Young scholars need parental consent to change majors

Students at Nanfang College of Sun Yat-Sen University in Guangzhou, Guangdong province will have the flexibility of changing their major even three years into their schooling - but only if their parents agree.

The college has introduced a new regulation that allows students to switch out of their "wrongly chosen" major at the start of each semester for the first three of their four years of study without imposing any grade requirements so long as they have the approval of their parents, Guangzhou-based New Express reported Monday.

The new rule means that science majors can opt for any new major they want. Art majors have the same privilege, but only within related fields of study given the difficulty of science majors, the school said.

Many freshmen applauded the move, but there were concerns that the new policy would make it too simple for students to rush into "easy" or "popular" majors.

Yu Shiyou, dean of the college, said that the students should be allowed to choose their majors based on their personal interest in studying the related subjects.

"If this means that certain courses no longer attract students, then the university can just drop them," said Yu.

In most colleges, fewer than 20 percent of students have the chance to change their majors and those who do must hold high grades or pass tests before switching.

A teacher surnamed Cai with Wuhan University of Technology said that the measure looks out for the interest of students, given that a lot of high school students are unsure about what they should major in before starting college.

"But students should only change their majors after much thought and consideration, if they decide that they truly are interested in studying something new," said Cai.