The Liberal Arts Undeclared Program allows students the opportunity to explore career and major options before declaring a traditional or self-designed major. Students begin to research majors during their first semester, and are not required to declare a major until achieving 64 credits (typically near the end of the sophomore year). We encourage students to take time to explore possible majors. It is important to keep in mind during the exploration process that some majors are highly competitive in their selection process and some require a strict adherence to a sequence of classes in order to graduate in four years. With certain programs, students are encouraged to declare by 32 or 48 credits.
We highly recommend that Liberal Arts Undeclared students work closely with an academic advisor during their exploration process. The academic advisor is a faculty or staff member who will provide guidance with academic decisions while at UMF (pursuing career goals, selecting courses, understanding policies, etc). Students are notified about advisor assignment in the summer before arriving on campus. Career counselors are also available to students in this program. The Center for Student Development administers the advising program for Liberal Arts Undeclared students.
Students in the Liberal Arts Undeclared Program explore majors by taking General Education Requirements and/or introductory courses in majors of interest. There is a lot of flexibility in what courses students can take. In their first semester students will take a First Year Seminar or a Writing Seminar (FYS 100 or ENG 100 ), and three general education courses in areas of interest (art, humanities, math, natural sciences, or social sciences). Information about specific courses is available by consulting the listing of courses by major or by reviewing the programs of study for Bachelor’s Degree Programs. UMF also gives students the ability to create a self-designed study plan which allows them to customize a major to fit particular interests.
For more information about the Liberal Arts Undeclared Program, visit our website at: https://www.umf.maine.edu/academics/programs/unsure-what-to-choose/ or call 207-778-7040.
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