<p>I'm a borderline Ivy League/NESCAC varsity basketball player who is getting attention from coaches. By the schools that I am looking at, you can see that I'm not a typical jock. I want to pursue an interest in double majoring, definitely in Economics and a second major in either International Relations of Mathematics, more though with IR. I want to double major in these fields, and then minor in either actuarial mathematics, and if not American public policy or Consumer Psychology. Is this too much to handle with being a varsity athlete, partying, and having a social life?<br>
My top interest would be double major in Economics and International Relations with a minor in Actuarial Mathematics.</p>
<p>What is the university's policy on double majors, and can you have a minor if you do this?
If you only minor in Economics, how many minors can you have, 2?</p>
<p>This will take up SO much of your time.</p>
<p>Haha yes being a varsity athlete will take up a large chunk of your time. When you are not at practice, traveling for games, in class, or doing homework, you will be exhausted. Plus, I would be willing to bet money you will end up switching interests at some point. Actuarial mathematics is the most boring thing in the whole world. Also, minors are silly, and they generally don’t mean much (if anything) once you step foot outside of college.</p>
<p>All of that pessimism aside, I have become a firm believer that if you have a strong intellect and good time management skills, you can do anything you want in college. I have a friend that dual degreed in materials science engineering and finance, did a master’s degree in finance, and worked hard enough in a lab to publish a first-author paper in a respected journal (all in 4 years). He is also one of the nicest guys you will ever meet, and he has quite an active social life. He also sleeps 4 hours a night. So there are trade-offs to everything, and you need to pick the balance that works best for you.</p>
<p>Is it possible to double major and also play basketball? Yes, but I think that once you see what it demands you’ll end up not wanting to. A lot of pre-frosh have unrealistic expectations about college. Most “math majors” I met during orientation gave up after their first math class. A lot of them “loved numbers” and didn’t realize that most math classes at Penn don’t even involve numbers(they’re totally proof based). </p>
<p>If both your majors are in CAS, you don’t need any extra permission. Just fulfill the requirements for both and voila, you double majored. If you want to pick up a second major in engineering, you need to apply after 2nd semester with a >3.0 gpa. For Wharton, you need a >3.8 gpa.</p>
<p>Haha thanks,
I really appreciate this.<br>
I deff want to major in Econ, and well, We’ll see if I can do International relations.<br>
You’re right, I do “love numbers” but im sure I’ll have plenty of that in Econ, and don’t necessarily have to be a math major. Also you stated that Minors are pretty much a joke, so should one try to dump all minors out and try to double major.
By my understanding, an average student takes 5 courses per semester. If I doubled major in Econ and IR, how many extra courses would I need to take, if any?</p>