To start, they should know it's OK if they don't know what they want to pursue as a major. Students need the flexibility to change a course of study without losing credits or time. So, institutional "fit" in terms of offerings, the tool box of knowledge, skills, abilities and values to be enhanced, should be a consideration right from the start.
But parents are likely to argue for a degree program that sounds like a career and press for information about job placement rates, internships and alumni networks. Fortunately, colleges are responding to these calls and reflecting this mixture of the theoretical and the hands-on in their programs.
There is considerable evidence that many employers want graduates with particular skills such as accounting, but the vast majority of employers want employees with a broad set of skills, more emphasis on effective oral and written communication, critical thinking and reasoning in multiple settings, and the ability to be imaginative across cultural boundaries.
At the same time, increasing numbers of students say they want to develop a "meaningful philosophy of life," not just be "well-off financially." They want to pursue with passion a path that leads to personal satisfaction and fulfillment as well as material comfort. In other words, they want a course of study that combines what employers want and what they want. But what should they study?
One way to think about this question is to reflect on contemporary issues and ask what lessons we have learned. A quick survey of the past several years would show that too many people in even sophisticated roles lacked knowledge of history and did not have the personal or professional memory in which to place contemporary issues.
So, history is an essential subject, especially if we are to understand the different ways people "know" the truth - by evidence, by epiphany, by emotion and how they challenge assumptions and validate assertions. Students also need to learn in context - whether through field work, profession-based placements, or internships - each of which can help reinforce theory through practice.
In the study of history as I define it, we learn about the world we meet (science); the world we make (culture); and the systems by which we mediate between them (law, morality and ethics). Without this broad background, we cannot distinguish cant from Kant.
The second area to develop is that of imagination. It seems clear in retrospect that even high-profile people confronted new problems without the ability to see connections among different variables could not visualize or forecast directions, could not approach issues with creativity. They had not developed the capacity to wonder, to inquire, to experience discovery, to look, see and ask.
These are the benefits of an education that liberates students from their provincial origins, from prejudices masquerading as principles, no matter what their nationality, socioeconomic status, age or religion. They, and we, grow up in mostly isolated, two-generation, monocultural communities, and have little experience with those some think of as the "other." They lack a global perspective.
The path chosen should include preparation for a full, well-rounded life as a professional, citizen and family member, and for work that has meaning and provides fulfillment. Such an education is as much about character and citizenship as it is about careers and commerce.
Using these thoughts as a guide, students and families should look at academic programs that have a strong grounding in the liberating arts and sciences, and that give the student an opportunity to master a subject matter to a sufficient degree to enter a profession either directly upon graduation or after graduate school, and gain a network of fellow students and alumni who can become life-long links to careers and social life. They will be composing a life even as they prepare to earn a living.
Robert A. Scott is president of Adelphi University.