CHOOSING A SPECIALIZATION IF YOUR PROGRAM REQUIRES YOU TO PICK A SPECIALIZATION OR MAJOR: ACADEMIC PLANNING TIPS Reflect on your career goals and your strengths 1. Research your options 2. Check out the Career Centre’s online career resources 3. What are your long term career goals? Is there a specialization that gets you closer to this goal than the other options, while still giving you the flexibility to set new career goals later? What are your personal preferences and strengths? The specialization that has a reputation for being more challenging may seem attractive because it is more prestigious, but if the courses don’t align with your strengths and interests, your performance may be negatively affected. Check out the UOIT View Book (uoit.ca/main/future-students/index.php) for some of the career opportunities associated with each specialization. The Public Career Tools section contains faculty-specific resources that may be of interest to you. Go to uoit.ca/careercentre to access the Career Centre’s online resources: The Exclusive Career Resources section gives you access to Career Cruising, which is a great resource for occupational information in Canada, including job descriptions, salary information, working conditions and educational requirements, plus links to related careers you might find interesting. The UOIT Academic Calendar (uoit.ca/main/current-students/academics-and-programs/academic-calendars/) includes information about each specialization offered in your program, including the requirements and prerequisites for each. Review the course offerings for each specialization and notice what seems most interesting to you. Greater interest increases motivation, which translates to better performance! CHOOSING A SPECIALIZATION CHOOSING A MINOR OR DOUBLE MAJOR SWITCHING PROGRAMS CAREER CENTRE
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CHOOSING A SPECIALIZATION
IF YOUR PROGRAM REQUIRES YOU TO PICK A SPECIALIZATION OR MAJOR:
ACADEMIC PLANNING TIPS
Re�ect on your career goals and your strengths 1.
Research your options 2.
Check out the Career Centre’s online career resources 3.
What are your long term career goals? Is there a specialization that gets you closer to this goal than the other options, while still giving you the �exibility to set new career goals later? What are your personal preferences and strengths? The specialization that has a reputation for being more challenging may seem attractive because it is more prestigious, but if the courses don’t align with your strengths and interests, your performance may be negatively affected.
Check out the UOIT View Book (uoit.ca/main/future-students/index.php) for some of the career opportunities associated with each specialization.
The Public Career Tools section contains faculty-speci�c resources that may be of interest to you.
Go to uoit.ca/careercentre to access the Career Centre’s online resources:
The Exclusive Career Resources section gives you access to Career Cruising, which is a great resource for occupational information in Canada, including job descriptions, salary information, working conditions and educational requirements, plus links to related careers you might �nd interesting.
The UOIT Academic Calendar (uoit.ca/main/current-students/academics-and-programs/academic-calendars/) includes information about each specialization offered in your program, including the requirements and prerequisites for each. Review the course offerings for each specialization and notice what seems most interesting to you. Greater interest increases motivation, which translates to better performance!
CHOOSING A SPECIALIZATION CHOOSING A MINOR OR DOUBLE MAJOR SWITCHING PROGRAMS
CAREER CENTRE
IF PICKING A SPECIALIZATION IS OPTIONAL FOR YOUR PROGRAM:
As a specialist, it may be more challenging to show your connection to occupations outside of your specialization.
“ My specialization in Manufacturing Engineering gave me an edge when trying to �nd a job.” - Michael F., Faculty of Engineering, grad 2007
“...Not having a specialization allowed me to explore the variety of electives that were available at UOIT and gave me time to focus on my hobbies.”- Henry H., Faculty of Social Science and Humanities, grad 2012
PROS
CONS
SPECIALIZATION
Specializing may limit your ability to explore all your options and interests.
A specialization makes sense for you if you are able to articulate a strong rationale for why you chose it in the context of your career plan. Ask yourself: “What can this specialization contribute to the career story I want to be able to tell potential employers?”
Choosing a specialization may give you access to courses not open to students outside of that specialization.
Choosing a specialization can make you competitive by demonstrating a clear connection to a particular occupation or �eld.
As a generalist, it may be more challenging to show your connection to a particular occupation or �eld.
Many students who complete a comprehensive degree may feel that further education is required to qualify them for a speci�c occupation.
Some courses may only be open to students who have declared a specialization.
If further education is already a part of your academic/career plan, then a comprehensive degree will provide you with a strong academic foundation whatever you go on to study.
If you are unsure about committing to a specialization but would like to show potential employers your connection to an area relevant to the job you are applying for, you can remain a generalist but with a concentration of courses in an area of particular interest.
A comprehensive degree has the advantage of giving you a broad base of knowledge in your general area of interest.
NO SPECIALIZATION
PROS
CONS
A comprehensive degree allows you to explore your interests so that you can clarify your career goal.
Many students want to know if they should declare a minor or a double major. Both of these options are in some ways the opposite of choosing a specialization – they are a way of demonstrating a breadth of knowledge that could potentially increase the number of career options available to you down the road.
As with the decision to choose a specialization, the question to ask yourself is, “What can this minor/double major contribute to the career story I want to be able to tell potential employers?”
Some courses are only available to students majoring or minoring in that area or there will be lower registration priority given to students taking the course as an elective.
An option to consider if you have a strong interest in a second area of study but are not sure about committing to a minor/double major is to take a concentration of courses in that area without of�cially declaring a minor or double major.
SHOULD YOU DO A MINOR OR A DOUBLE MAJOR?
PROS PROS
CONS
Your course options are more open if you focus on one major with no minor. This allows you to explore lots of different interests through your electives.
You may have a limited ability to take elective courses if you declare a minor or double major due to the credits needed to meet the requirements for the minor or second major.
CONS
NO MINOR/DOUBLE MAJORMINOR/DOUBLE MAJOR
A minor or double major makes sense for you if there is a strong rationale connecting you to the second area of study.
A minor or a double major is an opportunity to make you more competitive if you choose something that complements your primary program well and sets you apart. For example, if your major is Criminology, a minor in Communication can give you some expertise and additional skills in communication and digital media which can have interesting applications in the criminology context.
For answers to questions speci�c to your program and to develop your course map, contact the academic advising staff in your faculty.
Student Learning Centre (uoit.ca/studentlearning) for academic support, including study skills and time management help as well as subject-speci�c assistance.
Student Accessibility Services (uoit.ca/studentaccessibility) for students needing support or accommodation related to their disabilities.
Career Centre (uoit.ca/careercentre) for support related to career development, including identifying opportunities for experiential learning, job search and resume help, and career counselling for help with career goal-setting and planning.
Student Experience Centre (uoit.ca/studentexperience) for programs supporting �rst-year students, �rst-generation university students, mature students, transfer students, indigenous students and international students.
UOIT Student LifeLine ([email protected]; 905-721-3392) for on-campus mental health assistance and referrals.
Are you eligible for a transfer? 1.
Which program should you choose? 2.
Will your issue be resolved by a program switch?3.
Make an appointment with the academic advisor of the program you are hoping to transfer into to con�rm that you meet the admission requirements, to get information about how to apply for the transfer, and �nd out any important deadlines.
Con�rm whether all your course credits are transferrable; if not, are you OK with the extra time (and tuition!) it will take to make up those credit hours?
Be aware that you may be required to complete at least half of your degree requirements at the university that grants your degree; for most students, this means that a transfer may not be possible after your second year, unless you are willing to complete an extra year at your new school.
Re�ect on whether the reasons for your desire to switch are likely to follow you into your new program:
Check out the “Choosing a Specialization” section above for steps to follow in researching your academic options and how they might connect to your career goals.
Is the issue that the subject is boring to you so you lack motivation? If so, a program switch may be right for you.
If the issue is the learning environment or assessment methods in your current program, are those likely to be signi�cantly different in the new program? If not, a program switch may not result in the improvement you are hoping for.
Consider that many students have a dif�cult transition in their �rst year; there is a good chance that your performance will improve once you get your bearings and get to know the supports available to you, including:
If you are thinking of transferring to another program at UOIT:
If you are thinking of transferring to another post-secondary institution:
Oshawa Psychological and Counselling Services (oshawapsychologist.com) for personal counselling services.
Aspiria Student Assistance (aspiria.ca; 1-877-234-5327) or Good2Talk Post-Secondary Student Helpline (good2talk.ca; 1-866-925-5454) for 24/7 mental health support.
Website: uoit.ca/careercentre
FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO BOOK ACAREER COUNSELLING APPOINTMENT:
Is your program not what you expected when you applied? Are you �nding that it isn’t as interesting as you’d hoped? Are you worried that it won’t get you to your career goal? If you are thinking of switching to another program, consider the following:
