How can you support as a supervisor with the choice of minor?
Case study
The other day I had a conversation with Marijn. He is not sure what he wants to do in his minor. He is now in the third year of Engineering Management. He finds many subjects in the study interesting. Yet nothing jumps out at him that he wants to explore further. He would like to know if I have any tips for him.
What do we mean by minor choice?
Most programmes schedule ‘profiling space’ in the third or fourth year of study. Many students use this for a minor. That is a coherent package of courses around a theme or subject area. This allows a student to deepen or broaden their knowledge and increase their job opportunities. A student can further specialise through a minor, or learn something from an entirely different field of study.
Choosing a minor:
A student wishing to take a minor at HU can find what is on offer on this site: HU-minors | broaden or deepen your knowledge! (husite.nl) . A student can also choose a minor outside the HU, the so-called Kies op Maat (KOM) minors.
Choice by study
There are also other options for using the profiling space. The degree of freedom of choice varies by study. A student can opt for a transfer programme to a master’s degree. If the programme allows it, the student can choose a different interpretation of free space. The study guide will tell you when the profiling space is scheduled and the programme conditions.
Going abroad:
Students can also complete the profiling space abroad. Information about the options can be found in the study guide and on the site Go International. In addition, students can discuss options with the contact person (Internationalisation) of the institute.
DO!
As a supervisor, pay attention to these points of interest when choosing a minor
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Before the student makes a choice, it is important to know what the student wants to achieve from a minor. As a supervisor, in learning team meetings, or slb discussions, give the student information about the different options and help the student get clear on what he/she wants to achieve with the minor. This can be done by discussing these points of interest.
- Expanding knowledge
A student finds specific parts in the study particularly fascinating. If so, the student may choose to specialise more in the minor. - Widening knowledge
A student wants to learn about another field of study in combination with the chosen undergraduate programme. For example, a Social Work student who discovers that organising and management suits her/him well may choose a minor in management. - Something completely different
The student has always wanted to do something special such as learn an additional foreign language, or know more about religions, philosophy, communication, politics or psychology. - Premaster start
Are students considering continuing their studies and doing a university master’s after the bachelor’s? The minor space can be used for a premaster’s degree. However, this requires the university’s approval.
Students can also consult the online decision aid on the site of Choice Advice.
Follow-up case study
I looked at the range of all HU minors with Marijn. He had only looked at his programme’s minors and had not realised that he could also choose another minor. We went through the whole list. At the minor in Spanish, he got excited. He thinks Spanish is a great language that he had always wanted to learn. And maybe Marijn will also use this language in an international job.