<p>Any downsides to triple-majoring? Not really concerned about the positives, since I am considering doing it for my own pleasure, if you will (oh, and development, right.) Basically, it's Philosophy, Politics & Economics. I do have to write at least two thesis (and defend them), and pass orals for Econ. </p>
<p>Any thoughts would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Depending on the GEs, general rigor, and major requirements of your school, the biggest downside is that you might go crazy.</p>
<p>Another possible downside is that in your pursuit of breadth, you lose a LOT of depth. You might cover a lot of ground, but will risk becoming truly adept at any single subject. This could potentially look poor on your transcript because you'll have many more lower-division classes than other students. It could also make life difficult when it comes to thesis time (I had a friend with a single major that was very, very broad--CogSci--and this was a big problem for him. He knew enough about all of these different fields--neuro, psych, CS, engineering--to know what he wanted to write about, but not enough about any of them to actually write it). In general, a triple major could show either more or less passion. The interpretation is kind of up in the air.</p>
<p>That said, this is not an "all over the board" combination of degrees, which is good. At some schools (Claremont McKenna College, for one), PPE (phil/poli/econ) is an actual major. Have you considered researching some of these degrees and attempting to design your own combined major?</p>
<p>So anyway, for me, downsides are loss of time and loss of depth. Also, I don't know what the thesis requirement is like at your school, but be careful not to underestimate it. I know numerous students who dropped double/dual majors in their senior years, after fulfilling every single requirement but the thesis, because doing two or a combined was just unworkable. This would make the losses of time/depth even more unfortunate. You could end up a single major with a double minor, which I think would be a poor choice.</p>
<p>As someone who had a major, minor, and lot of GEs, and didn't get to take many electives in college, I'd <em>personally</em> urge you to narrow your focus or see whether there's a way to combine/self-design this course of study.</p>