<p>How important are undergraduate minors with regards to future job outlook, career opportunities, and/or total competition in marketplace ... </p>
<p>Does a minor concentration enhance the appeal of the job applicant? What are the advantages/disadvantages of minor concentration in consideration of job prospects/security?</p>
<p>Disclaimer: I’m still in high school, so I’m just parroting what I’ve heard. :-)</p>
<p>It’s my understanding that minor’s are really just to add to your knowledge (Maybe Pol. Sci student gets minor in econ which will help them understand Politics in Economy, or something). I know one person who got a biology degree, minor in applied math, and then got a graduate degree in Biomedical Engineering, so it just helps you know future information you need. I don’t think it would help that much in terms of job prospects</p>
<p>Some colleges don’t offer minors… some students double major, too. Often a student will major in something “practical” (eg, with future job prospects) and minor (or double major) in something impractical that they just like… For example, one my kids is majoring in physics (which will be her future career area) and minoring in studio art (just because she loves it). </p>
<p>My oldest daughter recently graduated with a double major in Political Science and Public Policy. Then she promptly got a job with a company really using neither. It seems like her internship experiences did a lot more for her than having a double major. A minor or second major COULD have increased her job prospects, though. For example, she had a couple of interviews where she wished she had more statistics background. So pairing Poli Sci and Statistics could have helped with her job search.</p>
<p>My general opinion is that if your primary major is in a “marketable” area, then your internships and work experience plays a bigger role than a minor does in finding a job after graduation.</p>
<p>A minor is a convenient way to state on your resume that you’ve had some exposure to a field outside of your major. It may or may not help your job prospects, depending on what your major(s) and minor(s) are in. </p>
<p>Many students complete a minor for fun. Some students opt to take several classes in a field without seeking formal recognition (e.g. as a minor or concentration) because they don’t care about some of the requirements for such a recognition. For example, I took 7 courses in computer science without getting a minor for it. I only cared about the math-y upper-level courses (graphics, machine learning, numerical methods, etc) and didn’t want to take Computer Organization and Theory of Computation, both of which were required for the minor.</p>
<p>I think it would be a good idea to major in something that you really want to pursue for your career and then minor in something that you find really fun or interesting, like Film Studies, Classics, etc.</p>