Hi, Dakota! According to the National Center for Education Statistics, approximately 80% of students in the U.S. change their major at least once during their college career - it's very common! As far as your question goes, it depends on what you are switching to. The act of switching is not difficult, but it can affect your graduation timeline. Ultimately, if your previous classes count towards your new major, very little is affected. However, sometimes the classes you have completed do not fit the graduation requirements of your new declared major. In that case, you would have to work with your advisor to create a new schedule. For the most part, graduating on time is still possible even with a change of major. If you are unsure of what you want to do, I would recommend taking classes from your university's core curriculum first. The core curriculum consists of classes required for all students regardless of major. By starting with those classes, you are able to explore different majors while also fulfilling graduation requirements.
Last updated Sep 18 at 16:36
Dakota D.
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What will happen if you want to switch majors in the middle of a semester?
Because I was wondering if I can change it if I end up not liking my major #college-major
2 answers
AML Analyst at PricewaterhouseCoopers - Service Delivery Center (PwC SDC)
Columbia, South Carolina
Hey Dakota,
I went through a similar instance with you while I was at Ohio State. Since a lot of colleges have a time period where you can enroll in classes, depending on how long the semester has been in full swing you may have to tough it out till you enroll for the next semester.
There are some speed bumps that you may run in to:
a) If you are trying to go from a fine arts major to a business major (for example) you may have to apply to the business school prior to taking classes because of institutions in place.
b) Another avenue on a) would be to leave the college that you are already in, moving from the college of pharmacy to the business school or the arts and sciences school which may be hard to do if you decide you want to go back.
Overall it is a pretty easy process once you understand all of the rules and regulations at work and trying to work around those to get what you want.
Hope this helps.
Garrett
This professional recommends the following next steps:
- talk to a college adviser in the school you want to change into
- research the courses you would have to take
- be sure you are aware of the pre-requisites you have to take to make the transition as smooth as possible
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