Student Explores Major Options with the Pros
Tara Copanas has a good idea what she wants to do for her career, but she's not certain what major at UC will best help her get there. She has turned to UC's new Center for Exploratory Studies for guidance.
The center offers a range of services and advisers to help undecided students like Tara choose a major that is optimally suited to them. Although the center is located in Room 149, McMicken Hall, it serves students from across the university.
The 20-year-old Copanas is an undeclared student enrolled in the College of Business Administration. She has completed half the needed requirements for a French major and has an interest in finding a career related to the marketing of art.
"I have a pretty clear idea of what I want to do once I get out of college. I am just not sure what major at UC will help me to get there."
"I would love to be involved in an art gallery, a museum or an art auctioning business. I am also interested in doing something internationally with my French," says the 2001 Sycamore High School graduate.
A resident of Turner Hall at UC, she knows she likes art because of the enjoyment she gets out of decorating spaces and visiting art museums. "I have a strong affinity for art and architecture but lack the skill level needed to create it. I am much better suited to the business aspect of art as a critic or collector." She took an Advanced Placement art history course in high school that she "thoroughly enjoyed."
She made her first visit to the Center for Exploratory Studies a few weeks ago. Nicole Grant, senior academic adviser at the center, is working to match Tara with an externship that will allow her to get a real-world taste of the arts and to pair Tara with a UC alumnus who works in the gallery or museum field.
The center "really offers some neat programs that will be helpful to students who know they belong in college and don't know what to pursue," says Tara, who is looking forward to the chance to shadow an alumnus and get some experience.
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