Top 10 Majors for 2009
When researching majors, you want to think about what you want to do after college. Do you want your college education to prepare you for a specific job? Career preparation is a popular and valid reason for choosing a career-focused major such as engineering, business, education, or nursing.
But, if you're simply looking to expand your general knowledge without a specific career in mind, and you just want to graduate with a whole slew of marketable and legitimate job skills, then you might consider a liberal arts major—such as English—that will emphasize critical thinking, creativity, integration of information and other skills that can throw those career-option doors wide open after graduation.
If you're not sure where to start, here are the 10 most popular majors for 2009. According to this year's survey of colleges, these majors have the highest undergraduate enrollment:
1. Business administration and management
If you're the type of person who appreciates a challenge and likes to take charge, then this major might be the opportunity you're looking for.
Not only will you be managing people, money, and resources, you'll also have to be ahead of the curve on economic, style, and tech trends. There is more to business than just being money savvy; you also have to be able to inspire and to put out fires when things go wrong.
Classes you'll probably take: leadership and motivation, micro/macroeconomics, and organizational behavior
Career options: management consultant, entrepreneur, or venture capitalist/investor
2. Psychology
Do you wonder why people are the way they are? Are you fascinated by personality types and the ways certain people react to certain aspects of society? If so, then studying psychology will help you further understand the ways we interact and respond to our environment, as well as our motivations, emotions, and disorders.
There is more to psychology than just getting people to tell you their secrets; you'll also need a strong research background and a scientific way of thinking.
Classes you'll probably take: psychology of childhood, learning memory and cognition, and social psychology
Career options: criminologist, social worker, or advertising executive
3. Elementary education and teaching
Think about your first-grade teacher. Think about how much that person influenced you to join the group or inspired you to learn to read. You could be that person for someone else if you choose to study elementary education and teaching.
Some programs offer (or require) an area of specialization, such as early childhood, language arts or mathematics, but in general you'll be responsible for giving instruction in all the basic subjects as well as overseeing your students' general development. It's challenging, but very rewarding.
Classes you'll probably take: children's literature, educational psychology, and classroom management
Career options: teacher/professor, school administrator, or librarian
4. Nursing—registered nurse training (RN, ASN, BSN, MSN)
Nurses are the heart and soul of the health care profession. They are employed in clinics, hospitals, schools, corporations, the military, and in private practice. They help people meet basic health needs, adapt to physical changes, recover from illness, and die with dignity.
Nursing is the largest health care profession in the United States, and the job prospects are numerous because there is a huge need for more nurses.
Classes you'll probably take: biochemistry, nutrition, and sociology
Career options: paramedic, nurse, or health care administrator
5. Biology/biological sciences
Biology majors like to look at all of the elements and questions surrounding life, from questions about reproduction to the ways in which our physical environment influences the way we grow and develop.
The field of biology is often divided into subcategories, such as molecular biology, which studies the exchange and transfer of chemicals within living organisms, and cell biology, which examines the basic building blocks of living organisms.
Biology majors end up with a vast array of skills and tools that can lead to careers and professions in a wide variety of fields.
Classes you'll probably take: evolution, genetics, and calculus
Career options: veterinarian, pharmacist, or ecologist
6. Education
No one would be successful in life without teachers. We all had to learn from someone how to think critically and creatively.
Education is an all-important career in our increasingly fast-paced society because the knowledge each student needs is constantly evolving. Think of the technological advances in classrooms in just the past five years. If you are creative, dedicated, enthusiastic, and compassionate—schools need you.
Classes you'll probably take: educational psychology, methods of teaching, and counseling
Career options: teacher/professor, guidance counselor, or college administrator
7. English language and literature
With an English degree, you can certainly become a starving author. Or you can become an affluent one. Just ask Stephen King. You can also become a legendary football coach like Joe Paterno or a governor like Mario Cuomo. These and many other people used a degree in English as a springboard to a successful career.
English programs are about communication, which is important in any career. Studying English also gives you the unique opportunity to engage with different societies, eras, and experiences of others through literature so that you may communicate your own experiences and successes and inspire others.
Classes you'll probably take: creative writing, literary criticism, and early American literature
Career options: editor, lawyer, or writer
8. Political science and government
Like any liberal arts major, political science makes no claim to be a pre-professional program. However, it certainly doesn't exist to teach disconnected facts about politics.
Political science tackles the big questions. What is the best way to reconcile individual desires and community needs? Is it possible to have both freedom and equality?
As a political science major, you'll study everything from revolutions and political parties to voting behavior and public policy. Political science involves heavy doses of reading, writing, and rigorous statistical analysis.
Classes you'll probably take: comparative government, philosophy of law, and U.S. foreign policy
Career options: lawyer, journalist, or diplomat
9. Economics
When the federal government decides to allocate a certain part of the national budget to military spending and another part to funding for the arts, that decision and its consequences are part of what economists study.
Knowledge of economics is an invaluable component of any liberal arts education, not to mention an indispensable tool for making sense of the intricacies of the modern world. You'll need to be savvy with math, computers, and logic.
Classes you'll probably take: accounting, international business, and statistics
Career options: marketing executive, stockbroker, or economist
10. Marketing/marketing management
Marketing is the study of how to determine consumer needs; how to translate those needs into products and services; and how to sell those products and services locally, nationally, and globally.
It is a practical and career-oriented major that requires analytical skills, logic, and a lot of creativity. You'll need excellent communication skills and an influential nature.
Classes you'll probably take: consumer behavior, sales management, and finance
Career options: management consultant, publicist, or advertising executive
Editorial provided by The Princeton Review, www.princetonreview.com.
