Fashion Design programs are perfect for anyone fascinated by the creative and outrageous possibilities of fashion. If you have an eye for style, color, trends, and flair, you might want to consider this field. According to the Parsons School of Design, however, Fashion Design is about more than beautiful clothes. It is a barometric gauge of our society and culture. If you pursue a career in Fashion Design you’ll also design shoes, accessories, and even costumes. You’ll be sketching and designing on both paper and computer, and most programs culminate in a publicly attended fashion show of student work. One of the best aspects of a Fashion Design program is the potential for internships, travel, and close work with top designers. When choosing a school, keep location in mind-a school in New York, for example, will give you far better opportunities for schmoozing with the best designers than, say, a school in Idaho. The Fashion Institute of Technology, for example, is located right on Seventh Avenue-or Fashion Avenue, as it’s called in the business. It’d be hard to get any closer to the heart of fashion than that.
Be prepared for lots of hands-on work. As with most creative fields, the core of Fashion Design is learning by doing. You won’t be hitting the books like your Liberal Arts-majoring friends-you’ll be hitting the sewing machine, the design software, and, eventually, the runway.

Preparation

Since most Fashion Design programs encourage emphasis on Fine Arts including drawing and sculpture, take advantage of your high school art department. It goes without saying that a Home Ec class or two would be on the right track. And don’t forget History and English courses-any good designer knows that fashions are greatly influenced by society and culture.

Agriculture is one of our nation’s largest industries. The technology behind it is constantly expanding, changing with new revolutions in science, and therefore changing the way we eat.
Feed Science is one of the most important disciplines behind agriculture. It’s a science in its own right, combining a study of biology and chemistry to help us figure out how to maximize livestock production. Feed Science covers a lot of territory, from new production methods to the development of pet food. As a Feed Science major you will have the opportunity to be on the cutting edge of some of the newest developments in the feed industry. You’ll help perfect the newest processes of providing food for livestock.

Preparation

Take a lot of math and science courses to prepare yourself for Feed Science. Biology, chemistry, algebra, and statistics are going to be especially important.

Film is a form of artistic expression that involves moving images, sound, color, and light projected in front of a human eye to produce a desired effect. Film is a moving record of the human condition, and over the years has served to challenge, remind, move, and entertain us. Film is inextricably linked to society and culture-it is both a product and a reflection of our time. Majoring in Film involves a dedication to your own artistic vision, as well as a commitment to learning about the great filmmakers from the past and present. As a Film major you’ll learn how to turn your vision into a work of art, through studies in acting, directing, producing, writing, editing, and sound mixing. You’ll learn about what goes into making a film, from pre- to post-production. Making films isn’t the only goal of a Film major. Film majors also study animation, cinematography, radio, and television. As with other fields of art, Film is very competitive-an undergraduate degree probably won’t yield enough experience to land you in the Sundance Film Festival unless you’re extraordinarily talented or have the luck o’ the Irish. If you’re serious about becoming a filmmaker, graduate work will probably be a necessity.

Preparation

If your high school has any classes on film, take advantage; if not, you can prepare for a Film degree by taking English, philosophy, art, music, and history classes. Film involves the expression of ideas and culture, and the best way to prepare is to expose yourself to great thinkers and artists of the past.

“Where flowers bloom, so does hope.”
Lady Bird Johnson was fond of that saying—and floriculture majors will probably enjoy it as well. A major in floriculture just seems to imply a career of making people happy. And chances are, that’s just what will happen! Everyone loves getting flowers, and in this major you’ll learn exactly what goes into growing them successfully—their appropriate environments, their needs, and their individual characteristics. You’ll learn about types of flowers and other ornamental plants and the varying challenges faced by those who grow them. You’ll also get experience working in greenhouses, so you can apply what you’ve learned in the classroom to the actual plant world, cultivating different varieties of plants and monitoring your success. Creativity is vital for the floriculture major. You’ll explore the art of floral design and landscaping, studying both indoor and outdoor plants and how to create attractive arrangements of each. Beautiful floral designs require artistic vision and innovation—arrangements differ throughout the seasons of the year, and you’ll build your skills for recognizing artful and unusual combinations of colors and types of flowers. Since many floriculture majors go on to work in greenhouses, nurseries, or flower shops, you’ll also learn the basics of management, business, and sales, which includes purchasing, storage, and delivery. Your floriculture major will lay the groundwork for your future in flowers. It was Emma Goldman who once said, “I’d rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck.” And if others are inclined to agree, you’ll be well on your way to a rewarding career!

Preparation

You can prepare for a major in floriculture by taking courses in the sciences, especially biology. As with any major, a strong foundation in a variety of subjects including math and the humanities will be valuable. Good communication skills are vital to a successful career, so take courses that will strengthen your writing and speaking skills. Getting experience in gardening or flower arranging will give you great preparation for college—you might check out opportunities for volunteering in your community, or start a flower garden of your own.

Alright, so technically, it may be impossible to speak with the dead, but as anybody who’s ever seen a couple of episodes of NYPD Blue or Law and Order will tell you, the dead can speak, we just have to know how to listen. Forensic Science teaches us how to listen to the dead and to everything and everyone in any way connected to a crime. It is the eyes and ears behind the dead and the missing. It picks up where the crystal ball and the candles leave off, and—with a little molecular and biological testing, perhaps a pattern analysis or two—it can reveal the past to us. Forensic Science is aptly named because in order to uncover the missing links of crimes, forensic scientists need a working knowledge of almost every science. They’re not just trying to figure out what happened, but also how, when, why, and by whom. They are one part pathologist, one part dentist, one part psychologist, one part chemist, one part anthropologist, and one part criminologist. They get to show up at crime scenes in their own vans, and you can bet that when they speak, everyone listens. An easy major/profession? Not a chance. But rest assured that the work you do will be invaluable and possibly very lucrative.

Preparation

Science, science, and if you have time, a little more science. Think hard about biology, chemistry, physics, anatomy, advanced algebra, and if you can, take calculus and A.P. science courses to help prepare you for the rigors of this major.

Honestly, does any language sound cooler, more romantic, or more sophisticated than French? Okay, maybe Italian. But beyond sounding cool, French is also a great college major.
Undergraduate programs in French are primarily designed to ensure that you gain a substantial degree of competence in speaking and writing the language (advanced courses are often conducted in French), so be prepared to spend a lot of time studying the nuts and bolts of grammar and translation. In addition, you’ll learn about French culture, history, and literature, and the throng of exotic locales where French is spoken. Majoring in French also offers abundant opportunities to take classes in other departments like history, English and literature, philosophy, international studies, film, and art history. What can you do with a French major besides teach? A lot. French speakers are in demand in banking and finance, foreign market analysis, diplomacy, and hotel management, just to name a few fields. But if you don’t think corporations hire language majors, take note of what BP-Amoco (one of the most monolithic and powerful multinational corporations in the world) has to say: “It took us far too long to realize that ‘business’ in parts of the world outside North America is about ‘relationships.’ While many will tell you that the language of business is English, relationships are forged through common experiences and respect, and in a common language (typically not English). Even the most basic efforts to understand and communicate in the language of the host are greatly appreciated, and often form the basis for a business deal to be struck.” In case you were wondering, France boasts the world’s fourth largest economy, and its gross domestic product (GDP) growth is one of the highest among European economies.

Preparation

The more high school French you take, the better, because taking foreign language placement tests is one of the first things you will probably do when you embark on your college career. The farther you can place yourself above French 101, the more time and money you will save.