 A nursing student practices drawing liquid into a syringe during a clinical session at a local hospital. Photo by Bob Christy, ’95 Major DecisionsEducation, nursing and business remain top Kent State majorsBy Anna Riggenbach, Kent State magazine journalism studentMost Kent State University students will change their major at least once during their college careers. While many students change their minds about an ultimate career choice, they eventually select from among the same top majors. And that list has remained constant over the years. Kent State University began as Kent State Normal School in 1910. The school was initially established for teaching education, and education has remained one of the most common majors over the decades. Since early on, elementary education has been a popular choice for students. The alumni database ranks elementary education in the top 10 from the 1940s to the present.  Future teachers observe a “master teacher” in Merrill Hall (1914). Kent State was founded in 1910 as a Normal School, a two-year school for training elementary teachers. Photo by Bob Christy, ’95 business degree is so popular. “What job does not have a business aspect? Business in general is attractive to students because they know on a personal basis there will be an aspect of business they will be working in, no matter what field they enter. “Even professions like teaching and nursing have business aspects to them,” Sanders says. “You might ultimately end up in the business side of a profession.” Because of the popularity of the business degree, the college has started business “learning communities” to give students access to mentors and business professionals in the community. In 1971, the Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree was established and has been one of the top two majors on and off since at least 1980. Dr. Laura Dzurec, dean of the College of Nursing, says the popularity of the nursing major typically cycles about every five years. The nation is currently at the front edge of a serious nursing shortage, she adds, which explains the degree’s current prominence. “We expect it to get much worse in areas where the population is aging rapidly,” she says. “There are more options for health because of technology.” America’s Career InfoNet ranks registered nursing fifth among the top 50 occupations with the most openings, with 100,079 during the 2006-2016 time frame. This was the first occupation on the InfoNet list that required a higher education degree. Other consistent front-runners in the top 10 Kent State degrees list include marketing and management science. In recent years, psychology, justice studies, business administration and library and information sciences have risen in popularity, while degrees in biology, health and physical education, and curriculum and instruction (secondary) have declined. Judith Rule, ’73, M.Ed. ’01, Ed.S. ’03, academic advisor with the First Year Advising Center, says today’s students come to the university knowledgeable about the industries that correspond with their majors, but ultimately their values drive what career path they follow. She says most students enter college expecting to pick a career that they will work in for the next 30 to 40 years, which can be intimidating. “We don’t place a great deal of emphasis on what you want to do with the rest of your life, just for the next five years,” she says. “Students need to find out what is important to them.” | |||||
