I have a deep interest towards plants and all my EC’s relate to my interest in plants. What major should I apply under, in general?
Should it be Environmental Science/Studies? Earth Science? Botany? Help me???
Depends on the college. Some colleges have a broad biology major covering botany and other subareas, while others have multiple biology majors. You may have to look in each college’s catalog to see which major is most suitable for your interests.
Environmental science may be somewhat interdisciplinary (which may be suitable for your interests, or may not be), and earth science is commonly more geology. But check each college’s catalog.
1 Like
@ucbalumnus At Georgetown, they have an Environmental Biology Major, so I might look into that. What about environmental studies?
Plus at CMU, they don’t have environmental science but biological sciences, so I don’t know how that will be @ucbalumnus
Look in each college’s catalog description of the major and department web site to see how well it aligns with your interests.
1 Like
Like you, I have a spike (if that’s the correct term) for ichthyology, fish breeding, and aquatic plants.
I considered environmental science, environmental biology. However, for plants and botany, I’m sure Ecology and Cellular Biology, along with Ecological and Evolutionary Biology are key majors for botany prospects.
What do you want to do with that interest, though?
I mean, yes, there are all of the biological and environmental science type majors that can focus on plants. Is research on the edge of what we know and understand about plant life (on a micro level) what interests you?
On more of a macro level, there is also the whole cluster of agriculture majors that focus on optimizing the growth and health of plants as crops.
Or if your interest in plants veers toward their role in planned public spaces, gardens, etc., then landscape architecture would be an option.
You can select “plants” as your area of interest here and see a range of options in Cornell’s ag school: https://cals.cornell.edu/education/degrees-programs
Plus https://landscape.cals.cornell.edu/
Also look at the range of majors at SUNY ESF - from biotechnology to conservation biology to landscape architecture to Forest Health https://www.esf.edu/admissions/programs.htm
2 Likes
@aquapt I want to go into research of plants and I did a lot of things in high school related to plants, part time produce clerk, founder of a few local projects for plants, wrote some short stories about plants, etc. I really enjoy plants and that’s my hobby
@HKimPOSSIBLE Should I still look into environmental science also?
@HKimPOSSIBLE I like learning about fruits, vegetables, and plants. I also have some awards in Environmental science (National and State) so I just want to know
In my opinion, knowing that you have this passion, you’re better off looking at colleges that have agriculture programs, so that you can participate in research that relates directly to the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, and plants.
https://cals.cornell.edu/education/degrees-programs/plant-sciences-major-minor
https://caes.ucdavis.edu/students/academics/majors/plantsci
https://spes.vt.edu/
https://admissions.purdue.edu/majors/a-to-z/plant-science.php
https://stockbridge.cns.umass.edu/program/plant-soil-science
https://catalog.ufl.edu/UGRD/colleges-schools/UGAGL/PLS_BS/
https://agsci.psu.edu/academics/undergraduate/majors/plant-sciences
and so on.
1 Like
If you are interested in a LAC, Ohio Wesleyan and Connecticut College both have botany majors.
1 Like
@aquapt I feel like environmental science is quite broad and ur right about looking into some programs with agriculture. I replay like Cornell CAS and I’m definitely applying there.
@dadof2d Should I also look into Environmental Science, Biology, and Environmental Studies also?
I meant Cornell CALS
@domt73
That would be entirely up to you. I would pay close attention to the course offerings if you are interested in plants/botany. Some bio programs are focused on human biology. You might start researching where botany, ES, and bio majors end up job wise and see what appeals most to you.
1 Like
There’s really no point debating majors just based on their names. There are several ways to go about this:
- Think about what you want to do after college. What are the educational requirements to get those jobs or get into those grad programs? Also consider supply and demand. There’s a huge oversupply of former premeds with undergrad bio degrees; if you’re certain about a more specialized niche, there’s no point in ending up with a resume that’s indistinguishable from theirs. As I said before, a lot of the best “plant research” opportunities are in the agriculture industry, so a major that will funnel you into recruitment for those opportunities could be the best fit.
- Choose a few example colleges and look up the actual course requirements for the majors you’re considering. “Enviro” programs are going to emphasize a whole lot of knowledge base beyond what’s directly related to plants. (Plants are one component of environmental systems - understanding the systems level is important but how much time do you want to spend studying the ecosystems and social systems and other components of those systems and tools for studying those systems (i.e. GIS)…?) A general biology program will also be very broad and possibly tilt toward the study of human/animal biology. But look for yourself, at what classes you’d actually be taking, and decide if that’s the emphasis you want. For that matter you could do marine bio too, and spend your career studying kelp or algae (I know, technically not a plant, but photosynthetic and very important) or whatever.
I mean, all people can do is point to the options; the only way you’ll know what you prefer is by looking more closely at what each would actually entail and where it can take you post-college. All I can suggest is that you not let the quest for the most elite school possible cause you to overlook great options that could steer you directly toward fields of inquiry and research that you would truly love. I mean sure, Cornell is best-of-both-worlds because it has Ivy gravitas and an ag school. But I’d encourage you to keep some excellent schools like VT and Purdue in play, and not view Cornell as the only ag school that’s “elite” enough to consider. If your interests are “pointy” and you’re confident in that, choose a route that fits and values that.
2 Likes
Is it okay if I can apply under a different major, like Spanish, but I have national and international experience within it, but I can explain my double up subjects and why I doubled up.