How UNC Asheville Students Choose Their Academic Paths

Major Choices: To the Stars and Beyond

By UNC Asheville

November 22^nd, 2021

We're taking a look into every major at UNC Asheville, across all disciplines, from accounting to women, gender, and sexuality studies. In this installation, we’ll meet students who have found that exploring concentrations and taking a variety of classes within your major can help you broaden your horizons. You will be able to not only explore your passions and improve your abilities for your desired career, but you may also surprise yourself with the new interests you find.

Find Part 1 of this series here on double majors.

Alexandra Parker

Alexandra Parker is a sophomore majoring in atmospheric sciences with a minor in astronomy.

“I chose atmospheric science because I was fascinated with severe weather, specifically thunderstorms and tornadoes. Meteorology has been a favorite subject of mine since I was a kid. I decided to learn as much as I could and make a career out of something that I enjoy,” said Parker. “The reason that I chose to minor in astronomy is similar.

My dad has had me looking up at the sky for as long as I can remember. Because of him, I’ve made it a goal to learn as much as I can about our sky and everything beyond it.”

Parker’s advice for students thinking about entering the major is to be aware that it involves more math than you may think. The major consists of many subjects such as physics, calculus, and even programming. But Parker found the math classes were as rewarding as they were challenging.

“I was never good at math in school; I never understood or absorbed any of the information given to me if it was math-related. Because atmospheric science is math/physics centered, I’ve had to work harder to understand and retain the things being taught in my classes,” Parker said. “The process of adjusting my learning/studying strategies and dedicating more of my time to school has been challenging, but it’s incredibly rewarding to see results from that hard work.”

Parker's favorite class has been Mountain Meteorology due to her goal of living and working in the mountains after graduation as well as improving her understanding of how mountain ranges around the globe affect local weather. She hopes to also end up working as a severe weather forecaster at the Storm Prediction Center, a government agency that is part of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction.

How UNC Asheville Students Choose Their Academic Paths

Danny Secor

Danny Secor is a senior majoring in mass communication.

Secor was originally drawn to the mass communication major after his best friend was taking mass communication classes and recommended that it would be a good fit because of how many different options you can follow in this program.

“You don't need to pick film, journalism, or any other specific concentration. You can dip your toes into all of them and use that experience to help figure out your main interests and what you're best at,” said Secor.

Secor is currently taking Feature Article Writing with Laura Meadows, assistant professor mass communication, which he has found very interesting.

“We get to write about our own lives in a more narrative style, and it's been therapeutic for me so far,” said Secor.

Secor was pleasantly surprised by the amount of real-world knowledge that he has gained in this major, especially in his video production courses.

“If you go for it with your projects, it is a lot of work. You've got to rent out equipment, set up shooting times, and edit for hours. But it's so rewarding to see something on the screen that you created,” Secor said.

Secor is unsure of what his future holds, but he desires to be in the music industry, either from the marketing route for a company like Spotify, or as a music journalist.

“Every class you take relates to something going on in the world. That's why classes are always changing because professors will tweak the subject matter to relate to our everyday lives,” said Secor.

Elias Landsman

Elias Landsman is a senior/post-baccalaureate studying computer science.

“I returned to school in my 30's to study computer science to gain a skill set that will enable me to change careers and become a professional software engineer,” Landsman said.

“I chose this path because computer science is a perfect harmony of creativity and logic, and it enables us to create applications that solve novel problems and make the world a better place.”

Landsman states that many people are often intimidated by computer science due to this preconception that you have to be good at math or coding to be successful. However, he explains that everything is learnable with effort, especially if you enjoy problem-solving. Landsman, who hopes to pursue the path of software engineering after he graduates, said that by studying computer science, he has been able to see what's going on “under the hood.” He also became intrigued with how comprehensible and complex these devices are.

“In computer science, we tackle complex problems by breaking them down into digestible chunks and solving them piece by piece, so that we can remain productive and not get overwhelmed,” Landsman said. “This applies to coding, but also the academic approach of the department, and more generally to life as a whole. Studying computer science is enriching on a deeper level than just learning how to code and write software.”

Landsman explains that the most difficult aspect of being a computer scientist has been overcoming impostor syndrome. Because there is so much to learn and always someone who knows more than you, it's difficult to believe that you will ever have enough knowledge.

“To pursue computer science is to accept a lifelong path of continual learning and growth - so for me, the key is to practice mindfulness and remain present,” said Landsman. “The most rewarding part has been perpetuating the culture in computer science of sharing knowledge with others, as opposed to gatekeeping. Whenever I have sought assistance in my studies (be it from professors, classmates, or strangers online), I am amazed at how kind and generous people are with their time - so I strive to pay it forward. This has led to the formation of great friendships with my classmates and professors.”

Hannah Bruno

Hannah Bruno is a senior double majoring in psychology and modern languages and literature with a concentration in Spanish.

“One of my professors used the term ‘serial obsessionist’ to describe his wide variety of interests. I think that term fits me well. I have been surprised by how many different things are really exciting for me to learn about, so I have had a hard time settling into any one path after graduation. However, I think it's a really good problem to have too many interests than not any,” said Bruno.

Bruno’s passion for psycholinguistics, studying how people and culture influence language, is what drew her to this double major pairing.

“I chose Spanish first because I have always loved it as a field of study. The department is also full of wonderful people, which creates a really strong academic, social, and community-focused environment,” said Bruno. “Pairing it with psychology was an easy choice because they tie together really well in ways far beyond just bilingual careers. Language is inherently tied to the people that speak it, so learning about people is just as important as language.”

She encourages students that are interested in getting into the language field to go for it. She states that it has given her multiple opportunities to engage across campus and local communities that allowed her to do work in a collaborative learning environment.

“As for students considering psychology, I would promise that any research class shouldn't scare you off from the major. The professors are passionate and want to share their amazing work with you alongside the material itself.

Whenever I talk about UNC Asheville, I encourage people to ask a million questions and get to know your professors—which applies to any major. They all have so much experience and knowledge to share!” said Bruno.

Bruno states that she most enjoyed her psychology of language course as well as her service learning class in Spanish as well as special topics in a literature course. Teaching languages and literatures was also a really interesting course to combine learning styles and language.

“Each of my majors is challenging for different reasons. It is a massive undertaking to read an entire novel or novella in Spanish in about a week or two, but understanding a complex psychological research article is also incredibly challenging. However, each of these experiences has been incredibly rewarding and has expanded my understanding and confidence in my majors,” said Bruno.

She hopes to use all of her studies in different ways after graduation; she has many career possibilities that she is interested in such as teaching, serving as a specialized counselor, or conducting research.