With the 2019-20 school year ending soon, it’s now time to look ahead to the Fall and class registration (for those students returning to school). Many core classes are usually pre-decided, but there’s always some tough decisions involved when it comes to choosing the right electives. Electives can be enjoyable and rewarding depending on what you choose, but how exactly can you decide on one or two from the multitude of options available? Here are some things to consider:

Explore Your Interests

Electives are meant to be a diversion from the grueling reality of classes related to your major. Therefore, they could focus on other interests you may have. You could choose to learn from a history class, or learn more about psychology, sociology, and the list goes on.

Electives don’t have to be relevant to the field you are studying (though it could be helpful). You could explore ceramics, art, acting, dancing, or anything that you are unfamiliar with and curious about. This is the opportunity to take the type of class that you otherwise would not be able to based on your major. Think about any type of class you know you would enjoy and go for it!

College ends quicker than you think, so taking a wide variety of classes can help you explore your interests and ultimately teach you something new (or maybe help find a hidden skill about yourself).

Build on Your Skills

Electives could also be viewed as practical and help build on your skills. For example, if you are aiming to write for a magazine after graduation, taking a graphic design class to learn Adobe InDesign could be practical in terms of designing magazine pages for the articles you write.

As in the case mentioned above, electives could be perceived to help you build more skills relevant to your field of work. Not only does this put you a leg up on your applications, but it also makes you a well-rounded professional candidate. 

Even if you want to take an elective that improves your general skills, that’s also very practical. For example, a creative writing class is useful for students of all majors because we all must communicate and write effectively for any profession and in everyday life. A class like this can help build your vocabulary, writing skills, and allow you to hone creativity skills, all important for many jobs.

Electives do require some thought when it comes to choosing one. There are such a wide variety and you only have so much time in college to explore everything. Electives are meant to be a nice escape from your major, so exploring your interests are always encouraged. In addition, you could also look to build on a certain skill as a means of training for the professional world. All in all, the most important thing is to choose an elective you could see yourself enjoying and looking back fondly on.

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