Picking a major can be hard for many Sonoma State University students.
It often affects the classes’ students take, as well as future careers.
One-third of Sonoma State students are undeclared, according to Sonoma State’s Academic Advising Office.
The university offers 46 majors to choose from and picking one can be a daunting task for many, especially one in terms of a career or the steps students need to take to achieve their goals.
“The problem is choosing a major is not a simple thing, you can’t just look at it and pick it,” said John Kornfeld, director of undergraduate studies. “Students have to understand what the major is, start to think about what your interests are, spend time thinking about what your aptitudes are and what careers potentially connect to those. University 237 does all of that.”
University 237, a course titled Career Life Planning, is a one-unit class that offers students a chance to clarify their interests, values, skills and lifestyle preferences.
Picking a major is a not always an easy task as each major has requirements one must meet.
University 237 walks students through these steps so they know exactly what they need to do to choose an effective major.
The tools learned in the course will enable students to select the major that suits them best.
“This course looks at the big picture,” said Kornfeld, “Where do you want to go, what do you want to do with your college education? If these are your career goals, now it’s time to figure out what you need to do at SSU to get there.”
College is considered a time to evolve and learn about oneself for many.
Every student is on their own path when it comes to their education.
Being undeclared or unsure of potential career goals it not a bad thing.
Some students know right away what they want to do and enter college with a declared major, while others often need the time to really assess and evaluate what they want to do and how to get the most from their education.
University 237 will be offered in the spring semester and four sections of the course will be available to students.
The different sections will be ran differently in terms of class structure and methods of teaching depending on the instructor.
Each course section will have the same objectives in providing students with the knowledge needed in order to declare a major.
Ann Mansfield, a career adviser and instructor of the course, sees the course as beneficial to undeclared students because of the resources it provides.
Those resources work in facilitating career exploration to students and helping them navigate the decision-making process involved in choosing a major.
“[The course] connects students who are all undeclared to listen and learn from each other and gain support for where they are in relationship to choosing a college major,” said Mansfield.
Students who take this course can expect to be fully informed about the many unique majors at Sonoma State.
They can expect to have a better knowledge of their interest and how those can be applied to a major and a career.
The goal of the course is that by the end of the semester, students will be fully prepared to confidently declare a major that is right for them and enter the professional world.
