Universities should require students to take courses only within those fields they are interested in studying.Write a response in which you discuss your views on the policy and explain your reasoning for the position you take. In developing and supporting

Consider an analogy - a map guides a traveller to reach his destination following an appropriate path. Two travellers pursuing different destinations, cannot follow the same path. Similarly, the diverse student community that any university encompasses cannot benefit from a rigid curriculum in place. To enable students to realise their full potentials - universities, in my opinion, should adopt policies that require its students to take courses only within those fields they are interested in studying.

Erica, a hypothetical student, is an aspiring Physicist. She intends to apply to Stanford following graduation and Stanford being one of the most competitive colleges in the USA, Erica commits to being diligent. However, university curriculum mandates that she study literature and earn the required number of credits. The ballads and play were indiscernible and she struggles to cope with the pressure. By the end of the semester, she has managed to barely qualify the subject. Consequently, her GPA suffers and Stanford remains a dream. Erica here represents a pool of students facing a similar predicament. An aspiring writer is compelled to study advanced mathematics while an aspiring Engineer is dictated to master French. Mastery at something one hardly understands becomes a prerequisite under the college curriculum, stymying their academic progress - filling their academic years with desolation and helplessness. Maintaining a rigid curriculum and grading students on subjects they would rather opt out of is analogous to conducting tests to determine superiority of a sparrow over a rabbit in a running race - testing students on a set of skills they could not acquire because they preferred being masters of a different set.

According to the National Centre for Education Statistics, out of the nearly 70 percent of the students in the USA (who continue with their education after high school) about 40 percent complete their degrees within 4 years and about 58 percent complete their degree in 6 years. Remainder of the students choose to drop out. One of the reasons for them opting to drop out, as cited by the Fiscal Times - is the structure of college courses. Thus, accommodating a flexible curriculum can not only increase the chances of students graduating but also save precious time and money. Their time can be better utilised working towards society, paying back their student loans and fulfilling moral obligations to their families. Additionally, if students pursue courses they understand, they will be fully engaged in the classroom, improving the quality of education, and ultimately improving the quality of skilled labour that the country harbours. Students can subsequently enjoy additional time for recreation and self - development - improving the quality of life and reducing stress induced depression and suicides.

However, one must not neglect the indecisive students. Flexible curriculum is a blessing in disguise for such students because they can experiment with options and make informed decisions related to their career paths after graduating. Universities can guide such students to select courses according to every students innate abilities, establishing a system where students assimilate necessary skills required to champion challenges. On the other hand, a fixed curriculum will reduce variety, failing to distinguish the skill set of one student from the other. Students will eventually graduate from college perplexed about their career paths; never having fully realised their potential.

Nonetheless, a fixed curriculum ensures that students hone basic skills leading to an all-round development. This circumscribed mastery in numerous subjects, however, does not guarantee success. Malvika Raj Joshi, from Mumbai, was a student who quit school in the 8th grade to nurture her natural talent in the computer sciences. Granted, not every student is ingenious like her, but she serves as an example of how focused studies can be a guide to a more fulfilling career and life.

On a concluding remark, for every Erica who hopes to be a physicist, or every other student that is represented by her, consequences of a reform in the university’s policies would be that she realises her dream, leads a happy life and gives back to the society much more than what she learned from it.