The most beneficial campus event for exploratory majors and underclassmen is here. Majors in Minutes is happening Tuesday, Oct. 18, bringing a unique perspective of what majors UNI offers to the heart of campus. This event is hosted by the Office of Academic Advising in the Maucker Union Ballrooms, allowing for students to learn more about majors from the perspective of their senior peers in a fun, low-stress environment. It will begin at seven p.m. and go for about two hours.

Academic coach Angie Tudor lays out the setup of Majors in Minutes. “Each major will have a roundtable that students can join during ten minute rotations,” she says. “During those minutes seniors will share things such as: how did they decide on their major, what classes do they take, what types of projects have they worked on, what have they done for internships and what times of jobs will they be pursuing after graduation?” After the ten minutes is up, music will play and students can choose a new table.

This setup uses a group, speed-dating approach to take some pressure off of asking questions. Since it is peers speaking and not professionals, there is no intimidation or stress factor either. There is no requirement to have anything prepared going into the event, but it may be helpful to put together a list of questions to ask the seniors in a program of interest. Think about the things that may be helpful in a certain program, like getting involved in campus organizations. Ask about what to expect going into a certain major and what things proved to be the most beneficial for them. Or, simply ask for tips on how to be the most successful in their program.

Majors in Minutes is geared towards underclassmen to learn about the wide variety of majors offered on campus, but anyone and everyone can get something out of it. Tudor says the event is, “a great opportunity for our exploratory majors to learn about potential majors that they might be considering…And of course, there are always students with declared majors who might be debating a change and this is a fun way to check out other options with no commitment.” Also, for first or second years who are well within their program, it is beneficial to go and learn from the seniors in their own department.

The benefits that come from attending are vast. Majors in Minutes exposes students to new fields and gives them a snapshot of what it is like to be fully immersed in them. So often, new students can come in with a superficial view of what being involved in their major is like and this opportunity opens the door to learning and being involved at a higher level. Not to mention, the seniors will be able to share the absolute best professors and classes to lead underclassmen to success.