<p>So I've been thinking about taking up a second major, but I'm not sure if this is necessarily a good idea. I want to be able to learn a lot of new things, but I don't want most of my time to be absorbed in homework. I want to be able to experience the other aspects of being a college student - going out to parties, watching some hockey games, going out on a night with some friends, etc.</p>
<p>If anyone doubling up or who knows people that are could post about their experiences, that would be great.</p>
<p>Doubling majoring doesn't necessarily mean you will lack a social life. It depends on what two majors you are going to choose. If you double major as bioengineering and pharmachalogy chem then expect long hours. If you double major in communications and art history then you know what to expect as well.</p>
<p>Well, I'm triple majoring and have a minor and I have a great social life. I'm not taking any more classes than any of my other friends (except for the slackers who only take 4 classes :P). I don't see why everyone thinks that double or triple majors have to work SO much harder or it takes longer to graduate.</p>
<p>hotpiece101- I've read from a few different places that employers tend to look more at gpa. I heard that they do take the major into consideration, obviously, but that a double major would have a lesser impact on whether they'll hire you or not.</p>
<p>If there are two areas that you are really passionate about, consider a double major. If you are doing it because you think it will look good, don't. Electives should be used to explore something you are really interested in whether or not it is a double major.</p>
<p>I'm double majoring in math and physics. I'm going to be done in three years, and will have done the equivalent of a masters for math on top of normal degree requirements. I think I've only missed one home hockey game (because it conflicted with Microsoft Puzzle Challenge) and one home football game (because I had tickets for Royal Shakespeare Company). I didn't go out much because that's not my thing, but I had enough nights free to do nothing/hang out with people/stay sane. If everything goes according to plan, I'm going to be hitting up almost 40 hockey games next season.</p>
<p>I'm not sure how helpful it would be to have a double major in econ and physics, unless you're undecided between the two fields. I'm mainly getting the major in physics because I have some kind of interest in it (though not nearly as much has math), and I want to keep that window open for the future.</p>
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I'm not taking any more classes than any of my other friends
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<p>I was mainly looking for answers like the one above. Do you guys usually find yourselves having to take more classes than your single-majored peers? </p>
<p>See, I'm not exactly sure if double majoring is more of a function of strategically choosing your classes or taking a higher number of them.</p>
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If you are doing it because you think it will look good, don't. Electives should be used to explore something you are really interested in whether or not it is a double major.
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<p>I think this is also a fair answer. I'm looking to enrich my college experience, and that means taking mostly the classes that I find interesting. I'm focusing on becoming a Physics major, because I've always enjoyed the subject in high school. I'm just seeing if there are any tangible benefits to taking an additional major - whether any new postgraduate opportunities in academia or finance could open up because of my decision. But my prime interest is definitely in Physics.</p>
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hotpiece101- I've read from a few different places that employers tend to look more at gpa. I heard that they do take the major into consideration, obviously, but that a double major would have a lesser impact on whether they'll hire you or not.
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<p>I thought that as well. Could anyone else comment?</p>
<p>I'll consider a minor as well. Thanks guys.</p>
<p>I have absolutely no first-hand knowledge (not out in the workforce, yet!), but from what I have heard, there is relatively little tangible benefit to double-majoring in two relatively unrelated topics, like econ and physics, except to widen your pool of potential job offers in your fields of interest (i.e. you would be suitable for both more physics-oriented careers and more economics-oriented careers). However, sometimes double-majoring can make you much more desireable to a firm. For example, economics at the undergraduate level is often called "worthless" due to its heavy emphasis on theory. But an undergrad econ degree coupled with a math major will have top firms clamoring for you (the experience of one of my parents, now earning six figs at a consulting firm)! I think econ + physics might be tangentially beneficial in the same way. You have the theory-based education of undergrad economics, and the "mathy" mind of a physics major, two qualities that will definitely make top firms want you. I see no similar benefit to a more physics-oriented career, but if you enjoy both subjects immensely, you will definitely have a rewarding academic experience.</p>
<p>Your actual class load will depend on your school and the requirements for majoring in each topic. I don't know what school you can go to where you can juggle a triple major and a minor "with the same number of classes as all of your friends" and still learn each subject to a proficient level of depth (not mine!). I would imagine there would be a lot of overlap in the math classes required, but physics and econ are both demanding degrees with a lot of discrete points of study involved. I would say it would be extremely tough to juggle these two majors, social life aside, for me. Of course, you could be a brilliant mathmetician, good writer, a natural physicist and/or an all-around academic superstar with great organizational skills for which the aforementioned feat would be no sweat!</p>
<p>IMHO, if you are unsure what you can handle, there's the choice of taking on the challenge one semester and seeing how it pans out. If you fail, you still have one degree and a lot of relevant coursework. Of course, you need to be objective about it and be wary of "pushing through" even if things are becoming too tough. Anyway, good luck.</p>
<p>My triple major is international relations (interdisciplinary), politics, and Latin American studies (interdisciplinary). I was never planning on even being a politics MINOR, but based upon the courses I took my freshman year for the other two majors, I got a politics minor without even trying. I only have to take 2 additional classes to major in it so what the hell. My minor is anthropology which overlaps in both of my interdisciplinary majors. I can learn each subject in depth because I don't just take classes- I live the classes. I do internships that cut across my various majors and minor. I participate in clubs and activities relating to them. I actively pursue political endeavors that will strengthen my knowledge of my areas of study. I also do a lot of volunteering in my areas of study. </p>
<p>My majors and minors are the only way I could ever learn my area of focus fully. If I just did LAS, I would only have a broad sweep of it. Combining it with IR, I learn more about the interplay between LA and the US and also comparatively how things are done in LA that are different in other parts of the world. Combining both with politics further deepens my insights.</p>
<p>I don't have to take any extra classes because my college allows me to double count some courses. Not to mention that in my freshman year, I only took 5 classes each semester and walked out with a politics minor and only needing a science class to finish my core requirements. Everything else is already out of the way. At my school, EVERYONE double majors and has at least 1 minor. It's very strange not to. </p>
<p>The way I have figured out roughly my schedule, I will graduate on time despite spending a full year abroad (and my college does not count summer classes at other schools) and will be able to do a senior honors project (so I can graduate with honors) that will encompass at least 2 if not all 3 of my majors. I also have time to explore other interests. For example, next semester I am still only taking 5 classes, but I'm picking up my 5th language: Russian. That's not going to hurt me at all in terms of graduating on time or taking additional classes. I can still study Russian and only take 5 classes.</p>
<p>Brandeis. We have as close to an open curriculum as you can get without actually having an open curriculum. While we have a core curriculum (creative arts, social science, non western, humanities, quantitative reasoning, science, 2 writing intensive, foreign language for 3 years or equivalent, and 2 PEs), all can be fit into almost any major. Only my creative arts course did not fit into any of my majors, but that was my own choice and I easily could have picked something that would have fit. My science will also fit into my major. Its a little bit more of a struggle for people majoring in a pure science or math because you have to get the social science aspects of it, but most of our pure math and science kids have a 2nd major in Heath, Science, Society, and Policy or psychology or economics, which makes it easier.</p>
<p>oh, then you are just down the street from me. i go to Harvard.</p>
<p>how do you like boston?</p>
<p>but yeah, i am struggling to pull together my econ major/math minor, language certificate and all my core requirements. i just finished freshman year, and only 1 class i took will count towards the core, one will count towards my major and one will count towards my minor. that said, i still have 6 more classes to take for my minor, like 13 for my major, and 5 for my core. not to mention i want to study abroad. i have no idea how i'm going to do it all</p>
<p>I'm actually right down the street from you NOW because I'm taking summer classes at Harvard. Sadly, Brandeis doesn't take any summer classes (and I was told especially not from Harvard because they're so short) so it's pretty much solely for my enjoyment. Brandeis doesn't have Portuguese so a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. </p>
<p>If you study abroad somewhere like the London School of Economics, it shouldn't be hard. It's a full year though so I'm not sure how that would work out for you (that's where I'm hoping to go). I don't know how Harvard is about taking study abroad credits- but I know it's a huge hurdle for Brandeis (I think they only take 2 courses a semester), but it's doable. Harvard has it's own programs abroad so it should not be that hard for you to continue. </p>
<p>You have about 24 classes to go, give or take. In your next 3 years, if you only take 4 classes a semester, that's 24 courses. Most people take 5 so that's even better for you. You could also always spend a summer at Harvard and take a class or classes while interning, or take classes at your home university.</p>
<p>What exactly is a language citation? Is that just your required amount of foreign language classes? Taking 4 classes plus a low level foreign language is not tough at all. The first 3 to 4 levels of college foreign language- specifically the Romance languages- are very easy. It would be a different story if you were taking Chinese or Arabic, but having Spanish as a 5th class would not be too hard: especially because there is tons of support for you as you learn such a popular language.</p>