Struggling to Decide a Major at UCD

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Davis
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Hi all,
I was accepted to UC Davis for the class of 2022 as a student majoring in Sociology. For financial reasons I’ll be deferring my enrollment until the following school year (September, 2019). With recent parental discussions regarding college I am beginning to worry about my choice of major. You see, currently I’m interested in attending law school after my four years in UC Davis. Thus I believed that Sociology was an appropriate major to prepare me for my study in law. However, my father brought up two concerns that have led me to question my decision:

  1. If I were to not go to law school, perhaps due to a sudden lack of interest or other, would Sociology be adequate enough to stand on its own in finding me a substantial job?
  2. Is Sociology the best I can do at UC Davis in preparing for law school?

My father doesn’t believe that Sociology is a major that employers acknowledge or search for in applicants. Honestly, I wouldn’t know if they do or not to object to his statement, but I decided to trust him on his judgement and start researching other majors, as well as minors. Here’s what I’ve brainstormed:

Major: Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies [specializing in Social Justice, Gender Politics and Activism]
Minor: Political Science OR Sociology

Major: Psychology
Minor: Political Science OR Sociology

Major: Asian American Studies

Minor: Political Science OR Sociology

These are just my ideas. I’m also content with a major in Poli Sci/Socio and a minor in the other selection. I should be clear that I’m certainly not interested in a career in politics, to those who might think so.

So what are your thoughts? Keep in mind that the major I choose should be able to “stand on its own,” if you know what I mean. I need to find a solution that ideally would succeed alone in the workforce, if I decide on not going to law school, and support me in my pursuit of law school. In other words, I’m trying to make the best out of my next four years of education because, in today’s day, education is super expensive and we, as students, can’t afford to waste our time and money.

Anyways, sorry about this being such a long post! I felt that I needed to explain my situation completely. :'D

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You can really have any major before you apply to law school. See article below:

https://www.ucdavis.edu/majors/blog/career-paths/6-things-i-wish-i-knew-when-i-applied-law-school

btw, when I attended UCD I minored in Political Science so I could take their many constitutional law/politics classes which I found very interesting.

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@pungie2000: Just curious. UCD did grant you a deferment since you asked this question on another thread and I would like to know if it is possible other than for military service.

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@socaldad2002 Thanks! That was a helpful read. What did you major in?

@Gumbymom Yes! I spoke to a couple of representatives at UC Davis who advised me on deferring enrollment and out of state tuition. Essentially it all boiled down to providing a reasonable statement as to why you would like to defer your enrollment. I gave a short paragraph explaining that the major reason would be to establish state residency and qualify for in state tuition, but also that I could use the time to settle down in California and see my family, as well as learn how to drive. About a week and a half later I received an email stating that my request was approved!

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@pungie2000: Thank you for the information and I am glad it works out the best for you and your family.