<p>Is HOD a difficult major at Vandy? Also, if I don't get accepted at Vandy, do any other colleges have similar majors?</p>
<p>From what i've heard, it's not difficult at all ... when I visited, students were joking about HOD classes consisting of "fingerpainting" and the like</p>
<p>I hate all the crap that HOD gets. It may not be pre-med or mechanical engineering but it's very work intensive and includes many more long research and analysis papers than most other majors.</p>
<p>TransferMal:</p>
<p>Obviously you're familiar with the HOD major. Could you tell me what the workload is like?</p>
<p>
[quote]
I hate all the crap that HOD gets. It may not be pre-med or mechanical engineering but it's very work intensive and includes many more long research and analysis papers than most other majors.
[/quote]
^ LOLOL</p>
<p>The HOD major here is a joke. If you are half smart you will have no problem getting A/A-.</p>
<p>departed is a joke. HOD involves just as if not more work than other majors here, albeit having an unusually high average GPA.</p>
<p>callingducks,
There's a reason Vandy people look down upon HOD majors. I'm sorry if you have been reduced to that group.</p>
<p>I'm an Economics and HOD double major. I can't say that one is harder than the other. They just involve different skill sets and the classes are structured differently. Many of my Econ classes consist of 3 exams with a few problems sets somewhere. HOD involves a lot more presentations and writing papers than Economics. Looking at the workload over an entire semester, I probably spend just as many hours for a particularly HOD class as I do Economics for identical grades. Perhaps Economics is not very difficult and I happened to pick the two easiest majors on campus.</p>
<p>HOD classes do usually have higher grades. However, professors have been instructed to award fewer As. It is still rare for students to receive a C in HOD classes, though it does happen. Peabody College does award A+s, while A&S does not. This doesn't affect your Vanderbilt GPA, but may affect the GPA that graduate/professional schools use to evaluate you. That is a nice bonus.</p>
<p>There are people like departed who will look down upon you for being an HOD major. Ignore them. Nearly every major on campus has negative stereotypes associated with them. What matters is whether the HOD student likes his/her major and how employers/grad schools view the major. I'm a senior and extremely satisfied with my experience in HOD. I liked the classes, my classmates, and my professors. </p>
<p>HOD is unique to Vanderbilt. I'm in the Leadership and Organizational Effectiveness track and the closest analogue to my program would probably be management. However, HOD has more of an emphasis on psychology than you would probably find at other schools. As for the other tracks, I cannot really say what the equivalent major would be at a different school.</p>
<p>That's a lot of information. I rarely check this site, but if you want to know more about Vandy, HOD, the LOE track of HOD, Econ, or anything else you can PM me and I'll try to answer your questions promptly.</p>
<p>Professional/graduate schools haven't really rewarded A+'s seeing as how no HOD majors have been accepted to med schools in the past 3 years. Now I know there were less than 10 applicants total but it's still something to consider- having the higher GPA in HOD has not paid off.</p>
<p>Perhaps this will come as a surprise to you, Departed ... but not everyone is interested in going to med school, even at Vanderbilt! The fact that no HOD majors have been accepted to med school means nothing. There were less than 10 applicants in 3 years. How many HOD grads got into their choice of Masters or PhD programs? How many secured a great job in a career of their choice? How many felt that their college program prepared them for the work they want to do in their life? This would be a better indication of the success of a program like HOD.</p>
<p>Have you ever considered that the skill set required of a top med school candidate is not the only skill set that is "good enough?" I have a daughter who certainly would be competitive as a med school track student. However, she does not enjoy science & has no interest in medicine or research. So why on earth would she want to pursue that as a career? If that means she will be looked down upon by people like you, I think she can live with that.</p>
<p>By the way, she is NOT a HOD major.</p>
<p>Unless one asks those HOD majors directly, I question how he would know whether they received any A+s or not. Those HOD students may have had zero A+s. </p>
<p>Medical schools aren't the only type of graduate/professional school. It's impossible to determine whether the slight GPA boost I've received from Peabody A+s are what caused me to be accepted at my professional school of choice. Maybe the 0.073 GPA bump due to A+s didn't influence the admission committee at all. At worst the A+ bump had no effect. It might've pushed me from the waitlist to admit pile. </p>
<p>I wouldn't be so quick to conclude that the higher GPA in HOD does not pay off. </p>
<p>Majoring in HOD because you will get a marginal boost in your GPA when applying to professional or graduate schools is shortsighted. It's just a nice bonus to know that getting a 98% rather than a 94% will be recognized somewhere. I majored in HOD because I found the material interesting. I recommend that other potential HOD students choose the major because they like the subject. If they are positive they want to go to medical school, they can certainly major in chemistry or something else if they so desire.</p>
<p>What do graduates of HOD do with their degree?</p>
<p>sorry if this seem elementary</p>
<p>I know some HOD girls who work in Consulting.</p>
<p>Departed is right on. HOD is arguably the easiest major. Albeit, the workload is intense - I will not deny that. But, from reading essay prompts, powerpoints, etc. of HOD, I can say the material itself is easy.</p>
<p>This thread is too funny. Some of you guys think HOD is actually a legit major? You've got to be kidding.</p>
<p>I'm a ME and I seriously think that HOD is legit. It's all about what you put into it; if you're interested in being a HR/ consultant at any business, they'll employ you in a heartbeat. you have to stand out for this to happen, but it will.</p>
<p>Seriously? I'm kind of surprised. Most of the MEs I know rip on it.</p>
<p>yeah, but it's probably because they don't know anything about the intentions of the people who choose to do it</p>
<p>i.e. i know the primary HR director for SCA, a european company who went to a less well-rated school (UW-madison) and did the same thing; needless to say she is making a lot</p>
<p>also, whoever said people who do HOD want to become doctors is clearly wrong because only 12 applied/year...they want to do management or be lawyers! that's what it's about.</p>
<p>but to the MARINE4LIFE, i think you should SERIOUSLY consider what you want to do (i.e. if the $250,000 is worth it for what you want to ultimately do), you can double major in things with it; and you can finish prelaw reqs. think about what you want to do, and that alone. i know a guy who is double majoring in ME and HOD...so it's up to you</p>
<p>HOD is a joke. just stop.</p>
<p>My daughter is a ChemE major at Vandy and has said she wishes making a mobile or a diorama was in her curriculum. I don't think HOD majors are held in the highest regard. My guess is they make up a lot of the high GPA's of the sororities.</p>