Can't decide on one field of study? Some colleges are cool with creativity.

Like many people, Marcie Mercer, an undergrad at the University of Connecticut (UConn), Storrs, CT, thought ahead to graduate school and her career goals when she picked a major. But to meet her goals, she's pursuing an unusual path. Through UConn's Individualized Majors program, she's creating a tailor-made degree that focuses on the skills she'll need to become a physician assistant. She's studying biomedical sciences, encompassing courses in biology, chemistry, physics, and nutrition, so she'll have the credits she needs to continue on to a physician assistant program. "An individualized major gives you the freedom to design your own course structure, [letting you] concentrate on a particular area without ... taking classes that don't apply to [your] interests," she says.

Designing your own major is all about having the freedom to choose what you study. But charting your own course doesn't mean going it alone. Colleges give their students plenty of support in planning a major. Department faculty and advisors in the Individualized Majors program work with students to create distinctive majors that fit their academic needs. Together they draw up a study plan detailing the major, and after the plan is approved, they offer guidance and support throughout the student's pursuit.

"Ideally, each major is as unique as the student," explains Dr. Jennie Talbot, director of UConn's Individualized Majors program. Nonetheless, the program isn't just for people interested in one-of-a-kind topics. Dr. Talbot notes that it also lets students opt for a conventional major their school just doesn't have.

Self-designed majors have other benefits as well. Gabriella Bythewood found this out when she switched from African-American history to her own Individualized Major, African diaspora. Now she's studying a much broader field, focusing on people of African heritage around the world through courses in history, sociology, women's studies, and more. "This major is more challenging and exciting to me," she says.

But don't think that individualized majors are the same thing as liberal arts. Although humanities students make up the majority of those doing self-designed majors, such study can be done in virtually any field.

At Alfred University, Alfred, NY, students have pursued Individually Structured Majors through the school's Track II plan in topics from academic administration to biomedical photography. During their first year at Alfred, Track II students pick three professors to be their Faculty Advisory Board and receive advising throughout the program, from designing the curriculum to doing the final project. While working out the details of their majors, Alfred freshmen complete their general education requirements, and by their sophomore year, they're ready to hand in program proposals, an outline that details the work to be involved. Proposals can include everything from regular classes in different departments to independent research and fieldwork.

So who's the right candidate for a self-designed major? Students who go this route, says Dr. Gail Walker, interim director of Track II, are "fairly sure of where they're going." Most have a specific career in mind, she adds, while others have a strong interest in what they choose to pursue.

Julianne Rana, a Sarah Lawrence College graduate, was "interested in how economic development could positively impact communities in need," but she wasn't sure how to combine this concern with her studies. With the help of her faculty advisor, Dr. Charlotte Price, she chose courses that allowed her to examine "grassroots nonprofit organizations [assisting] people living in hunger and poverty." Now, she's coordinator of Reinvesting in America and the Harry Chapin Self-Reliance Awards at World Hunger Year, a New York-based anti-poverty organization.

Self-designed majors are the norm at Sarah Lawrence. Students at the Bronxville, NY, school direct their own studies with the help of faculty guides. Students pick courses from four areas -- humanities, arts, science and math, and social sciences -- according to their interests.

"Sarah Lawrence is unique," explains Jeffrey Engel, a graduate who's now a fund manager. With the school's emphasis on self-directed learning, "everything can be self-designed." Engel, for instance, created his own internship on the American Stock Exchange. Taking the lead in his studies has given him "a good background for later in life," he feels, and enabled him to be a more independent and creative thinker.

Thinking about designing your own major? First, consider what interests you have and what you want to do after graduation. "If you know the area you would like to work in professionally but don't quite know how to approach it academically, creating your own field of study may be the right choice for you," says Rana. Most of all, says Dr. Price, "dare to experiment with something new while learning more deeply about something you are passionately interested in."

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