Should You Declare A College Minor?

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Declare A College Minor

Declare A College Minor

Are you thinking of becoming an international student and pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in the United States? If so, you’ve probably spent a lot of time choosing your major and familiarizing yourself with the U.S. academic system. By now, you’re aware of the differences, and you may be wondering if it’s a good idea to declare a college minor. 

To answer your question, in this article, we will give you a brief overview of what a college minor is and the advantages to declare a college minor.  

What Is a College Minor?

A college minor refers to a student’s declared secondary discipline. Like with a major, your college will set out the framework of classes you need to complete to earn your chosen minor. Simply put, your minor is another subject you focus on alongside your major, and it typically requires five or six courses. 

Many students opt for a minor from a related department or subjects that complement their major. For example, a Business major will minor in Marketing, or a Chemistry major that’s considering a career in teaching will minor in education. 

In other cases, students will choose a minor based purely on their personal interests. For example, a Psychology major that minors in Theater Arts because they enjoy acting and see this as an opportunity to get better at something they like. 

Although the requirements for minors are much lower than that of a major, you will still need a certain number of credit hours to complete the program, so you need to make sure it doesn’t interfere with your major. You can speak to your college academic advisor in the U.S., or before you leave, you can check resources like 美国留学 and ask about minor programs. 

Advantages 

There are, of course, many advantages to declaring a minor and we’ll go through the most important ones. 

Gain Additional Skills 

As a college student, your main goal is to gain new skills, which will help you further your career. Whether it’s in a related field or not, a minor will help you acquire additional skills and knowledge, which, in turn, can help you get a better job after graduation. It shows potential employers that you are a well-rounded individual with multiple interests who isn’t afraid of additional workload. For some jobs, the skills you learn while pursuing your minor might make you the perfect candidate and set your résumé apart from other applicants with the same major. If you still feel that you need to make your resume a bit professional so that you seek the job of your dreams, you can also hire resume writer.

Earn Credits You Can Use for a Graduate Degree

The subjects you study while pursuing a minor can also help you get credits that can be transferred to an advanced degree, which means you can work through a master’s or a PhD faster. Moreover, it will be easier to get into advanced degree programs because you can show that you’ve already studied related subjects and how well you did. 

Personal Fulfilment

As we already mentioned, some students opt for a minor because they are genuinely passionate about that subject. Maybe you’ve already chosen your major based on a number of factors, including career prospects and potential income. That doesn’t mean it’s the only thing you’ve ever been interested in. As long as your schedule allows it, a minor gives you the chance to explore something you love, but you don’t necessarily want to make a career in.