Almost half of students have changed majors
By DENISE RYAN
Collegian Staff Writer
The odds are high that in any group of
10 Penn State students, about half of
them have changed their major at least
once during their college career.
Student Affairs Research studied an
incoming freshman class 10 years ago
and conducted followup studies five
years ago on the freshmen. They
discovered that a little less than 50 per
cent of the class changed their majors at -
least one time.
Jefferson D. Ashby, counselor for the
Division of Undergraduate Studies, said
that "since then, we've not seen a
dramatic change in styles."
Ashby said that 10 to 20 per cent of the
freshman students who changed majors
did so 'before taking their first class at
Penn State. That means that they
changed their major sometime between
their admission to the University and
their first day class.
The most consistent trend, Ashby said,
is a shift from a heavy science program
to a social science emphasis.
Former pre-med student Mark E.
Zimmerman (7th-psychology) changed
his major to psychology for two reasons:
Canvassing case appeal sought
Three former University students will petition the State
Supreme Court to hear an appeal of a political canvassing
case involving the University, according to their at
torney.
Virginia B. Eisenstein, who represents Steven H.
Brush, Michael J. Mullen and Kimberly Getz, said
yesterday that her clients were encouraged by a recent 3-
3 draw in the State Superior Court of an appeal of a case
that was dismissed in Centre County Court in February,
1976.
The draw, with one judge abstaining, upheld the lower
court ruling.
The students had brought the suit against the
University in 1975 in an attempt to change a University
Bomb threat evacuates Pattee Library
Several hundred people were
evacuated from Pattee Library after a
bomb threat was received there Friday
afternoon.
Shortly before 3 p.m., according to
dean of libraries Stuart Forth, Judy
Good, a clerk at the reference room desk
-received a phone call. A man's voice was
at the other end.
"There's a fucking bomb going off at
3:30," the voice said. Good was
unavailable for comment last night.
Recycle
* this *
paper.
vis ct
/ •
`
• k
\‘: •
.4161 ? I ‘ , 041
\/•• e(;.e
N
4./
.-
a
THE OFFICIAL
PENN STATE CLASS RING
ONE HUNDRED EAST COLLEGE AVENUE
11,A-VIIR-
Since 1890 Penn State people
have come to appreciate
I the timely reflections
and
'h e L a
Vie,
,ememoriesThe
names, in
The faces. Those
PENN familiar places.
They all come
STATE together for
you in
La Vie.
YE ARbOOK
206 HUB
"First of all," he said, "I didn't like
chemistry any more. And second, I had
the worst prof for two courses in my
major. He turned me completely against
chemistry. He didn't teach; he played
games."
In 1976, 3,07.4 freshmen were polled at
University Park. Out of that class, 20.1
per cent, or 618 students, changed their
majors between the time they were
admitted and the time they registered
for Fall Term.
Fifty-three per cent of those who
changed their. major did so because of a
A similar call was 'made to the
University Police Services, Forth said.
Campus police rushed to the library
and had the ' building cleared in 20
minutes.
Police kept people out of the building
for an hour and fifteen minutes.
No bomb was found.
This is the second bomb threat
received by Pattee in the last seven
months. Forth said last week's bombing
at Graduate Circle was probably the
reason behind the extensive evacuation.
• .
Rick gustier
This Week
9:3opm
-I:3oam
PUB .
U
1450 S ATHERTON ST 238 3001
, •
865-2602
111
policy which allows students living in residence halls to
close their buildings, by majority vote, to door-to-door
canvassers.
In the Centre County Court decision, Judge R. Paul
Campbell ruled that a dorm's upper floors were not the
same as a public streeand that the right of privacy was
as important as the right to canvass.
Eisenstein said that the three judges who voted against
the lower court ruling felt that Campbell's decision was
too broad and might infringe on the right of free speech.
The other three judges agreed with Campbell's ruling
that a dorm is not covered under the First Amendment
right to canvass.
*******************************
0 PEN AIR
CONCERT
(Come Rain or Come Shine)
Pousette Dart Band &
The 7-11 Band
.•( Plus Back-Up
i t Saturday, July 23 7:3OPM
Westerly Pkwy. Football Field
-tc
$5.00
Tickets Available At:
* Music Mart * School Kids Records
* Also Available at Gate *
No Alcoholic Beverages Permitted In Stadium
-0 4( Presented by MBAssociates:
44/Pt st)fro wcx)el/
take 5
for a
french
Happy Hours 4 til I a.m
definite . change in educational goals,
Ashby said. Many students in this
category were concerned about em
ployment possiblitites.
James F. Robinson (11th-business)
originally majored in physics, but
0
0
0
0
0
0
changed his major when he learned the
job market for physics majors was
anything but promising. Friends told
him how much better the business field
Was, and he eventually changed his
mind.
"It's just more childish damn non
sense we have to live with," he said.
Forth said he was "astonished" at the
police services' direction of the
evacuation.
"The police did a first-rate job in
getting the people out," he said.
University police were still searching
for the caller last night.
They declined to issue any information
concerning possible leads.
Mon. Sat.
A summer job often changes a
student's mind, Ashby •said.
,Students
frequently find a chance to investigate
their field, only to discover it's really not
for them.
A student's commitment to his studies,
ADD
he added, increased the likelihoi
sticking to a chosen major.
Approximately 32 per cent. of
students who changed majors di
because of mistakes in admi
procedures. Ashby said this hat
Military questions Korea withdrawal
WASHINGTON (UPI) ' Military
officials are suggesting President Carter
made up his mind to withdraw U.S.
troops from Korea while his advisors
were still reviewing• the issue and
casting doubt on the wisdom of a with
drawal.
That impression emerged from
detailed congressional testimony given
last week by Gen. Bernard Rogers, the
Army chief of staff, and witnesses at a
Hguse Armed Services Committee
hearing.
Carter told a May 26 news conference
he issued his withdrawal decision May 5
only after completion of expert con
sultations that concluded with a formal
National Security Council meeting.
He said Rogers himself explained the
new policy to U.S. and South Korean
'Services for aged' speech set
John Smith of the Berks campus of
Penn State will speak on "Social Ser
vices Through Media Delivery Systems
for Older Adults" at a luncheon sym
posium noon-1:15 p.m. tomorrow in the
Maple Room of Human Development
Building.
The following Free U courses meet
tonight:
by Curt Smith
Hi-Way must be better 'cause
our customers keep coming back.
Once you've tried us, we're sure
you'll be back, too. Because at
Hi-Way our customers are friends.
4 convenient locations to serve you
with great pizza to nourish you.
• Westerly Parkway Shopping Center 237-1074
• 340 E.
• 112 S.
• Rear Dante's Ristorante Village Square
Shopping Center 237-0374
when confusion exists over the school•in
which a certain program is located.
For example, some pre-vet students
could mistakenly enroll in a science
program instead of the College of
Agriculture, he said.
A small group of students change their
minds because they are very uncertain
about their first choice of major, said
Ashby. A substantial number of students
in this category switch to DUS until they
make a definite decision.
officials during a visit to Seoul. But the
general, who was already en route to
Korea when the NSC met April 26, left a
different impression in his congressional
testimony.
He said the purpose of his trip was to
visit U.S. troops, not to discuss with
drawal proposals. But he said the issue
was raised with him by Maj. Gen. John
Singlaub, then a high ranking officer in
the U.S Korean' command.
Rogers said he told Singlaub it was his
opinion Carter had already decided on
his withdrawal plan, and Singlaub
asked, "What rationale have you been
given for the withdrawal?" .
"And I said 'None,' " Rogers testified.
Carter later relieved Singlaub of his
Korean duties after the officer told a
"Introduction to Marxism Penn
State Young Socialists," 7:30 in 307
Boucke.
"Academic Barriers," 6:30 in 116
Boucke.
The Color Slide Club will hold its
monthly meeting 7:30 tonight in 112
Kern.
College Ave. 237-5718
Garner St. 234-0349
The Daily Collegian Monday, July 18, 1977-
During her freshman ye fir at Penn
State, Leslie Tweed (10th-chemical
engineering) was a pre-med major.
"Rut I was pretty sure I wasn't going
to get into med school anyway," she
said.
She said she looked into other majors
and decided that chemical engineering
was what she wanted. She has one more
year of studies to complete before she
graduates, and says she can still get into
med school with her degree if her grades
are good enough and she really decides
that's what she wants.
Ashby said his department in DUS is
sensitive to the circumstances
surrounding a student's change of
major.
"There is a lot of flexibility built into
the system," he said, noting that the
University structure is not designed to
force students into a major.
ThoSe unsure of a major may enroll in
DUS or major in liberal arts before
making a permanent decision, he said.
A handful of students change majors
late in their college career, Ashby said,
but on the whole, they have no problems
as long as their academic performance
is adequate.
reporter the withdrawal plan would lead
to war.
Rogers said Carter had first raised the
withdrawal question with the Joint
Chiefs of Staff at a Washington briefing
Jan.
,13, when he was still President
elect.
Six days after Carter took office,
Rogers said, the President formally
asked various agencies to "examine
possible courses of action for dealing
with reductions in U.S conventional
ground forces on the peninsula."
Rock
breaks
dorm
window
University police reported that an
unknown person threw a rock through a
window on the fourth floor of Geary Hall
Saturday. Estimated damage was $4O.
Police log
Steve Brooke of North Carolina
reported the theft of his folding chair
from his booth at the Arts Festival
Saturday, University police said.
Estimated value was $35.
—by Wayne Johnson