DUAL MAJORS DISCOURAGED PUBLIC SCHOOLS WANT TO MAKE ROOM FOR MORE.

Byline: Lisa M. Sodders Staff Writer

Strapped by tight budgets and surging enrollments, California public universities are discouraging students from taking double majors - a luxury they say wastes time and money and does little to boost job prospects after graduation.

Hoping to nudge ``career'' students out of the safe campus environment to make way for incoming freshmen, educators in the California State University and University of California systems say they are actively advising students to focus on one major and graduate as early as possible.

``I tell them, 'This adds significant time to your graduation, and you could be out there, making money,''' said Michael Neubauer, coordinator of California State University, Northridge's developmental math program and past Faculty Senate president. ```Instead you're studying here.'''

While there is no official policy in the Cal State or UC systems to prohibit double majors, many individual campuses say they are stepping up efforts to discourage the practice.

University of California, Los Angeles, which once looked the other way when students surpassed maximum credit levels, is now strictly enforcing the rule, said Penny Hein-Unruh, director of UCLA's academic counseling.

``The longer they stay in, the fewer students we can get in on the front end,'' she said. ``We see students who want to stay forever and get two or three majors, and it almost becomes ludicrous.''

About 11 percent of UCLA's bachelor's degree candidates have double majors. CSUN and the Cal State system do not keep statistics on multiple majors, but most educators agree they are overrated by students.

``Sometimes students have unrealistic ideas about the value of a double major,'' said Robert Danes, CSUN director of undergraduate studies. ``Often, in talking to students, I think they just can't make a decision.''

In the tight job market, students often feel they'll have a better chance landing a higher-paying job or getting into graduate school if they earn a multiple degree.

UCLA's Hein-Unruh is not convinced.

``Somehow, they think they're going to be more competitive in graduate school if they have more than one major,'' she said. ``In law school, they're much more interested in your written communication skills, your ability to think critically and construct a logical argument, and that comes out on the LSAT rather than what kind of major you have.''

Still, double majors can be a plus if they are focused on a specific career path, said Mary Hatz, a Los Angeles based corporate recruiter for Career Strategies.

``The key thing for a new graduate is your education plus any work experience that's relevant,'' such as internships, said Hatz, a member of the Professionals in Human Resources Association.

That's Claudia Hernandez' plan. Hernandez, 23, of Van Nuys, is double majoring in biology and psychology at CSUN. She hopes to become either a genetic counselor or a doctor, and believes the dual concentrations will complement both fields.

``My heart is in biology, but I found I had a passion for the social and behavioral science field as well,'' Hernandez said.

``I want to keep my options open. If medical school doesn't work for me, I want to have a backup plan.''

Not surprisingly, private universities - which do not rely on state financing and are not overly concerned how long students take to graduate - often encourage double majors. Their students also tend to be younger, attend full time and live on campus, giving them more time to devote to studies.

Both the University of Southern California and Pepperdine University are reporting increases in the number of students choosing double majors.

``Once they realize it's actually feasible, there's no reason not to do it,'' said Andrea Harris, senior academic advising associate at Pepperdine. ``It's less about hedging their bets than maximizing their educational opportunities while they can.''

Lisa M. Sodders, [phone]

lisa.sodders(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

Claudia Hernandez, majoring in biology and psychology, works in the genetic counseling lab at California State University, Northridge.

John McCoy/Staff Photographer