@thumper1 Yes, I understand she can change majors as much as she wants. I didn’t miss that point, it just seems like a waste of time and money to me.
@ucbalumnus is right…we can afford it, but when she is a senior, her younger sister will be a freshman in college. And the year after that, her younger brother will be a freshman in college. So I’d prefer to keep it capped at 4.5 or 5 years!
I am also fairly certain the Maryland has a program that caps attendance…I am looking at that now.
@NLEPeeps My kid, DS1, did a lot of theater. Loved it from middle school to high school. He is a very performance oriented kid. Confident on stage with a lot of dance training. However, working in a theater/performance field is different than the fun of school performances. There is a high that they have from the performance and a withdrawal they go through after. Very normal and seems to happen each time. If she had not had vocal and dance training, she might be at a disadvantage. There is so, so much competition. DS1 is currently studying Computer Engineering. He is a junior. He gets his performance fix by being part of the ballroom dance team. It is one thing to enjoy an activity and another to base your life around it. Maybe theater will be the right thing but I would job shadow to get a more accurate POV. It isn’t like high school.
@DoinResearch YES! I have been on that website and had encouraged her to look at some of those schools over a year ago when we began our search…but at the time small liberal arts held no appeal.
I think we’ll be taking a second look at a few of those schools now! 
Say what? You want her to have the opportunity to explore lots of options. Is THAT a waste of time? And money?
Even at smaller LACs there are graduation requirements within the majors that make exploring lots and lots of things…not possible.
My kids both went to colleges with core course requirements. No exceptions (unless you could fulfill some with AP credits). My performing arts major and my engineering/biology major both spread their core course requirements over all four years of college. They actually liked the variety these courses brought to their major intensive schedules.
Good luck to you as you explore these college acceptances through a different lens.
@gearmom I’ll be honest…trading in a major like Engineering, where we are fairly certain of good job prospects, as compared to a fine arts major - that terrifies me!!!
Working in performing arts is tough in the real world, since there are lots of aspirants, but few who get enough work to make a career out of it (it tends to be an elite-or-bust field). Those trying to make performing arts their primary job commonly work in second jobs to pay the bills.
On the other hand, some who work in computing do performing arts for fun (as part of some community dance, music, or theater group) as an “extracurricular”.
@NLEPeeps She needs to speak with real people in theater to see how incredibly hard it is to succeed. She has not had years of training that her global competition will have had. One school play? A few years of not getting great parts in college and she might not enjoy it so much. Maybe she is amazing. IDK. But that is a tough field to make a living in unless you are the elite few.
Have her audition for competitive parts outside of the high school bubble.
Hey I am actually in a somewhat similar position! I am a high school senior and I don’t know if I want to do bio (pre-med) or economics. A lot of people have suggested that I actually do a double major, with the intent to drop one of them as soon as I decide which one I want to pursue. This would be preferable to a lot of the exploratory programs (such as Letters and Sciences at UMD) that are really just for people who have zero idea what they want to pursue. Is it possible for your daughter to double major in drama and computer engineering? There will probably be some complication since engineering and drama won’t be in the same department, but I am sure it is possible. Plus, if she can decide which one to drop after 1 semester, I am pretty sure she can graduate without spending any extra time or money!
@NLEPeeps You know what I would consider before you spend a quarter of a million dollars perhaps. A gap year with the best vocal and dance training. Have her work in theater and audition. Maybe she changes her mind again. Maybe not but it would At least be an informed decision for both of you. You could gage her chances against the competition.
You may want to make your own thread.
It is possible to do premed courses alongside an economics major, and much more easily than engineering with performing arts.
The best vocal and dance training costs more than a year at UMD. Especially for a kid who is late to the game (i.e. not been performing since childhood, has representation/head shots, etc.
There is nothing wrong with a kid being interested in theater late in the game. But one doesn’t need to major in it to love it; she can try out for plays at college as a linguistics major or a history major. Why shove the kid into a box? She wants to go to a college where she can explore. Sounds to me like the perfect candidate for Delaware (et al).
I did this (switched from engineering to humanities) at a state flagship and graduated within four years. The only difference between me and my fellow humanitarians is that I took higher classes in math and science.
She doesn’t want to do anything that extreme…she just wants her options open…I think she realizes while theatre is something that was fun to do, she is not prepared to do it to that extent.
@NLEPeeps - You should count yourself fortunate to have such a child! A very high percentage of college sophomores change their majors, many of them have to add a semester. Your kiddo is ahead of most. Just go with the flow and watch DD thrive! Best of luck.
@thumper1 wrote: Say what? You want her to have the opportunity to explore lots of options. Is THAT a waste of time? And money?
Yes, I believe it is possible for too much exploration: a waste of time and money. Especially when there are two younger siblings following closely behind who we will be paying for. She can explore, but i’d like her to explore within the confines of about 4 to 4.5 years. Luckily, she is a really thoughtful kid, and cognizant of the costs.
i’m sorry, i can’t quite figure out how to quote properly in this forum - but thank you.
@glido Thank you! I appreciate that. I’m trying to keep it in perspective, I really am!
@tutumom That’s good to know…I think she would enjoy and thrive in humanities as well. I worry about job prospects though…since many of the fields we discuss (education, politics, law, etc) she doesn’t seem interested in.
@NLEPeeps Sorry. I’m confused. She wants to change majors away from CE or not?
@gearmom She has always been solidly a CE major. Now she’s second guessing. Throwing stuff out there (screenwriting, drama) that sounds like fun. Whereas before she was 100% on CE, now she is more like 50%. I don’t think she is throwing it away completely, she wants to see what’s out there.
However, she’s a VERY realistic kid and knows she isn’t suddenly going to declare a drama major and wind up on Broadway 7 years from now.
NLE- the kids who take 6 years to graduate do so for complex reasons but virtually all of them involve money- running out of it, needing to go home to get a job to help support the family, etc. Even switching majors (a couple of times) shouldn’t add to the 8 semesters needed for a Bachelor’s. One of mine switched 6 or 7 times- graduated in 8 semesters, had time for a part time job, magna cum laude, lots of outside activities.
You hear horror stories of the kids who start in engineering and switch to the school of education or public health and it takes them years to get back on track but that’s not typical. A kid who listens to her adviser (take this, don’t take that) is going to have the freedom to explore AND graduate in 4 years.
Your D may end up in a career that doesn’t even exist today. So set the ground rules- “we can pay for 8 semesters. We will always love you and support you emotionally but our financial support ends 60 days (or 90 if you are exceptionally generous) after you graduate.”
You’d be surprised how many incredible careers are out there for new grads who take initiative and don’t mind starting at the bottom.