Why Laying out a 4-Year Plan Is Essential

Most college kids scramble to find courses each term.  I know; I work with many of them.  They search the schedule of classes for interesting courses or get tips from friends about easy GEs (general education courses). When they finally get frustrated, or when their parents realize they’re throwing lots of money down a big black hole, one of them contacts me to help them figure out what they’re really doing in college and how to create a plan to get them to graduation. 

By laying out a 4-year plan – ideally before they head off to college – students get a better sense of their majors and what it takes to prepare for a real career.  We layout lower division, and then upper division requirements for their major, and then add in GEs, electives, internships, study abroad and other opportunities to ensure that they are primed for the workforce upon graduation.  The best part is that we read and discuss course descriptions so they really get a sense for what they’ll be learning.  While we’re laying out their 4-year plans, they can make pretty good educated decisions about whether or not these plans work for them. 

The good news — if they decide they don’t really like the major or career, they figured this out BEFORE they started taking courses in that major and wasted their parents’ precious college funds. Sometimes students get so excited while building their 4-year plans that they add a minor to enhance their college experience and give them more tools to nail that perfect job.  Others merge 2 majors by double majoring.

But students who choose classes one term at a time miss out on these epiphanies.  They often have regrets about classes they missed because they’re offered on even years or they’ve already satisfied that particular requirement.  With short-sightedness, they won’t have time to add prerequisite classes that also satisfy GEs, which limits what they can take by way of interesting upper division courses. Sadly, these students don’t have the opportunities to take full advantage of their college experience.

So have your college-bound or college student lay out their 4-year plans now.  Ask them to justify what they’re taking and why.  And most importantly ask them to defend their 4-year plan — so they own it.  This will ensure your best ROI (return on investment).