UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Division of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) released a new version of MajorQuest recently to help Penn State students search more effectively for majors that match their interests and meet specific academic needs and preferences.
The redesigned MajorQuest, available at http://dus.psu.edu/students/majorquest, offers a contemporary, accessible interface and new filters that allow students to narrow Penn State's 160-plus majors by interest area(s) and choice of campus, as well as refine the list to reflect other parameters, such as entrance requirements and math, science and language preferences.
The tool first prompts students to select one or more of 25 areas of interest — such as art and design, cyber information, environment and sustainability, helping people, sports or teaching — then filters Penn State’s majors to show those that incorporate all the selected interests. The results also include hyperlinks to resources and details about each major, the colleges/departments that offer them, related clubs or listservs, and advising points of contact.
“Most first-year students, even those already enrolled in colleges, are a little uncertain about their academic direction,” said Kathy Garren, academic adviser and co-chair of the division’s Student Development and Success Committee. “MajorQuest is an excellent starting point to help them think about their interests and connect them to related areas of study.”
“This resource not only guides students toward finding and learning about potential majors,” added Pam Baron, academic adviser and co-chair of the Student Development and Success Committee, “it can teach them to think more broadly about the purposes, processes and outcomes of a college education and begin to take ownership of that experience.”
The primary audience for MajorQuest includes exploratory students and the academic advisers who assist them. However, senior undergraduates thinking about changing academic direction and prospective students alike can benefit from the site as a resource to learn more about their intended areas of study while comparing them to other, similar programs offered at the University.
The Division of Undergraduate Studies, a unit within the Office of Undergraduate Education, is Penn State’s largest unit of enrollment for first-year students and leads the development of advising policies and practices, manages the University-wide academic information network and provides general academic advising for current and prospective Penn State students.