Northwestern State University - Potpourri Yearbook (Natchitoches, LA)

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For most students, selecting a field of study is A Major Decision Choosing a major is something that every college student must face at one time or another. And choosing a field of study in which to concentrate does not guarantee you won ' t change your mind. The average student changes his ma- jor several times during a college career and after graduation, some may find that they end up in fields that are not at all related to their majors. At Northwestern, Business Adminis- tration is by far the largest program, for many reasons. Accounting, Elementary Teaching and Physical Education are also popular, according to figures from Institutional Research for the fall se- mester. Changing majors or applying for admission to senior colleges is often a big part of registration, as worker Tim Jacobs finds. All freshmen enter Northwestern un- der the College of Basic Studies and are not actually counted as participants in their declared majors. Others simply don ' t declare a major, or major initially in General Studies, until they decide what they really want. After complet- ing several core requirements, students are then moved to their senior colleges. These requirements are the completion of the freshman English courses, six hours of math, Orientation 101 and a total of 26 credit hours. In the fall of 1985, Basic Studies served 2,965 students; Arts and Sci- ences, 193; Business and Applied Sci- ences, 411; Education and Behavioral Sciences, 269; and Nursing, 600. The Graduate School had 1,241 students but was down almost half in the spring with the phaseout of the Professional Im- provement Program for teachers. Nursing major Cammy McClary receive advice from Alice Mitchell, secretary to the dean. Computer Information Systems major Carlos Cockerham completes a program for one of his classes. 10 Majors

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L Dr. Smiley keeps busy with plans for his college, which includes majors in business, home economics and agriculture. Dean Smiley ' s interest in young people carries over into his educational career. His college encompasses all business related ma- jors, which have traditionally been the most popular. Business, accounting and such are popu- lar disciplines and have been since the mid- 1960 ' s, the dean remarked. These majors are strong throughout the nation and are in high demand. Students are career oriented and this portion of our curriculum is highly desired. Business however is not the only major a students can find in the College of Business and Applied Sciences. Majors include agricu- luture and animal science, computer infor- mation, home economics and industrial edu- cation and technology. As dean, Dr. Smiley usually hears all the problems which arise in the college but finds dealing with faculty and students in- teresting. I find that working with the students and faculty is pleasant because we have accom- plished groups of both, he said, and are comparable to any university. Increasing financial resources is high on Dr. Smiley ' s list for Northwestern. We have the personnel, the curriculum, the structure, but we still need the resources. We need the opportunity to support our strengths. We could improve Northwestern by pro- viding a better set of foundation resources, he continued, to achieve the opportunities we are given. Dr. Smiley emphasizes that students should concentrate on the basic preparatory areas in the university core and advises stu- dents not to get uptight early about your major but take a couple of semesters to get used to college life. Explore, Dr. Smiley concluded. Be in- volved in the university more than just in the classroom. I find that working with the students and faculty is pleasant because we have accomplished groups of both and are comparable to any university. Dr. Barry Smiley, dean of the College of Business and Applied Sciences Dr. Smiley reviews the annual report for his college. Dean Barry Smile

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Major Accounting Computer Information Business Admin. Office Admin. Agri-Business Agriculture, general Animal Science Plant Soil Science Pre-Veterinary Dietetics Interior Design Home Economics Electrical Tech. Industrial Mgt. Industrial Tech. No. of Students Pre-Engineering Art 68 Advertising Design 74 Photography 163 English 13 German 17 Journalism 4 Music, instrumental 5 Music, piano 1 Music, vocal 3 Music performance, 5 instrumental 3 Music performance, 11 piano 18 Music performance, 12 vocal 28 2 2 8 5 4 1 38 1 1 2 1 1 2 Music performance, theory composition Anthropology Economics Political Science Social Science History Social Work Sociology Speech Business Office Education Distributive Business Education Early Childhood Ed. Industrial Arts Ed. Vocational Home Economics Education Art Education English Education Music Ed., voice Music Ed., instrument Social Science Ed. Elementary Teaching Librarianship Biology Education Chemistry Education Math Education Physics Education Science Education Pre-Physical Therapy Physical Elementary Education Physical Education Physical Ed. Dance Recreation Special Education Speech and Hearing 1 2 4 21 6 10 19 10 1 9 4 12 3 7 3 14 5 5 13 83 2 3 1 5 1 1 9 1 50 5 3 9 7 Dr. Arthur Allen inspects trees with Jerry Smith, and microbiology students Dave Merrell, Anna Hill and Donald Mitchell. Dr. Pam Newman conducts a seminar class in marketing for graduate students working towards a master ' s degree in student personnel services. Participating are Lisa Dowden, Marjorie Mike, Judith Lott, Jack Huff and Jim McKellar. M KJort 1 1