<p>At her LACs, she probably won't need to choose her major until the beginning of junior year. Even after that, she may still be able to switch majors without having to spend a longer time in college.</p>
<p>Carolyn gave some good suggestions. In addition, suggest that your D talk to some upperclassmembers to get suggestions about choosing a major.</p>
<p>Also let your D know that the choice of a major doesn't totally determine one's post college options. One can go to graduate school in academic areas that one didn't major in in college. Any major can prepare one for law school. Any liberal arts major can prepare one for a variety of careers.</p>
<p>One also doesn't need to be passionate about a subject area to major in it. One just needs to like it well enough to be willing to take the coursework. I don't think that most people are passionate about their majors. Heck, most people aren't passionate about any academic subject.</p>
<p>uscd<em>ucla</em>dad, my D was on a modified trimester last year & the typical courseload was 3/2/3 (shortened middle term). Each class had enough contact hours that when she transferred, she received 4 credits per class from a school whose courses are 3 credits. Not typical (in fact, this particular school no longer has that schedule), but weird calendars do exist.</p>
<p>OP, my D did transfer ... but she knew what she wanted & found a school that offered it. I don't think a transfer is a good idea if the student isn't sure where to go or why she should go there. I agree that a CC or some time off might be best in your D's case. Sometimes kids need a detour before they can figure out what road they should be taking. I do think she should have to pay rent (or live on her own) if she will not be going to school at all.</p>
<p>" She may want to go go culinary school AFTER college and if she finds something else that she's interested in ... she can pursue it in grad school as well."</p>
<p>If she wants to go to culinary school, why wouldn't she do that instead of going to college? Culinary school is very expensive, and also prepares their students for very high paying careers. Would your D plan to go to college and culinary school on your dime? Are you willing to do that?</p>
<p>She sounds to me like someone who could benefit by taking a year off and working (and paying rent and her other living expenses even if she's living at home) figuring out what she wants to do with her life. </p>
<p>Her fall course selections that you've listed sound like the selections of someone who is using college as a place to bide their time, not as place to explore various majors, etc. </p>
<p>Can you provide specifics about what exactly happened in the Italian course that made your D decide not to major in languages. </p>
<p>The impression I'm getting is of a student who has unrealistic ideas about what to expect in college. Did she, for instance, plan to major in languages thinking it would be easy or glamours and then was surprised by the speed of college language courses? High school language courses teach in one year what college language courses teach in one semester.</p>
<p>It's not "pointless" for your daughter to stay in her college for the coming year, IF she makes a point to take the type of classes that would generally fill general ed requirements at any other college. So if she is sure she wants to continue with college, but not sure what she wants to major in -- courses that will transfer and fill requirements anywhere else will not be wasted. </p>
<p>Is it all about the choosing a major issue, or is your daughter unhappy in other respects? When does her college require that students declare a major? She may just need reassurance that she doesn't have to decide right now. Also encourage her to explore options for inter-disciplinary or self-directed majors at her college. Why dance and anthropology for the coming semester? If those are two areas of strong interest, she may think about what connects the two, and how she can structure her studies around them? (My daughter originally proposed a major combining dance choreography and linguistics when she applied to the Gallatin school of individualized studies -- she ended up attending a different college with an entirely different major, but her desire to explore dance as a medium of communication seemed like fertile ground for study).</p>
<p>As a recent languages graduate, it concerns me too that your daughter decided after a single Italian class that languages was not for her, particularly since you stated that language provision was a key concern in her college selection. </p>
<p>It's not uncommon for languages students to spend a while 'finding' their ideal language(s) - are their any civilizations or cultures that your daughter has a particular interest in? That could be a lift-off point for her.</p>
<p>In addition, if she is more interested in 'language' as a phenomenon rather than learning languages, she might consider taking classes in linguistics. Linguistics is a very broad discipline, incorporating elements from mathematics, psychology, neurobiology, history - it wouldn't close off any particular doors for her. </p>
<p>All that said - it sounds like your daughter is having more problems that just a choice of major. Is she particularly enjoying the college she's attending? If not, it may be that the college is the problem, not the major.</p>
<p>
[quote]
" She may want to go go culinary school AFTER college and if she finds something else that she's interested in ... she can pursue it in grad school as well."</p>
<p>If she wants to go to culinary school, why wouldn't she do that instead of going to college? Culinary school is very expensive, and also prepares their students for very high paying careers. Would your D plan to go to college and culinary school on your dime? Are you willing to do that?</p>
<p>She sounds to me like someone who could benefit by taking a year off and working (and paying rent and her other living expenses even if she's living at home) figuring out what she wants to do with her life.
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</p>
<p>I agree with this advice. In addition, she should work in a restaurant, preferably in the kitchen, during her year off. Culinary school seems very attractive to lots of people BUT the actual work is VERY hard. She needs to see what it's really all about.</p>
<p>Tough situation for her and you, mom. As the parent of a kid who transferred - and then actually toyed with transferring again! - I know how stressful it can feel.</p>
<p>I can't add much to what's been said. I do, though, want to emphasize that if she wants to transfer, she could really be hurting herself with the class schedule she has planned this term. Since we don't know the fourth course, it could be a slightly better schedule than you outlined first. But strength of schedule will matter as she tries to transfer. If she wants to keep transfer options as strong as possible, I'd suggest she drop back to no more than one dance class and fill out the schedule with academic courses allowing her to explore possible majors and, at the same time, fulfilling typical distribution requirements at any school she might target for transfer.</p>
<p>Is cooking a strong, demonstrated interest? If so, you might want to look into some colleges that offer it as a degree program. I know, for example, that SUNY Cobbleskill (spelling?) does. Kids take regular college courses but a cooking program. If they end up finding out that cooking really isn't for them, they can switch into another major. From what I've heard, it's much more of a "real' college experience that CIA is. If you REALLY know you're into cooking and can get in, of course, CIA is the way to go. </p>
<p>I think it makes sense to come home if she wants to. But if she thinks cooking is her passion, then I think it would make sense to get a job in a restaurant or catering business and pay rent, etc., as NSM has suggested. An alternative --which might be better--is to get a job in another locale where she has to live on her own for a year. </p>
<p>As big a fan as I am of the college experience, it isn't for everyone. I do think programs like SUNY Cobbleskill though offer a very attractive alternative for kids who think they are interested in cooking but who would also benefit from taking regular college courses and being in a college environment.</p>
<p>Get her up to a full courseload this semester and have her consult with other students and academic guidance. If come Christmas, she's still lost, look into transferring to your local state flagship or a smaller state school. It may not be her first choice, but it will likely offer an array of classes and you can keep a closer look on her. The costs are also lower! A gap year may be a good choice as well, but not if she's fallen drastically behind on credits.</p>