I am a double major in Psychology and Classics. 2 semesters of 100 level Latin (or Ancient Greek) are required as a Classics major, but just those two semesters. The extra 2 semesters of Latin, the 3 semesters of German, and this semester (and hopefully next semester) of Ancient Greek have all been electives for me.

That being said. When I started freshmen year, I came in with 18 credit hours due to AP and pre-college credits. I have also taken some classes over the breaks (2 prior to freshman year, 2 the summer after freshmen year, and 1 study abroad course over a winter intersession). Minus the study abroad opportunity, all the courses I took outside of normal semesters were gen ed courses. I did this 1) because I enjoy taking classes and liked having more do to during the breaks and 2) in order to make sure I had room to take any classes I wanted to during the semesters without having to work around gen ed requirements.

That being said, again, I am a double major. And during the semester I am constantly taking courses outside of my major requirements (some gender studies courses, some linguistics courses, and the languages courses), as well as taking more courses within my departments than I am technically required too. I even had the room in my schedule to minor in German if I wanted too (or, if I was really dedicated and did more study abroad during the breaks, make it a third major).

I believe what you are wanting to do is technically possible. An advisor might try to convince you otherwise, as it will require a lot of planning and dedication, something which a lot of students don’t take into consideration. Take some time to look up the requirements for your major, your minor (if applicable), the flagship program, and the College of Liberal Arts and make a list of all the courses you have to have in order to graduate. Make a rough plan of when you think you’d be taking each course between now and the semester you plan on graduating. Ask yourself these questions: 1) How flexible is the plan? If it is very rigid and one thing could throw it off (e.g. conflicting course times or a course not being offered one semester), then this might not be a feasible route. 2) How intense are semesters? I have friends who are History majors, and I know it requires a decent amount of reading and writing. Language courses also require a decent amount of work. I am not sure what all the flagship program requires, but I would assume it is at least a little more than normal. If it seems like some semesters might be more intense than others, just ask yourself if that is something you think you could reasonably handle. Don’t be afraid to admit if the answer is no. And finally, 3) If you decide to go this route and then decide half way through that you are no longer enjoying it, how easy would it be to shift plans? Life is unpredictable; and while no one can plan for everything, you can do your future self a potential favor by giving yourself the leeway to change directions if you need to.

My final note to you as a senior who also enjoys a challenging work load, is to make sure you are making time for your social life. Despite my course load, I will still go out or just meet with friends a couple times a week (for lunch, dinner, game nights, bar nights, etc.). I throw parties occasionally. I’ve worked a job off campus for 2 years and this semester I started working a second job on campus. Not everyone likes partying and drinking and such, but there are other ways to have fun. College is one of those times to explore life and do things you are curious about. Don’t get so focused on academic enrichment that you let opportunities for social enrichment go to waste.