If you are a first year student who is still considering a variety of majors when you enter UC Merced, being undeclared is an excellent option. Often, students who find the greatest success are those who choose majors based on their strengths and interests. Guided by dedicated academic advisors, being “undeclared” at UC Merced provides a safe and open space to explore one or more fields of study. As an undeclared student, you will have access to resources that allow you to explore the range of academic programs available. While satisfying degree requirements, enrollment in first year courses will provide an introduction to the breadth of UC Merced majors and engagement with our accessible and dedicated faculty.
Some transfer students may be eligible for our Early Transfer Opportunity and be admitted as undeclared. Junior level transfer students will be admitted into a major and must have completed required major preparation courses prior to enrollment.
Bobcat Advising
Center
The Bobcat Advising Center (BAC) is the academic advising home for all first year students in every major as well as first year undeclared, continuing undeclared, and lower division undeclared transfer students.
We are here to support your exploration through academic advising and by encouraging you to take full advantage of on- and off-campus resources to help with your decision-making process in selecting a major.
With your BAC advisor, you can discuss course selection, preliminary graduation plans for majors you are considering, personal and career interests, admission requirements for different majors, and resources that will support your choice.
Undeclared Student Learning Outcomes
As an undeclared student in our BAC advising program, our goals are to help you:
- Further develop major decision-making and career exploration skills
- Develop career goals that combine your interests, values, and strengths
- Identify experiences such as research, internships, clubs and organizations and/or other activities to further explore your interests
- Understand major declaration policies and requirements for your intended major
- Understand how to use MyDegreePath to help with exploring and planning for majors
- Locate academic and career advising resources on campus and online
- Identify a preferred major and an alternate (backup) major to explore
- Understand the maximum terms allowed at UC Merced for your preferred major and degree
In 2020, the top attributes that employers want (in order) from job applicants are problem-solving skills, ability to work in a team, a strong work ethic, analytic or quantitative skills, written communication skills, demonstrated leadership skills, and verbal communication skills (National Association of Colleges and Employers Job Outlook, 2020). Those skills can be gained through your experiences in any major at UC Merced.
Research shows that 33% of college students change their major at least once during the first three years of college while 9% change their major multiple times
(National Center for Educational Statistics, 2017)
I wholeheartedly support students entering UCM as undeclared. Although some might not want to only take General Education (GE) classes, I believe it allowed me to experience different subjects and ideas to decide what most interested me. I came to UCM expecting to pursue a science degree, possibly in microbiology or astronomy. However, after taking a few introductory economics courses during my first and second year, I became more and more interested in the subject. Even if I had decided to stick with my initial major choice, I still would have completed all my units required for GE while exploring my choice of major.
