The
BEACON
Vol. 114, Issue 11
THE UNIVERSITY OF PORTLAND’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER
Thursday November 15, 2012 www.upbeacon.net
Theo 101 to teach only Christian doctrine
The required course will no longer teach world religions Philip Ellefson Staff Writer ellefson15@up.edu
Pilots beat WSU 6-5 after 11 penalty kicks to stay alive in the NCAA tournament See Sports, pg. 16
Next year’s freshmen and those that follow will not learn about the life of Muhammad or the difference between dharma and karma. Instead, they will get an introduction to Christian theology. Starting next fall, Theology 101, which is currently called Introduction to Theology and World Religions, will be an introduction to only Judeo-Christian theology. Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam will no longer be taught. See Theology, page 2
Photo Courtesy of Portland Pilots
Number of students with double majors nearly triples Fourteen percent of students at UP are double majors, up in the past ten years from five percent
Frank Deryck
Hannah Robinson
Kristin Wishon
Lupita Ruiz
Psychology, Sociology
English, Spanish
Biochemistry, Music
Psychology, French, Spanish All photos by Kayla Wong | THE BEACON
Kate Stringer Staff Writer stringer14@up.edu With two majors and a 23 credit hour course load, junior Kristin Wishon is lucky if she gets four hours of sleep at night. “I don’t have time to do things that are just for fun,” said Wishon, who is double majoring in biochemistry and music. “But I enjoy what I’m doing anyways so I don’t really care.” Wishon is part of a growing trend at college campuses across
the country. According to the U.S. Department of Education, the number of college students who double major has increased over the past 10 years by 70 percent. While some students choose two majors because they believe it will make them more employable, many are simply passionate about multiple fields of study. Similar to national statistics, the number of students who graduate with double majors at UP has increased over the past ten years from five to 14 percent, according to UP’s Office of
Institutional Research. While Director of Career Services Amy Cavanaugh is unsure of the exact cause of the increase, she believes students get the sense that two majors do increase their odds of getting a job. However, Cavanaugh said this isn’t necessarily true for employers. “Employers are looking for skills and experiential learning opportunities,” Cavanaugh said. “Whether that’s an internship, research experience, clubs and activities – they’re looking for evidence of skills.”
The College Employment Research Institute (CERI) agrees that the type of major also isn’t necessarily what employers want in a college graduate. Instead, employers look for three main attributes in their employees: basic skills, professionalism and maturity, and interpersonal skills. While the workload might be greater, 96 percent of students who graduated from UP last year with a double major did so in four years. Of the remaining students who graduated with one major, only 89 percent graduated in four
years. Though Cavanaugh believes the wisdom of double majoring depends on the individual student, she advises students to analyze their reasons before making a decision. “You can’t blanket say you should or you shouldn’t,” Cavanaugh said. “What are their reasons? It’s really a matter of assessing interests, skills and values.” See Majors, page 3