Why You Should Take Classes Unrelated to Your Major in College
For many students, their stay in college is nothing short of war and constant struggle. They have so many responsibilities, academic and otherwise, that they feel they should have as much focus as possible on their immediate and distant goals. In other words, they have too much on their plate to look for ways to spice things up.
If you suggest to them that they should take up classes unrelated to their major, they will probably look at you as if you are mad. However, we still believe that it is the right decision, no matter how hard your time in college is. Why? Let us explain.
You Get to Explore Other Majors
The beautiful thing about college education is the malleability and flexibility of its structure. Once you have chosen a path, you are not obliged to stick to it all the way to the predetermined job.
The rules do not prevent you from exploring around, and even if right now you believe that you have found your vocation, you will be amazed how many students change their minds once they find something that suits them better. Therefore, by sticking to your current major, you may be unthinkingly barring yourself from other viable options.
You Get an Intellectual Advantage
Focusing on a single area of study can be helpful, but it can also be a problem. Constantly dealing with a single discipline or a set of closely related disciplines is boring and exhausting. By diversifying your academic landscape, you work towards becoming a well-rounded specialist with a solid background in a variety of fields.
Even if you keep progressing in your previously chosen direction, you will be able to get inspiration from other areas of academic development that may seem unrelated at a glance.
You Get to Meet New People
The drawback of focusing on a single field is that the people who surround you all the time have interests similar to your own. You do not get enough exposure to other points of view and ways of seeing the world.
By taking a major outside of your primary field, you suddenly find yourself among interesting people who primarily view the world from other angles. It can help you develop a more balanced position of your own.
You Get a Better Understanding of Who You Are
Studying topics that do not have anything to do with your primary interests forces you to leave your comfort zone, and it is always a worthy thing to do. Working on different expository essay topics not only makes you better at writing; you also find out more about yourself.
You may learn more about your political views and philosophical ideas, understand your values, and how to defend them. In other words, you do not just explore new things; you explore who you are.
You Get More Relatable
Throughout your professional career, you will have to talk about things that are not directly related to your field. For example, in networking or in interviews you are likely to be asked about your interests or about your favorite classes in college. If you say something like, “My favorite class was creative writing;
I even still have some samples of my expository essay writing somewhere”, it makes you look and sound much more interesting and relatable than if all your interests are limited to your professional field. Many companies make a point of looking for employees who are more human and make a good addition to the team, not just high-quality specialists.
It Sets you Apart from Others
When you apply for a job, later on, you are likely to compete with many other applicants with similar qualifications. Having completed some classes outside your major sets you apart from them. It better prepares you to be a professional in your field, see your discipline from multiple viewpoints and solve problems using different approaches.
It Adds Flavor to Your College Experience
In the long run, it is probably the most important advantage there is. College should be, first and foremost, an experience; narrowly focusing on a few professional goals may seem like a good idea when all you do is prepare yourself for a future career, but it removes all the color from the years you spend in college.
You owe it to yourself to try and make the time you spend here as interesting, rewarding, and memorable as possible, so do not limit yourself in your interests!
These are just some examples of why it is a good idea, in the long term, to take at least a few classes unrelated to your major. It may sound like a hassle at the moment, but eventually, it is going to greatly improve your employability, make you a better specialist, as well as make your life, in general, more rewarding and interesting.
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