Double Science major and two languages - too much?

Student Lounge College Life
1

<p>I'm going to be starting at Purdue in the fall and am planning on doing a double major in geology/geophysics and applied physics but am also required to take a language. However, I am thoroughly torn between Russian and German and I want to take both, but I don't know if that is practical. The last two years of high school I took the maximum course loads that we were allowed with quite a few AP classes in the mix (9 classes each day, 1 hr each) so I am used to a lot of work. </p>

<p>To get to the point, do you guys think it is possible to do both languages and my double major? If I had to choose one, which would be most useful? Oh, I am also planning on using those majors to possibly do something related to planetary sciences or astronomy, but that obviously could change.</p>

<p>I also speak quite a bit of Spanish, but wouldn't consider myself fluent.</p>

2

<p>It’s probably not practical, but you don’t need to decide right now. You can start taking classes in all 4 fields and see where your interests lead you.</p>

3

<p>Geez, take it easy–you haven’t even started college yet. Take whichever classes interest you, but don’t bite off more than you can chew. If you’re worrying about how useful your classes are, just remember that there’s a difference between liberal arts classes and professional classes (like engineering, business, nursing, etc.).</p>

4

<p>I say keep the majors and audit the languages. That’s what I plan on doing. You could do it for credit but that would mean you’re putting a lot of credit hours into an already full schedule. That way you wouldn’t have to worry about exams/hw and just focus on the verbal part. </p>

<p>After all, when you’re learning languages abroad, you’re not going to be tested. You’re going to be put in a situation where you will be speaking. Don’t learn from textbooks. Just the professor and classmates.</p>

5

<p>I would say to take the 100 levels of both classes and see which you prefer. </p>

<p>Taking two languages is totally doable though, just difficult.</p>

6

<p>Try an intro class of each, then decide on one. Only keep the second one later if you end up having more time than you think, or maybe you’ll have to also take classes over the summer.</p>