Over the past two weeks, the departments of Columbia College and the Center for Student Advising held major mentoring nights and open houses hoping to entice prospective majors.

"I was major-mentoring for physics and astronomy majors. All the majors were there ... there was tons of food. To be honest, though, turnout wasn't the best in terms of sophomores and underclassmen in general. The ones that did come were across the board - from 'I already know I'm majoring in this' to 'I just want some advice' to 'I have no idea, I'm just shopping around."

As sophomores in the College declare their majors this week, most seemed confident in their decisions.

"I've been planning to major in English for a while, and I think that's the right decision. So, I'm going to major in English and concentrate in music."

"When I was a sophomore, I didn't go to this major mentor event. I was pretty convinced that I knew what I was doing."

"I'm going to declare my major - Women and Gender Studies. As for feeling prepared, I feel quite prepared. I've taken two women and gender, and they've revolutionized my life and the way I think. I'm not going to change - I feel like I can save the world with women and gender studies."

Even students who felt they didn't know enough about their prospective majors said they were ready to make a decision.

"I'm majoring in Urban Studies and concentrating in Sustainable Development. I didn't really decide until this semester and changed my major about seven times because I didn't really come into Columbia with a set major. I feel like I've had plenty of time [to decide], and most other people have had their act together longer than I have."

"I'm planning to declare my major in Econ/Philosophy, and it's a little hard with the core classes to decide this early, because you don't get to try out the different areas of study, but I feel ready."

Because some departmental open houses were canceled due to Friday's snow day, students still have a chance to get advice next week. Please refer to the CSA Advising Blog or contact individual academic departments for more information.