Academic Advising for Undeclared Students

At UNE, you can come in as an Undeclared student and take some time to figure out what major is the best fit for you.

Our Undeclared students receive one-on-one personalized attention from a professional advisor from the time of deposit until you decide on a major. Our goal is to help you find a major that suits your career interests, skills, and personality.

Your professional academic advisor will help you with the following:

  • Learn more about different majors on our campus
  • Connect you with faculty to discuss your major or majors of interest
  • Work with you at orientation and beyond to plan your course schedule
  • Work with Career Advising to identify professions that you would find fulfilling
  • Provides you with resources and referrals to help you succeed and graduate on time

Declaring Your Major

As an Undeclared student, you have until March 15 of your second year to declare a major. If you want to declare Marine Biology, Medical Biology, or Education are encouraged to do so by the end of your first year.

Here are some steps that you will need to take in order to declare your major:

  • Schedule an appointment with the Undeclared advisor and discuss how you came to the decision
  • You will be given a Declaration of Major form to complete and turn in to the Registrar’s Office
  • You will be assigned a professional or faculty advisor from the department of your new major

Self-Assessments

Self-assessments are a fun and helpful way to get to know yourself better and make it easier to figure out what major or career is the best option for you. At UNE, we offer two self-assessments to Undeclared students through the Academic and Career Advising Center. To take these assessments, you will need to make an appointment with a trained professional who can administer the assessment and interpret the results.

Assessments offered at UNE:

  • Strong Interest Inventory: As assessment that provides general information about your career interests and how they compare to those of people in various occupations.
  • Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI): A personality assessment that examine your preferences and explores various career options based on natural tendencies and preferences

FAQ

If I am an Undeclared student, can I still graduate in four years?

Yes. You will work with an advisor that will help you to explore your options while still satisfying core, major and elective requirements within the majors of interest.

When must I declare a major?

You must declare your major by March 15 of your second year.

I am trying to decide between multiple majors, so I enter UNE as an Undeclared student?

Yes. If you are trying to decide between two, three, or more majors, you would benefit from the same process as a student who has not yet identified any major. The Undecided advisor can help you find some common classes within all of your interested majors, so you will be able to explore while completing your degree requirements.

I already know what career I want but do not know what is the best major. Can I come in as an Undeclared student to figure out what is the best fit for me?

Yes. You will work in collaboration with the Undeclared advisor and Career Advising to find what the best major would be to fit your ultimate career goal and interests.

Will I be “unusual” if I am an Undeclared student?

No. Undeclared is one of the larger groups of majors at UNE. There are also plenty of students who come in with a declared major but end up changing that major as they progress through college. Some of these students will change to Undeclared (if they are early in their college career) to work with an advisor to find the best major fit for them.

Contact

For more information contact the Academic and Career Advising Center located on the second floor of the Danielle N. Ripich Commons at (207) 602-2192 or advising@une.edu.