there are the obvious ones, like business and accounting or biology and chemistry. But any experience you have outside your primary field can look great on a resume and broaden your employment horizons. Say you love your theater major and wouldn't change it for anything in the world. Adding a business major would give you the administrative experience to begin your own production company or run your own show from the ground up. Similarly, pairing marketing with art design would give you the tools to professionally sell your designs or convince a potential employer that you'd be a great new hire.

3. Having two degrees sets you apart from other candidates.

In 2016, nearly 2 million students will graduate college with a bachelor's degree in the United States. That's a lot of competition for only a few new jobs for college grads.

You know you're awesome and unique. Why not show potential employers your dedication, drive and forward thinking by going above and beyond and making yourself the best possible candidate for any job you apply for? A second major, especially in a specialty or high-demand field, can really up your chances for your resume being pulled to the top of the "potential employee" stack.

4. Double majoring allows you a wider range of professional opportunities once you leave college.

You wear the mortarboard, walk across the stage, shake the college president's hand, pick up your diploma and boom! You've graduated and your dream career field isn't hiring. With the second major you added in sophomore year, you now have a fallback plan to keep you afloat (and out of the fast food industry) until the right opportunity comes around. So you might be doing some accounting before your big break in musical drama shows up. This temporary position may not be the job you imagined as a teen, but in the adult world, there's something to be said for a stable, well-paying job that lets you chase your dreams while still paying the electricity bill.

5. Double majoring keeps you focused while in college.

Everyone has that one friend who's a seventh-semester senior because she's changed her major 18 times. When you commit to a double major, you commit to a fairly fixed course of study so you can graduate while still under that golden financial aid dome of four years. Plus, let's be practical.

If you're a little tired of your first major, ease off and focus on taking some classes towards your second major for a semester or two. Oftentimes, that little bit of a break can remind you why you chose your major in the first place and give you revamped energy to complete it—rather than starting the time-devouring process of changing majors (again).

In conclusion, don't think of double majoring as giving in to mom's demand that you "study something more practical." Double majoring doesn't have to look practical if you don't want it to. Want to pair art history and women's studies? Go for it! Exercise science and English? Sure, why not? The bottom line is, you are in college to improve yourself through education, hands-on application and professional development. Through double majoring, you can create a college experience that's exactly right for you. And who knows? Maybe you'll even land a great career path while you're at it.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Gilmore Girls
Hypable

In honor of Mother’s Day, I have been thinking of all the things my mom does for my family and me. Although I couldn’t write nearly all of them, here are a few things that moms do for us.

They find that shirt that’s right in front of you, but just you can’t seem to find.

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

10 Reasons To Thank Your Best Friend

Take the time to thank that one friend in your life you will never let go of.

6053
Thank You on wooden blocks

1. Thank you for being the one I can always count on to be honest.

A true friend will tell you if the shirt is ugly, or at least ask to borrow it and "accidentally" burn it.

2. Thank you for accepting me for who I am.

A best friend will love you regardless of the stale french fries you left on the floor of your car, or when you had lice in 8th grade and no one wanted to talk to you.

Keep Reading...Show less
sick student
StableDiffusion

Everybody gets sick once in a while, but getting sick while in college is the absolute worst. You're away from home and your mom who can take care of you and all you really want to do is just be in your own bed. You feel like you will have never-ending classwork to catch up on if you miss class, so you end up going sick and then it just takes longer to get better. Being sick in college is really tough and definitely not a fun experience. Here are the 15 stages that everyone ends up going through when they are sick at college.

Keep Reading...Show less
kid
Janko Ferlic
Do as I say, not as I do.

Your eyes widen in horror as you stare at your phone. Beads of sweat begin to saturate your palm as your fingers tremble in fear. The illuminated screen reads, "Missed Call: Mom."

Growing up with strict parents, you learn that a few things go unsaid. Manners are everything. Never talk back. Do as you're told without question. Most importantly, you develop a system and catch on to these quirks that strict parents have so that you can play their game and do what you want.

Keep Reading...Show less
friends
tv.com

"Friends" maybe didn’t have everything right or realistic all the time, but they did have enough episodes to create countless reaction GIFs and enough awesomeness to create, well, the legacy they did. Something else that is timeless, a little rough, but memorable? Living away from the comforts of home. Whether you have an apartment, a dorm, your first house, or some sort of residence that is not the house you grew up in, I’m sure you can relate to most of these!

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments