What major should I choose?

Colleges & Universities Wesleyan University
1

<p>So I went to Wesleyan planning on being a film major, but I’ve been doing a lot of careful consideration over break and think I might change. I’ve decided that I want to go to law school. Due to the relative difficulty of the Film Major’s intro courses, as well as poor planning on my part (I took a bunch of challenging courses all over the board exploring interests) my GPA is far from fantastic. As a result I aim to finish with as strong grades as possible and focus on the LSAT.</p>

<p>My question is about which major would be best for law school. I’m not particularly optimistic about the future film courses as from what I have heard they are all fairly difficult and the professors are known for giving out few A’s. This doesn’t bode well for my GPA. Additionally, how would law schools feel about a film major? I’m afraid they would see my less than stellar GPA and think it even worse that I got that GPA majoring in Film. (In other words, I know Wesleyan’s film department is well known and highly regarded, but I’m skeptical as to whether this clout reaches all the way to law school admissions officers). I’ve heard that law school admissions wouldn’t care if an applicant majored in basket weaving, they foremost consider GPA and LSAT score.</p>

<p>So in considering other majors that interest me, that I think I would do well in, and that I believe might help prepare me better for the LSAT as well as for law school, I have come across the Philosophy major. Unfortunately, the philosophy major seems to be just as difficult. No major is an easy A at Wes though, really, and I do believe that with hard work I could potentially excel in these courses based on my performance in a previous Philosophy course (my highest grade at Wes so far). Additionally, while certain Film professors are known for being harsh graders and not being willing to give out A’s, I haven’t heard this of any philo professors. Philosophy is also the major most associated with high marks on the LSAT, an exam in which a stellar performance might make up for a lacking GPA. </p>

<p>So ultimately, my question is as follows: Do you think law schools would recognize the academic rigor that Wesleyan Film majors engage in? Would majoring in Film diversify me from other applicants and aid me in law school admission or would they think it a fruitless BA akin to Film programs at random state schools and would it either not benefit me or even serve to hinder me? And would majoring in Philosophy from Wesleyan be a better alternative?</p>

<p>Certainly philosophy would better prepare me for the LSAT, but if the Film major would be recognized by admissions or serve to diversify me and help set me apart, it might be better for me to simply stick with it.</p>

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<p>I think the first step is to figure out where your passion lies. Correlation doesn’t equal causation and just because there’s a strong correlation between philosophy majors and high scores on the LSAT, it doesn’t mean it was caused by what they learned in philosophy; it may be that philosophy attracts very smart individuals with a passion for ideas and logical thinking. By far the stronger correlation, IMHO, is the one between good grades and enthusiasm for the subject matter.</p>

<p>Secondly, I think you summed it up best when you said, “no major is an easy A at Wes, though.” That was my experience, too. In fact, it was often the non-STEM professors (language & literature, studio art, film) who were the least generous with A’s, perhaps in an effort to preclude the impression that they were “gut courses”.</p>

<p>Thirdly, yes, there is some anecdotal evidence suggesting that <em>some</em> law school adcoms will include quirky, non-social science majors in every first-year class. In fact, Philosophy may even be one of those majors. But, I wouldn’t bank on quirkiness as an “in”, especially, if your gpa doesen’t match their expectations. I also think teacher recommendations play a major role in law school admissions; I think the adcoms do read them. At least, I think they did in my case. </p>

<p>Lastly, (but, not leastly) I’m just a tad disturbed that you would have to come to an anonymous discussion board made up (almost) entirely of parents and alum for advice when there ought to be much more of it available “on the scene”, as it were. Feeling a little slumpish, are we? :(</p>

3

<p>Thanks for the prompt response.</p>

<p>When I get back to campus I plan on visiting the career resource center and getting some input from them, and I’ve got a few lunches with prominent lawyers/law school professors lined up before break ends.</p>

<p>The problem is that I really don’t know what I’m passionate about. Film is something I found interesting and developed a deep appreciation for about sophomore year of high school. I figured out I was good at it and loved learning about it and watching classic films. The thing is, plenty of people who aren’t in the film business/hollywood have a similar appreciation. It is akin to a businessman who is a lover of jazz or collector of fine art. I feel as though Film was a passion of mine, but no longer is. It was great to focus on it and learn as much as I could, and an added benefit that the programs I got involved in and this passion provided me with a great hook for college admissions. (I got into 12 of the schools I applied to, all highly regarded.) I chose Wes for film, because it was familiar and I knew I loved it. It was a daunting prospect going to a place like UChicago or UMich and perhaps getting put on a career path to something I don’t like such as finance, etc.</p>

<p>As I think about the future, I’m not so sure about the prospect of working in the film industry. While Wesleyan has a strong presence, I don’t really know if I want to become a producer of a reality TV series or editor of commercials, etc. Obviously becoming the next Michael Bay is highly appealing, but it is also highly unlikely.</p>

<p>The legal profession is something that has always fascinated me. It is prestigious, the J.D. is generally a mark of intelligence, and with a J.D. I could go on to do a number of things. Obviously right now I seriously want to be a lawyer. Entertainment law is appealing, as is corporate law.</p>

<p>This brings me to Philosophy. The fundamental questions that philosophy engages with have always seemed extremely relevant to me. That people go from day to day without engaging with these topics amazes me. After completing one of the intro Phil courses, I’ve also realized that I have a knack for philosophical inquiry and logical thinking. During the period when I was gung-ho about being a film major, I didn’t really consider the philosophy major because I associated it with academia and a limited career path. Now that I am seriously considering law school, the Philosophy major seems increasingly purposeful to me.</p>

<p>That said, I’m not really sure what my “passion” is. I don’t know that I have come across it yet, or that I fully recognize it. I have a very, very deep appreciation for Film. But the career prospects are daunting and uncertain, and I don’t really feel as though I want to have come out of four years of college as an expert on film. Rather, I would like to have some other professional career and come home at night and watch great movies with my family and share movies I enjoyed with my friends. For a period the Economics major seemed great to me. You hear about all the money on wall street, how much first year analysts make, the wealth at Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, and these things make it very attractive. That said, I’m not sure I really have what it takes to be successful in that type of world. I don’t have the business background, I don’t know how to golf (lol), I don’t ave the connections required to get the top internships that will lead to those lucrative jobs, and for the most part, I recognized that my attraction to economics stems from the lucrative career prospects and isn’t entirely genuine.</p>

<p>Law, on the other hand, appeals to me in a much more genuine way. I’d love to be an intellectual, to be well read and intelligent and wear a suit to work everyday. And unlike analyzing numbers (which who knows, I could be good at it), I believe I’ve already recognized a certain aptitude in the way I think that would be ideal for being a lawyer.</p>

<p>Of course talk to most lawyers and they will say their jobs are dull and the amount of work they have to do is great. But how many people are actually happy with their jobs? Truly, 100% happy? At the end of the day the legal profession has a certain prestige at top firms and is a great career for many.</p>

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<p>Or you could become an entertainment attorney specializing in finding interesting projects and packaging the necessary parts to turn it into a film/Network TV project.</p>

<p>Becoming a “creative producer” is one of the best jobs anywhere, I think, and a law background would help a lot.</p>

<p>Look up james Schamus, head of Focus Features, for a good description of one of the best creative producers in the business. </p>

<p>And an undergrad film degree is pretty useless in the business. Study English, math, chemistry, what have you, and go to grad school for your law degree or possibly your MFA in producing.</p>

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<p>^^it’s interesting to note, of the many Wesleyan heavy-hitters in the business, how many did <em>not</em> major in film: Matthew Weiner (COL), Carter bays (English) and Craig Thomas (also, English).</p>

<p>It sounds like the OP just needed a sounding board, a function, we alum and parents are always happy to provide. :)</p>

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<p>I just saw your post and given your objective of entering law school, I would also suggest you check out the College of Social Studies. I am a CSS grad, and one of the very few in my class of CSSers who did NOT attend law school after Wesleyan. However, of the 15 others (we had 16 CSS grads in my class), about 12 went to law school and were accepted into top Ivy and other very selective law schools. They went on without exception into stellar law careers, ranging from entertainment to tax to public service and many other legal specialties. </p>

<p>CSS teaches you to write, think critically and defend your positions face to face. For example, I had weekly tutorial essays where I would typically read about 800-1000 pages in various assigned texts, and write a five page paper on a very specific topic where I had to take a stand. I would then have to read the essay in the small tutorial (in those days, 4-7 students), and thereafter my essays would be torn apart by both the professor and my fellow students. And oh yes, the essay would then be marked up by an English tutor assigned to our group and by the professor. </p>

<p>I understand that these days CSS is called the “College of Suicidal Sophomores”–that’s got to be a stretch, though it is quite funny for me to hear that. I do have to say that, 40 years later, I consider my CSS major as the primary foundation on which I built my career (in my case, organizational psychology). My fellow CSS alums who are lawyers, I am quite sure, would recommend CSS just as highly.</p>

<p>Unlike all other majors except COL, you must declare your CSS major this semester, not during sophomore year second semester.</p>