John, an economics graduate, was speechless in his Company interview when asked a simple question-Who was his all time favorite author? The reason for this was - being a Quant guy right from his childhood, he avoided subjects like English, Geography and History. And as he got a chance to select his courses at university level, he took up all the Economics and Quant courses. This was the outcome of one of my friends who "completely" neglected courses outside his field of study and hence paid a heavy price for it- his Job.
The assertion made by the author certainly looks plausible, because there would be many students like John, who would be so interested to explore subjects that they love, that if given an option they would ignore all the other subjects available. But, the important point here is they have just entered the university and they do not have level heads like their teachers who know that it in life it is not only that you love is going to be helpful but we got to mix it with other things which are important too. And, here is where, Universities should step in and give choice to the students to select these courses from a group of subjects which they feel is important.
Secondly, the individuals will certainly gain a lot of new additional knowledge. Hence, it will help them be well informed about other fields, too. And, this will certainly, improve their confidence in the long run.
Thirdly, in many cases it has happened in the past that after selecting their field of study, the students often feel that this was not something they wanted to study. In such a situation, these electives can come to rescue for such students. As these subjects would give them fair idea of what lies outside their field of study and kind of course work to expect if they decide to change their major field and make their electives as their major field. In such a situation, this move would be of great help for the students.
Thus, it is certainly beneficial for the students in to long run to take up these electives and hence the universities should certainly step in and make adequate changes to incorporate Electives in their study plan. However, while implementing this plan, the university should be cautious that while adding the electives, they do not overburden the students. A perfect blend should be maintained between the Major subject and the Electives subjects. Being a student myself, I believe a ratio of around 9:1 would serve the purpose of the university , as well as not overburden the students.
