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Guide C:  Learn details about majors and their course requirements

  1. Log in to eLion, request a degree audit for a major you're considering, and print the audit. (If you can't log in to the Students section of eLion, use the Recommended Academic Plan for this major in place of the audit in the steps below.)

  2. On your audit, find the courses listed in the sections titled “College Requirements,” “Major Requirements,” and/or “Option Requirements.” (Note: The audits for some majors do not include all three sections.)

  3. Use the resources below to get information about each course.
    • Read the course descriptions in the University Bulletin.
    • Contact the department offering the course to ask if a syllabus is available.
    • Go to the campus bookstore and look through the required textbooks.
    • Sit in on a class or two if the courses are offered this semester. (Ask the instructor's permission.)

  4. Ask yourself the following questions as you evaluate the courses on your audit.
    • Do these courses sound interesting to me?
    • Can I do well in these courses?
    • Is this something I want to learn about it?
    • Will I like having to take several of these courses each semester during my junior and senior years?

  5. Put a check mark next to the courses on your audit that most closely match your personal characteristics.

  6. Repeat steps 1–5 for each major you're exploring.

  7. Make a list of the majors(s) you're still considering after completing this analysis. (You can judge which majors have required courses that best fit your personal characteristics.)

College resources

Use the links below to find detailed information about each of the majors you're considering.

University Park colleges: Commonwealth Campus colleges:
To learn how majors relate to careers, go on to Guide D.


Division of Undergraduate Studies | Contact: dus@psu.edu | Updated November 16, 2009
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