changing major IMMEDIATELY!!

Nihongoyo · January 2011

I need help like you wouldn't believe-and don't worry, I'm going to advising, I just wanted to know if anyone had supplemental info?
Basically, I'm a junior, 2nd sem here, and I just don't know....what I want to do major wise. I came in last semester as a declared Spanish major, picked all my classes according to it, and ended up absolutely hating my schedule from day 1. That semester was one of the most miserable, academically, even though I made friends and still had fun and such.
Now, I switched over to gender/women studies for this semester, and the feeling I got yesterday upon sitting in 2 of my classes was probably 3 times worse than last semester. A feeling of being utterly disinterested (not that I'm not for women's rights! but the material bored me and I'm just not as uberly passionate as other people), and being stuck...

I looked at other majors FAST on the schedule and most classes are taken. What am I supposed to do, do you think? Stick it out again? Drop out? Freak out? Go to an advisor like I said and just tell them everything and hope it works out? Switch into inter disc studies!? Help!!

Waiting4College · January 2011

do they even let you switch majors as a transfer?

definitely work on deciding classes as advance as possible from now on. as for classes now, its true most impacted classes are long full but at this point its in your best interest to enroll in courses which are open and you still might be interested in pursuing as a major-or you could add yourself to the waitlist for these classes and pray a ton of people drop. just dont drop your current classes too because you might end falling below the minimum.

either way, talk to an advisor ASAP (although advising office lines are worst this time around)

BPkid101 · January 2011

I hate to be a ****, but you are hilarious. spanish as a major? gender studies? ***!!!

good luck Jeremy, at this point if I were you I would go sign up for DSP drop to 12 units or less for this semester figure out what you want to do make up some classes over summer and use DSP to stay an extra semester or two once you figure out what you want.

if employment is important to you after college dont do gender studies, rofl.

edbraga · January 2011

If you stick to your current courses, it will basically be last semester all over again. Talk to an advisor about it. I think you're finding classes that are unfulfilling and should focus on finding your interest.

paniikd · January 2011

E-mail professors of classes you want and sit in on others. Still attend those that you have, so you dont get dropped, but maybe you can get a few other classes you want to balance your schedule out. Seriously, e-mailing teachers of full classes has NEVER failed for me. They will normally give you a realistic idea of your chances of getting into a full class and best yet they will remember you if you try to sit in...instructors like determination and e-mailing plus sitting in almost always works! You have to have a lot of time around your current schedule to sit in on classes. Just make a mock schedule and fill every hour until next week!

Lemaitre1 · January 2011

With a record number of applicants and a requirement due to the budget situation to reduce enrollment, the UC system is under tremendous pressure to move students through the system as fast as possible to make room for new students. Therefore, UC Berkeley is not likely to allow you to hang around there for years deciding on what you want to major in even if you can afford it. The second semester of your junior year is way too late in your college career to be trying to choose a major. To transfer as a junior foreign language major you must have had to take introductory and intermediate courses in Spanish at your cc so you can hardly claim that you had no idea how boring studying Spanish would be at Berkeley.

The choice of Woman's Studies for a new major seems to have been made on the basis of it is not Spanish. You now appear to be on the verge of making yet another impulsive poorly thought out decision concerning a major. It seems like you want to be a college student but do not have any idea what the point of being a college student is.

You are now essentially asking what you can major in that will be interesting to you, has no lower division prerequisites and can be completed in three semesters. I would not expect a very long list. It would probably be best to take a leave of absence from Berkeley until you have a clear idea of what it is you want to accomplish there.

Nihongoyo · January 2011

Thanks for all your responses! I went to some advisers in the past day and really worked hard at figuring out what I should do next. I am totally relieved that I can still enroll in classes, and I think I have figured out, rather quickly, what I'm going to be doing.

Case closed

That will be: interdisciplinary studies. Useless? Who knows. At least it'll be a tailored degree :P

Lemaitre1 · January 2011

That sounds like a much better course of action than trying to choose a new narrowly focused major at this point of your college career. In a year and a half you will be a college graduate and if you do develop a strong interest in something during that time it is very possible you could pursue it further in graduate school.

changing major IMMEDIATELY!!

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