Dual Majoring? (Maybe a few minors as well)

[MargeryUnkempet]

Hello all,

I am a long time lurker, but I am a first time poster. I am currently in the process of getting my undergrad, and I had some questions about dual majoring (with some additional minors as well). I have made a decision to stay at my undergrad institute for an additional year to pursue a dual major (my original major being English) and to get three additional minors. Before accusations of frivolousness are thrown at me I will provide you with some contextual information about my decision to do this, despite my end goal being graduate study in English. Firstly, I go to my undergrad for free (my tuition, housing, food, etc. are all covered through various scholarships) so going this extra year will not harm me financially. Secondly, all of my additional majors and minors in some way shape or form, I feel, compliment literary/cultural studies.

 

Now that I have an explanation of my situation here are my questions:

 

How will these additional majors and minors impact my shot at getting into a solid PhD program directly out of my undergrad (positively or negatively)? My professors seem to feel that it will have a positive impact, in fact I have received nothing but encouragement from them in my decision to do this, but I was curious how you all felt considering that you are for the most in the process of applying to or in graduate school for English?

 

Will graduate schools look on my 5th year negatively? Will it concern them that it took me an additional year to do something that should technically only take 4 years to do (though the common trend is moving away from the 4 year undergrad with many of my friends soon to sporting the title "Super Senior")?

 

Thank you for any and all feedback in advance! I realize a lot of my questions are dependent on the program applying to, etc., but any sort of feedback would be incredibly helpful!

[blc073]

I am not in this field, so take my advice lightly. 

It is my understanding that research in the humanities is more about aligning interests. When you apply, they will look at your research experience and future goals to see if you are a good fit. So I would not stay for another degree if it will not make you a better fit for the program in mind. If you are wanting to do bibliographic studies of Shakespeare, then an extra degree in History is worthless. But if you are interested in 16th-century England through the lens of Shakespeare, then having both an English degree and a History degree is probably required. 

In short, humanities degrees seem much more narrow. If your future work will employ the knowledge conferred by the additional degree, then it will be a positive addition. 

Good luck! 

[MargeryUnkempet]

36 minutes ago, blc073 said:

I am not in this field, so take my advice lightly. 

It is my understanding that research in the humanities is more about aligning interests. When you apply, they will look at your research experience and future goals to see if you are a good fit. So I would not stay for another degree if it will not make you a better fit for the program in mind. If you are wanting to do bibliographic studies of Shakespeare, then an extra degree in History is worthless. But if you are interested in 16th-century England through the lens of Shakespeare, then having both an English degree and a History degree is probably required. 

In short, humanities degrees seem much more narrow. If your future work will employ the knowledge conferred by the additional degree, then it will be a positive addition. 

Good luck! 

This is good advice, thank you!

 

My dual major aligns with my research interests quite well, overall. I should have clarified that it is basically a degree in the Digital Humanities/Media Studies which is becoming really big in most English departments from my understanding, and is definitely something I would be interested in doing more research in on a graduate level.

[echo449]

I took 5 years (after a failed round of apps). I finished a thesis in the extra time, but did not add any academic programs. I also had two majors and three minors; i wouldn't say any of the extra academic work I did directly contributed to my acceptances my second time around, but they didn't hurt me the first time either. If your extra education will focus your research, then it is only for the better, especially since you can do it for free. 

Edited May 27, 2016 by echo449

[Dr. Old Bill]

I mildly agree with @blc073* and more firmly agree with @echo449, but my additional two cents is this: when it comes time to write your SOP for grad school applications, include a sentence or two about your reasons. Honestly, I can't imagine an adcom seeing something like "I was fortunate to be granted an extra year to broaden my knowledge base through coursework" as a negative. I recognize that space is at a premium in an SOP, but if you word it just right (better than how I have worded it here), the decision to take an extra year of coursework to get minors etc. can look like a major positive.

 

 

*Only mildly, because bibliographic studies in Shakespeare could be greatly enhanced by a minor in history. As someone who partially specializes in the historiography of early modern drama, I wish I'd had the opportunity to get a minor in Renaissance studies or European history etc.

Edited May 28, 2016 by Wyatt's Terps

[blc073]

5 hours ago, Wyatt's Terps said:

I mildly agree with @blc073* and more firmly agree with @echo449, but my additional two cents is this: when it comes time to write your SOP for grad school applications, include a sentence or two about your reasons. Honestly, I can't imagine an adcom seeing something like "I was fortunate to be granted an extra year to broaden my knowledge base through coursework" as a negative. I recognize that space is at a premium in an SOP, but if you word it just right (better than how I have worded it here), the decision to take an extra year of coursework to get minors etc. can look like a major positive.

 

 

*Only mildly, because bibliographic studies in Shakespeare could be greatly enhanced by a minor in history. As someone who partially specializes in the historiography of early modern drama, I wish I'd had the opportunity to get a minor in Renaissance studies or European history etc.

I knew someone would take issue with that comment. My general point stands: only take additional coursework if it will benefit your future work in some way. 

[mk-8]

I was a double major who eventually dropped the second major to graduate early. The best advice I received in regards to my decision to ultimately drop the second major was "you only need one major to graduate." I still had two minors, which I would really encourage. The minors allowed me to explore my interests without a huge time commitment. 

I'm no expert, but I don't think having a dual degree/double major will make or break your application. It can be a nice extra, but what's going to really count is your SOP and writing sample. If you think either of those could benefit from a double major, go for it. You could probably get the same from just the minors. 

For me, the time (and money) saved meant more than the second major. One thing I would make sure of is that your scholarships will cover the additional year. Most of my undergrad scholarships only covered a certain number of years or credit hours.

[MargeryUnkempet]

This is a lot of really great advice! Thank you so much guys!

[klader]

I ended up finishing my double major even though I could have dropped my second major to graduate early. Like you, I had the scholarships/funds to do it with no extra cost, and I really felt like I grew a lot as a writer/student/tutor during my extra year.

I agree that it definitely comes down to which extra classes you would be taking and if it would be benefitting your apps. Which courses in which majors would you be taking? Could you maybe use a paper written during the fall of applying as your writing sample? (I did, and I think it worked out well).

In my case, half my classes were for the extra major and the other half was for the already-finished major though in a different track. This allowed me to dabble with comp/rhet in ways I hadn't before, and even though I already applied and was accepted by the time I took the extra courses, I still feel that I benefitted greatly from it. You would probably benefit as well from more exposure to things (as long as it relates to your area of interest/research), so if everything aligns, I'd say go for it!

Edited June 3, 2016 by klader

[MargeryUnkempet]

4 hours ago, klader said:

I ended up finishing my double major even though I could have dropped my second major to graduate early. Like you, I had the scholarships/funds to do it with no extra cost, and I really felt like I grew a lot as a writer/student/tutor during my extra year.

I agree that it definitely comes down to which extra classes you would be taking and if it would be benefitting your apps. Which courses in which majors would you be taking? Could you maybe use a paper written during the fall of applying as your writing sample? (I did, and I think it worked out well).

In my case, half my classes were for the extra major and the other half was for the already-finished major though in a different track. This allowed me to dabble with comp/rhet in ways I hadn't before, and even though I already applied and was accepted by the time I took the extra courses, I still feel that I benefitted greatly from it. You would probably benefit as well from more exposure to things (as long as it relates to your area of interest/research), so if everything aligns, I'd say go for it!

All of my additional coursework is going to be courses in philosophy, communications, writing, and the digital humanities/media studies so it all for sure, I feel, benefits me and my research interests. I may be able to use something in one of these classes as a writing sample, but one of my plans was to do an Independent Study over next Summer or this coming Spring Semester and whip a sample out of that. I may also just add more to a paper I have already presented at a conference or something. Thanks for the positive feedback! What was your additional major if you don't mind me asking?

[klader]

2 hours ago, MargeryUnkempet said:

All of my additional coursework is going to be courses in philosophy, communications, writing, and the digital humanities/media studies so it all for sure, I feel, benefits me and my research interests. I may be able to use something in one of these classes as a writing sample, but one of my plans was to do an Independent Study over next Summer or this coming Spring Semester and whip a sample out of that. I may also just add more to a paper I have already presented at a conference or something. Thanks for the positive feedback! What was your additional major if you don't mind me asking?

That sounds like a good plan! My writing sample came out of an independent study-ish class as well (it was one where I wrote a big thesis project and met with my professor once in a while), and the experience of navigating the research and writing process independently (though with some guidance) was truly valuable for me.

My additional major was French, which didn't really coincide with my studies since I'm in comp/rhet and not literature. It has allowed me to check off my program's language requirement, though, so it was good for something!

[Concordia]

If you haven't burned out on school and have the chance to do a year with no pressure, I'd say go for it.   It's a free option.

You could, of course, go to grad school, but that will mean jumping on a particular bus, with its own stresses.  Now that you have the freedom to sample advanced courses (and a few intro courses in something you never had time to do), you'll learn more about what you want to do after this.  And you are a much more informed observer than you were four years ago.

When you do decide to do grad school (or not!), you will be in the position to make a more intelligent choice.

Edited June 3, 2016 by Concordia

[MargeryUnkempet]

Yeah, I like to dabble in other fields despite my research interests being primarily literary so I felt like doing this extra year would be an excellent time to do that. Philosophy, in particular, I have been told is super useful when studying literature at a graduate level, and it is always something I have been interested in so picking that as a minor was a no brainer. The Media Studies dual major was a bit of a more tough decision, but many of the classes I am taking for that are writing courses or digital literature courses so after looking over the curriculum it seemed like a good call. Also, the more classes I take in that field the more I grow to like it so that is a plus! Thanks for the excellent feedback and support, guys!

 

Another question: Will the additional majors and minors help me potentially get into a higher tier program than just graduating with a degree in English? Like is that something that is looked for by the adcom of top tier programs? Just curious.

[Ramus]

1 hour ago, MargeryUnkempet said:

Another question: Will the additional majors and minors help me potentially get into a higher tier program than just graduating with a degree in English?

I don't think the degrees in and of themselves will necessarily give you an edge, though they certainly can if you can demonstrate (i.e. in your WS) that they afford you some unique approach to literary analysis. (And if you don't prove its necessity, your boatload of minors might look like frippery.)

 

 

 

[drivingthoughts]

@MargeryUnkempet Ah, the dual-major super-senior! Welcome to the club. I was a dual of philosophy & religious studies with minors in history and english - so much overlap! Well, in my experience, having a large-content undergrad didn't help or hinder my apps; however, it did give me special privileges in my first masters. At my school (and I know others who had this experience elsewhere), I went to the Dean with my big transcript and said something to the effect of "I've already taken half of these required classes - is there a way that I could test out of any of them or get advanced standing?" And sure enough, with the knowledge gained through my earlier studies, I was able to test out of 6 classes. That's a big deal, and by itself was totally worth the fifth year. Even if you were paying for it, undergrad credits are cheaper than graduate credits, especially if you can use them this way.

[MargeryUnkempet]

On ‎6‎/‎4‎/‎2016 at 3:04 PM, drivingthoughts said:

@MargeryUnkempet Ah, the dual-major super-senior! Welcome to the club. I was a dual of philosophy & religious studies with minors in history and english - so much overlap! Well, in my experience, having a large-content undergrad didn't help or hinder my apps; however, it did give me special privileges in my first masters. At my school (and I know others who had this experience elsewhere), I went to the Dean with my big transcript and said something to the effect of "I've already taken half of these required classes - is there a way that I could test out of any of them or get advanced standing?" And sure enough, with the knowledge gained through my earlier studies, I was able to test out of 6 classes. That's a big deal, and by itself was totally worth the fifth year. Even if you were paying for it, undergrad credits are cheaper than graduate credits, especially if you can use them this way.

Wow! That is awesome! I was not aware that that was even possible.