<p>Such as he/she is a straight A student in Chemical Engineering but called you to say “mom/dad I have found my calling, I am going into Survey of Art History!” what would your reaction be?</p>
<p>I’d encourage interest in the Art History but try to get him to double major. That’s what my ds is doing … Added. A music-related major.</p>
<p>If your kid does t want to major in engineering…they should not major in engineering. Period. </p>
<p>And I would not advocate a double major with art and engineering.</p>
<p>My kid who majored in the arts is earning a living working in the arts.</p>
<p>My kid who majored in engineering NEVER plans to work in that field. She completed the degree, and did well. But decided engineering was not her cup of tea. </p>
<p>She should have totally switched majors.</p>
<p>I’d say "tell me more " and then I’d listen. In general, parents talk toooo much. And there is no such thing as a “lesser” major. There are good matches, and bad matches, imho. I agree that a minor or concentration or double major is a nice pragmatic approach. Plenty of people work in art fields. Why not you?</p>
<p>Plans for jobs, etc. after graduation are only conceptual. Even STEM majors are not guaranteed a job, despite current perceptions. </p>
<p>I told my parents I was going to major in Visual and Environmental Studies at the end of freshman year. I’d been originally thinking of something more academic. I went to architecture school and have been happily employed as an architect ever since. (Well a couple of short lay-offs.) </p>
<p>I want my kids to major in what they are good at and what makes them happy. One knew he’d be a CS major starting in 2nd grade, the other hadn’t a clue, but discovered International Relations when he was applying to college. In retrospect he thinks he could have fulfilled his goals better majoring in history, but by the time he figured that out it was too late. Either major would have prepared him for what he wants to do.</p>
<p>Why is art history a lesser major? Aren’t museums etc also important?</p>
<p>I’d probably suggest combining it with arts management and art conservation (chemistry, pretty much). </p>
<p>Pulling up a chair and some popcorn.</p>
<p>stardmom, I’m going to join you and to bring an adult beverage! Any specific ones you like? ;)</p>
<p>It occurred to me that my original answer seemed to imply that I though my ds’s second major was “less than.” He is the one who doesn’t think the major is well-constructed, but it’s all the school has in that area so it’s what he is going with. It was a surprise add-on to what he always planned to major in (govt) so in that sense it does feel like an “extra” thing, but I didn’t mean to imply that a music-related major was less desirable.</p>
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<p>I went thru this with S1. He was straight A’s in ChemE and wanted to change (he doesn’t have an eng’g mind like S2 does). I persuaded him to do change to Math (which he LOVES) and do minors in his other interests. I think it made him into an attractive candidate when he applied to PhD programs. </p>
<p>So, I would encourage the double major or major/minor route…or at least change the first major to something else employable and do the art-thing as the second major or minor.</p>
<p>My kids aren’t trust-fund-babies so they needed to major in something that would be employable. lol</p>
<p>These threads always make me want to smash my head into concrete. It just kills me that some people really do think that there are only a handful of “top tier” majors and that everything else is “lesser”. My ex had a father like that, who refused to pay for college if he didn’t choose engineering. Well, that led to decades of resentment and unhappiness, coupled with a nice, employable and profitable career. I’d rather be less affluent and happy, myself.</p>
<p>I know of almost no one with only a single talent or ability, nor anyone who has stuck with the same career they studied for in college. You also never know what will happen. An architect major I knew had a car accident that ruined his ability to draw. He went into business with his dad and now runs a successful plumbing business. Very successful. My brother left college and is now an award-winning contractor. One of my D’s best teachers used to be a programmer. </p>
<p>I originally came to CC because my older D was looking to switch from majoring in business to cooking. I was told in PM’s that she was lazy, ungrateful and a bit of a loser. Luckily a nice person suggest community college, and it turns out we have an excellent culinary program right here in Seattle, Three years later she is thriving at a restaurant that has continued to promote her, she is the sole female cook, an assistant manager, and supporting herself without a trust fund. If you have a passion or interest at which you’re good, it’s never a “lesser” choice.</p>
<p>I’m with you Sseamom. Is anything not STEM, or business related considered “lesser”?</p>
<p>My kids know they need to be self supporting when they get out of college. So I would encourage them to research their possible career path, internship or research opportunities, paid grad school options, etc. with whatever major they go with. But as long as they finish in four years, they are responsible for making the decision. So far one of mine was a political science and public policy double major – she is a real go-getter with a great personality and was Phi Beta Kappa. 2+ years after graduation she is well employed and keeps getting promoted. So that worked out… #2 appears to be heading for a CS major, maybe with a secondary concentration in visual arts. </p>
<p>“stardmom, I’m going to join you and to bring an adult beverage! Any specific ones you like?”</p>
<p>Uh oh, @bunsenburner, little early to be drinking around here!</p>
<p>It really depends upon the situation. If the kid disliked his/her current major, no dispute here. If they were a freshman, no problem either. But if they were halfway through their junior year, in a major that they liked, but just found one they liked a little more, I would not support it. Some people just like to switch majors endlessly so they can stay in school forever, on Mommy and Daddy’s dime. And who is paying? Hey parents, I want to switch majors to something much lower paying, that will take me an additional two years to complete. Won’t it be fun? Especially since you’re paying the 60K/yr!</p>
<p>Most situations are very different. I would certainly encourage a minor or double major if possible. Some schools make it very easy to double major, but it depends upon what stage they’re at. If they hate what they’re majoring in, they really should not be doing it. But they ought to have figured that out before senior year.</p>
<p>Ashamed at myself for thinking that they were going into a “lesser” major.
It takes all types of people for the world to go round. Imagine how boring it would be if we were all engineers. Personally, I love museums and would be honored if my child wanted to work in a field that brings joy to so many. </p>
<p>I’m unsure if the OP used the term “lesser” to reflect his/her own POV. I think, perhaps, it was used in the way of “what some might judge as lesser.” </p>
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<p>Majoring in a STEM field, even engineering/CS is no guarantee someone will get employment or be employable. Just look at the legions of unemployed engineering/CS graduates after the dot-com bust of 2001, ChemEs who had to drive Taxis or perform odd jobs in the '70s, civil engineers getting laid off due to industrial cyclical reasons*, etc.</p>
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<li>An older uncle who had this happen during the '70s ended up being a SAHP for a few years in a period when doing so was still unusual and not very socially accepted. Did I mention he received his degrees(BS and MS in engineering) from a highly respectable engineering school?</li>
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<p>A former supervisor in one of my very first jobs recounted how back in the '80s, he had a colleague with a domineering father with the exact opposite mentality. </p>
<p>That colleague already compromised by obeying his wealthy father’s insistence to attend Princeton or else he’ll not only receive no financial support for college, but also be disinherited and banished from the family. Where the colleague refused to budge was to insist on majoring in engineering even though his father felt that was “too blue collar” for a scion from an old well-off WASP family. </p>
<p>End result…said colleague bided his time humoring his domineering father until he received his inheritance in his early 20s and not too long afterwards, had nothing more to do with his father from that point on. And the father still wondered why his son won’t visit him in nursing home…</p>
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<p>It is always afternoon someplace…</p>
<p>It’s Sunday in a long holiday weekend, there’s no such thing as “too early” for drinking 
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