In the diagram below the blue circle indicates your major or the major you are thinking about.

For each program of study there are some Core Courses that you have to take. Notice that these are all within the blue Major circle. On the other hand, my Electives, Supporting Courses, and General Education courses straddle the outside edge of the circle. This is because some of these courses relate directly to my intended major while others really fall outside of this specific program of study.

For instance, if I intended to major in Geography, chances are my General Education Foreign Language requirement would not relate directly to the courses I take in the Geography Department. It would be outside of this circle. However, if my major was in Spanish Literature, this connection would obviously be much stronger. The same would be true for Electives and the Supporting Courses that I would opt to take. Some of these are closely related to your Major program of study. Others sit more on the periphery and support your overall goals.

Let's not forget a very important part of your educational program - Activities and Involvement. What clubs, organizations, teams, etc. do you have on your list? Some of these might relate directly to your intended major such as the UnderDOGs (Undergrads in the Department Of Geography). This involvement would be closely related to your program of study. Your participation in the Aikido Club does not, however it is very important to you for health and personal reasons and would lie outside of the blue circle. Get the idea?

Don't forget - The most important parts of this map are the connecting arrows! Be sure to spell out with descriptions, annotations or commentary what the connections are between the different parts of your educational program here at Penn State. This is the kind of information that you and your advisors will find most helpful in guiding you along an educational plan that has been well thought through.

Second or third year students, this might be a good way to map out the direction your program of study is going to take!

Check out the Gallery for examples of how other students have tackled this challenge. Review the e-portfolios of your friends and classmates to see what strategy was involved and whether you thought it was effective or not.