I agree with RP on many things, but I've never understood his antipathy towards minors (not to mention his outright hatred of double majors).
However, a line from his answer to this question gave me a possible insight as to the cause of his feelings:
If RP thinks that "official recognition" is the best reason for completing a minor, then I heartily agree that one's time, effort, and money might be better spent elsewhere.Rating Pending wrote:I can see how being able to say you minored in something gives you official recognition for something that you like enough to devote significant time to it.
However, I humbly submit that there are other possible motivations, many of which are much better (both in terms of overall motivation and in terms of how well a formal minor satisfies them).
To wit:
1. Because it's required. (Some majors require a minor or have options that can be filled through specific minors.)
2. Because it's free (or almost free). (Some majors have requirements that fill all of or most of the requirements for a minor in another department. E.g., when I was at BYU, chemistry majors were required to take 8 of the 9 classes necessary for a physics minor, so many of them went ahead and took the 9th class, too.)
3. Because you want to broaden your knowledge in a certain area.* (See below, due to length.)
4. Because you want to impress people. (I suppose there might be people in the world who are impressed by a minor, but I wouldn't call that a good reason to get one. Also, someone who wants to go around impressing people with their minor sounds like someone I would find highly annoying.)
5. Because you are indecisive. (Some people have a hard time making decisions and hate the idea of closing off any options. While I sympathize with this situation, college is a time for specialization — grad school even more so.)
6. Because you want official recognition. (About the only official recognition you'll get is a note on your transcript; minors don't appear on your diploma.)
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*This is likely to be the most controversial justification, since it marks the transition between "no brainer" and "no way" rationales. It's also the most vaguely defined and so covers a wide range of possible situations, so I'll flesh out only some of the issues involved. Is this the same as being indecisive? No. It could be a thoughtful decision to broaden or supplement a major, possibly in preparation for a career or graduate work. Can't you just be an autodidact? Some areas of study require access to specialized equipment or resources. In addition, some people learn better in a more formal environment. Are you taking away resources from other students by taking extra classes? Possibly, and I have no doubt that this is one of the factors at play in BYU's decisions to disallow second bachelor's degrees and crack down on double majors. However, I don't see that cranking as many people as possible through a rigid, bare-bones educational system is the best approach to education, either. I would argue that a balance should be maintained.
) is unfair.
