It's technically two years before you have to decide. In those two years you're suppose to complete your General Education--it's so there's at least some uniformity in college degrees between majors and for people to prove that they can perform at a college level. While it's possible to apply to the college with a designated major, most people apply Undecided and figure something out as they go. Undecided people still have to apply to their respective departments later one, but that's mostly a formality--few majors require any additional work. Psychology is the only major that is ever "Impacted," which means they're more selective.capper42 said:I find American college really interesting. For the first year do you basically just study everything, and then pick what you like best to major in?
In the UK we just pick a subject when applying, and that's what we study. You can do the odd module of something else, but really it's pretty linear.
I'm studying history, for the record.
Thanks for the explanation. Doesn't seem that complicated now you've explained it, and actually I think it sounds like a pretty good system. A lot of people I know changed their subject after their first year, some of them even repeating the first year in their new subject, which I guess picking a major later would avoid. Am I right in thinking most college courses last 4 years in the US?triggrhappy94 said:It's technically two years before you have to decide. In those two years you're suppose to complete your General Education--it's so there's at least some uniformity in college degrees between majors and for people to prove that they can perform at a college level. While it's possible to apply to the college with a designated major, most people apply Undecided and figure something out as they go. Undecided people still have to apply to their respective departments later one, but that's mostly a formality--few majors require any additional work. Psychology is the only major that is ever "Impacted," which means they're more selective.
There's also the rumor that if you don't get into your major when you apply to a school, you won't get into the school even if you otherwise would have.
Yeah, our system is kind of complicated.
Yeah. I don't think there's any major program that goes past four years. I know there are some caveats to that, though.capper42 said:Snip
Where do they have you? I got SCAD in Atlanta. (Been told development is a lot less programming much more art related)Ashhearth said:Just got through my first year as well majoring in Video Game Design and Development and holy crap is it hard. They actually take it pretty seriously here so downtime to actually play videogames is rather limited.
As for a minor I'm working for a one in psychology since it pairs well with my major. Yay 5 years to get my BS
*sniff* *sniff*Arakasi said:I'm currently double majoring in psychology and philosophy.
You might be surprised how much they complement each other.
I'm at RIT in Rochester, New York. As for development the goal is to make us employable anywhere even out of the games industry so we have a base that's has just about everything. Programming is definitely big and the workload is intense to the point I think like 20+ people have dropped out of the original 150. (Don't quote me on the numbers)Terminate421 said:Where do they have you? I got SCAD in Atlanta. (Been told development is a lot less programming much more art related)Ashhearth said:Just got through my first year as well majoring in Video Game Design and Development and holy crap is it hard. They actually take it pretty seriously here so downtime to actually play videogames is rather limited.
As for a minor I'm working for a one in psychology since it pairs well with my major. Yay 5 years to get my BS
It's alright, I think that's given me a pretty good indication of how it works. The majority of undergraduate courses in the UK are three years (not all, some subjects are longer). For example, I'm just coming to the end of my history degree after three years. It seems much simpler and more streamlined the way we do it over here, but also offers less freedom when choosing what to study.triggrhappy94 said:Yeah. I don't think there's any major program that goes past four years. I know there are some caveats to that, though.capper42 said:Snip
Some majors may expect certain classes to be completed before hand if you apply half way through the four years.
My Econ department, for example, has a four year plan for people who apply to the college as an Econ major that includes completing Intro to Micro and Macro, Intermediate Micro and Macro, and Econometrics by the end of your second year, then spending the other two years taking 400-range classes that work toward a study plan--your focus. (There's a little more to it than that, but I'm trying to keep it as clear as possible and Econ's not the best example). I'm not sure what that looks like for people who apply later.
In theory, you can focus entirely on your GE then your major or do both at the same time (what I'm doing) and graduate after four years either way.
With the budget what it is in my state (I'm not sure what it looks like in the rest of the country) it's considered almost impossible to finish in four years, because there aren't enough classes for everyone--at least not without taking classes over the summer.
Let me know if you have any more questions. I can also post a links to my schools requirements for GE and different majors if you want.