Degrees at Lamar

[KDOSullivan]

Is it just me, or does it seem like we have more kids in the athletic programs majoring in "General Studies?" What do you do with a "General Studies" degree? It seemed like in the past we at least had kids majoring in stuff they could get jobs with. P.E., business, history-education.....You know, I can remember when these guys who were playing ball planned to coach/ teach when they got out of school. General Studies..... :

[TexasTerror]

You guys still have General Studies...are you sure?

SHSU has a lot of freshmen and sophomore student-athletes who list General Studies, but that's because they are "undecided" or that is what you are before you can be "officially" accepted into Criminal Justice and Education colleges (pending major in Edu). You need a few hours under your belt before moving into those degree plans.

I didn't think any of the Texas SLC schools had General Studies...

[HouTexan]

Lamar still has General Studies. It is part of the Distance Learning program. It is geared towards students that already have careers and want to finish a degree...very similar to Applied Arts & Sciences. However, many athletes go the General Studies route because they do not physically have to attend classes. They can take the majority of their classes online, anytime, anywhere. A huge benefit for Baseball and Basketball players when you spend most if not all of your time on the road. From the LU website:

The Bachelor of General Studies degree can provide opportunity for an individual to construct a personal curricular plan, i.e., to take courses in more than one area of interest, resulting in a broadbased program of study. Additionally, the Bachelor of General Studies is designed for those students who have already established careers and who wish to earn credit toward a degree while learning for the pleasure of learning.

[Guest coachacola]

Jonathan Garza, the PG from Pflugerville, plans on being an anesthesiologist so I doubt he'll major in General Studios.  And his teammate, Osas Ebomwonyi, likes the engineering department at Lamar so it's good seeing some of the new recruits serious about education.

Looking at the current roster it appears that the JUCO players are the ones in General Studies.  Harper and Mahoney are business majors, Miles and Nwevo are undecided (not sure how you can be undecided after 4 years of college), and Custer is an engineering major.  If Roc keeps recruiting more HS kids than JUCOs then that should improve.

[BUCman]

You can still become a teacher/coach with a degree in General Studies.  After Graduation, that person can enter the Teacher Certification Program through the Region Center or go through an ACE certification program.  There is nothing wrong with getting a degree in General Studies.  Also is lets a person study in more areas, because you have to declare 3 fields of study.  For instance my 3 fields were History, Criminal Justice, and Kinesiology.

[McTailGator]

Is it just me, or does it seem like we have more kids in the athletic programs majoring in "General Studies?" What do you do with a "General Studies" degree? It seemed like in the past we at least had kids majoring in stuff they could get jobs with. P.E., business, history-education.....You know, I can remember when these guys who were playing ball planned to coach/ teach when they got out of school. General Studies..... :

The average 17 or 18 year old kid is totally clueless on what they want to do with the rest of their lives.

Other than playing X-Box or sports, and possible bagging bread and eggs at Market Basket, or flipping burgers at McDonalds, they have not yet experienced life or even know just what their parents do for a living and what they had to do to get there.

MANY athletic departments encourage many of their student athletes to just take the Core Curriculum classes for the first year or two before declaring another major.  This can be accomplished with a "General Studies" major.  The kids have to take those Core Curriculum Classes anyway to earn any degree, so they are not wasting their time.  This gives them more time to find their niche and determine what they want to do for the rest of their lives. 

Why is this important?  Because if a kid declares a major and starts taking classes in that direction and then decides he would be miserable, then he could lose eligibility if he were to switch majors because he may have not earned enough hours toward his degree.  Hurts the kid, and hurts the school that has invested in a scholarship.

Many McNeese Athletes also claim General Studies for the same reason.  Unless a kid comes in with two professional parents that know what college is all about, and the kid wants to be like Daddy and be an Engineer, or be like Mommy and be a Teacher or a Nurse, McNeese will try like heck to persuade a kid to hold off on declaring a real major (Not that GS is not real) for a year or two by declaring GS has his major and getting those Core Classes behind him.  There are exceptions, especially if the kid is a a great student with strong parents.

[Bobcat1]

Is it just me, or does it seem like we have more kids in the athletic programs majoring in "General Studies?" What do you do with a "General Studies" degree? It seemed like in the past we at least had kids majoring in stuff they could get jobs with. P.E., business, history-education.....You know, I can remember when these guys who were playing ball planned to coach/ teach when they got out of school. General Studies..... :

Uh, there are some students (MYSELF) who are not college athletes who are "General Studies".  Is that ok with you?

[Guest etbu]

Junior come home from Aggieland and told me he waned to major in GS and told him NO WAY. If you are not sure what to do at least get a accounting minor or major. Just my opinion.  ???

[HouTexan]

Junior come home from Aggieland and told me he waned to major in GS and told him NO WAY. If you are not sure what to do at least get a accounting minor or major. Just my opinion.  ???

As an employer in the high-tech industry...bad idea. You major in Accounting, then that's what you're limiting yourself to fresh out of college in this current market. I'd look at a GS grad over an Accounting major. Great degree if you want to be a CPA or work in an accounting department. GS shows that they've at least taken courses in a variety of subjects and are generally open to learning something other than a Business related degree. If you send them the Accounting direction, make sure they have a minor in something else... Computer Science, Engineering, something.

[Lazeek]

Is it just me, or does it seem like we have more kids in the athletic programs majoring in "General Studies?" What do you do with a "General Studies" degree? It seemed like in the past we at least had kids majoring in stuff they could get jobs with. P.E., business, history-education.....You know, I can remember when these guys who were playing ball planned to coach/ teach when they got out of school. General Studies..... :

Uh, there are some students (MYSELF) who are not college athletes who are "General Studies".  Is that ok with you?

How pathetic of you Bobcat05!!!!!! :D

[Guest etbu]

Junior come home from Aggieland and told me he waned to major in GS and told him NO WAY. If you are not sure what to do at least get a accounting minor or major. Just my opinion.  ???

As an employer in the high-tech industry...bad idea. You major in Accounting, then that's what you're limiting yourself to fresh out of college in this current market. I'd look at a GS grad over an Accounting major. Great degree if you want to be a CPA or work in an accounting department. GS shows that they've at least taken courses in a variety of subjects and are generally open to learning something other than a Business related degree. If you send them the Accounting direction, make sure they have a minor in something else... Computer Science, Engineering, something.

Different strokes for different folks bc we hire with a different emphasis. We are a large steel processor and think that the GS is garbage but your industry is obviously different.

[Bobcat1]

Junior come home from Aggieland and told me he waned to major in GS and told him NO WAY. If you are not sure what to do at least get a accounting minor or major. Just my opinion.  ???

As an employer in the high-tech industry...bad idea. You major in Accounting, then that's what you're limiting yourself to fresh out of college in this current market. I'd look at a GS grad over an Accounting major. Great degree if you want to be a CPA or work in an accounting department. GS shows that they've at least taken courses in a variety of subjects and are generally open to learning something other than a Business related degree. If you send them the Accounting direction, make sure they have a minor in something else... Computer Science, Engineering, something.

Different strokes for different folks bc we hire with a different emphasis. We are a large steel processor and think that the GS is gargage but your industry is obviously different.

Is that new?

[Green Menace]

Side bar here-

Have you ever watched a BCS football game where the starting lineup players introduce themselves, "so and so player, Senior tight end, undecided". ;D