Stuck for what to minor in...

College Majors
1

<p>I'm currently a freshman in college and am definitely majoring in German and Linguistics. I'm having some controversy about what I'd like to study in the future, and because of this, I'm not sure what to minor in. I've become pretty interested in computational linguistics, and if I were to decide to pursue this, I'd minor in computer science and math. But I'm not sure how much my heart is in it or whether or not I'd want to pursue a Ph.D in this. Also, a minor in CS and math will fill up my schedule, so I won't have a chance to study abroad or really explore any other courses. On the other hand, one thing I am definitely passionate about is language. I'm at an advanced level for German, and I've been teaching myself Hebrew. I would definitely be interested in minoring in Hebrew, and this would leave more room in my schedule to study abroad in either Germany or Israel, which I'd really really really enjoy. Also, I'd like eventually to do translation (I don't think I'd want to be a computational linguist for the rest of my life). But then another problem is that I'm taking out loans to pay for undergrad, and depending on how smartly I play my cards, a job in comp ling could wind up paying more than any job with German or Hebrew could pay. I want to be able to pay off my loans. </p>

<p>It's not a simple question of interest vs. money. I'm very interested in both comp ling and foreign language. I definitely have much more of a passion for the latter, but I don't know if it's the only thing I want to do. I've tried contacting an advisor about this, but they haven't answered. Anyone have some advice, or can anyone point out a logical flaw of mine?</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

2

<p>Have you taken a programming class yet? If not, it’s too soon for you to be thinking about a PhD in computational linguistics. In my own experience most students have very strong feelings about programming and algorithmic thinking - they either love it or hate it.</p>

<p>Try to plan your schedule one semester at a time for the time being and allow yourself to do some exploring. You will have to think about your job or graduate school plans eventually, but that can wait until the end of your sophomore year ;)</p>

3

<p>Yeah, I tend to get a bit ahead of myself with planning out my schedule. I’ve never taken a programming class, and I’ve only taken an intro level linguistics course, so I don’t even know what aspects of linguistics I’ll truly like. I just get apprehensive about finding out what I want to study/pursue in grad school too late. I want to avoid summer classes because the financial aid offered for them is pretty weak, and I’m trying to minimize how much I have to take out in loans. I would be perfectly comfortable living off the salary I’d make working in academia if it weren’t for loans. </p>

<p>Anyway, thanks for your advice. I’ll try to slow it down.</p>