<p>Hey everyone, first of all I just registered here…I’m a junior at a high school in Maryland. I started seriously looking at colleges last summer, and Brown caught my interest (even though I think it’s a reach). I’ll definitely drive up to Rhode Island this summer. </p>
<p>Anyway I was browsing the website and saw the list of majors (or “concentrations”). I want to double major in Biology and most likely Economics, but I also have a strong interest in Anthropology - is there such a thing as a minor at Brown? I surfed the website for a while but I couldn’t find anything. </p>
<p>I know it has a very unique academic program compared to other schools, with the decision making in the hands of the students. </p>
<p>Maybe they’re called something else, like distractions.</p>
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<p>For pretty good reasons, we don't offer minors.</p>
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<p>Alright. It's more of a side interest for me, not something I'd pursue as a career. </p>
<p>What are the drawbacks though? I don't know about anything really wrong with minor programs.</p>
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<p>Of they're intellectually vapid devoid of any merit. Since we do advertise the fact that we don't even calculate a GPA and we'd like people to look at the complete transcript, they'll see what courses you took anyway.</p>
<p>It's wrong to have things just so that someone can add another title to their resume even if it doesn't mean anything. If we have concentrations that are required 8-10 courses, as some ABs are, how can we say that taking 4-6 of those courses in intellectually complete in someway that you've gained a new level of expertise. What do the 2-4 courses you haven't taken have that you could graduate with one and not with the other? If, without these courses, you cannot consider yourself prepared as a disciplinarian, if they're that essential, then isn't there something wrong with not having those courses?</p>
<p>More than that, we're seeking to inspire our students to actually take a wide variety of courses and explore, to exploit the open curriculum. Students generally flock to anything that allow them to feel judged in less words-- John Smith, Biology and Economics with minors in Blank. It encourages consolidation which is not beneficial to a liberal arts education. Though we allow Brown students to do these things, it's not our desire. It's just not Brown.</p>
<p>There is way more to it than just that, but that's just a taste of the "problem" with minors.</p>
<p>The truth is that if you're interested enough in a subject to take 4-6 courses in it you should be doing it for the love of the material, not for yet another form of recognition. You'd be encouraged to take more courses in an area even if you've exhausted your true interest (and not taken courses in areas you're very interested in) because just a couple more gets you that treasured minor.</p>
<p>minors are kind of meaningless. it just means you took a certain number of courses in a subject. no employer will hire or not hire you based on your minors, or lack there of. </p>
<p>i think brown's view is that if you want to take x number of courses in said subject...just do it!</p>