Majors Week showcases programs, attracts interested students

Majors Week, officially held last week, has continued into this week with events hosted by a variety of academic departments. According to History Lecturer David Proctor, Majors Week events primarily serve as a means for academic departments to showcase their programs to students potentially interested in majoring or minoring in the subject.

“[Majors Week] is about introducing students to the discipline; what would a history major [or] a classics major entail?” he said. “It’s also a way to get students and faculty together, so that students can get a sense of who the faculty are in the department.”

Proctor added that for some departments, Majors Week can also serve as an opportunity for the entire department, including faculty, undergraduates and graduate students, to gather together and get a sense of the makeup of the department as a whole.

Proctor noted, however, that most of the Majors Week events focus their attention primarily on first years and sophomores, many of whom have not yet declared a major.

As a member of the Department of History, Proctor explained that History Majors Week usually consists of faculty introducing their courses and explaining aspects of being a history major.

“The most important part about the History Department Majors Week event is to provide that access to the faculty, to provide a casual atmosphere where students can just talk to the professors,” he said.

Despite its name, Majors Week is also geared toward students who may be interested in a department’s minor rather than the full major, Proctor said.

Although the general outline of most departments’ Majors Week events is similar, Proctor noted that there is some variation between the departments.

“Every department has their own flair to it,” he said. “Some departments structure it as a series of presentations, some departments have just … a casual atmosphere, some departments have a formal address from a department chair … it really varies.”

Proctor explained that Majors Week is not intended as the only factor in students’ decision to choose a major; instead, Majors Week should serve as the final step in the decision-making process.

“I think there are times where going to a Majors Week event and talking to that one faculty member about what your interests are and finding that you really have a connection with that person or that within the department there are really ways to explore what you want to explore. That can be the final piece that pushes you toward that major,” he said.

Proctor emphasized that Majors Week can provide this final piece simply through casual conversation with professors.

Joel Rosenberg, associate professor and co-director of Judaic studies, agreed with Proctor in emphasizing that a Majors Week event is only a small part of the decision making process for students.

“I think that our best way attracting people to the [Judaic studies major] is teaching courses that students like, and if they enjoy the course and want to pursue it further, they have having an opportunity to do that,” he said.

During the Majors Week event for the Judaic studies major and minor and the Hebrew minor, Rosenberg explained that interest appeared to be sparse, with few people stopping by the department’s table. Accordingly, in order to get the word out about the possible Judaic studies academic options, Rosenberg noted that the academic quality and distinctiveness of the department is vital.

“One thing that distinguishes Tufts in the Judaic studies domain is that we’re not solely text centered … my emphasis has always been on experience, historical experience. I teach a lot of courses through modern media, especially film,” he said.

Ultimately, despite the lack of attendance at the Judaic studies Majors Week event, Rosenberg emphasized that it was far from a failure.

“People walked by our tables and looked at our displays and talked to us and met our faculty, and that can be as important, I think, as delivering any particular message,” he said.

In terms of possible improvements to Majors Week, Proctor noted that scheduling has always proven to be difficult. For example, the Department of History chose to hold their event on Wednesday of this week rather than during the official Majors Week due to scheduling issues.

For Jean-Charles Zurawicki, a first-year who attended the Department of History open house on Wednesday, the event served as a possible means for getting to know more about the department.

“I’m also thinking of [majoring in] international relations, and I’m taking a history class now called Globalization [and] I really like it, so I figured maybe it would be worth double majoring,” he said.

After the introductions of the history faculty members, Zurawicki noted that the event has favorably impacted his opinion of the history major.

“I think I am more confident in being a history major now; I’m excited to become one,” he said.