Human Development and Family Studies

 As some of you may know my major is Human Development and Family Studies which is one of the lesser known majors here at Purdue.  This major branches off into two paths- Individual and Family Services and Early Childhood Education and this major is for people who want to work with children and their families.  

I am in the Early Childhood Education concentration which focuses more on working with children ages birth to around age 8, while the Individual and Family Services part focuses more on working one on one with children, adolescents, adults, and families.  I chose my major because of the multiple career opportunities it offers.  I originally was going to major in Early Childhood Education which would give me one career opportunity which would be teaching preschool.  But with the HDFS major you can still be a preschool teacher, but you can also be a therapist, a school counselor, work for CPS, foster care, work at homes for abused women and children, along with many other things.  I like my degree program because in the future if I am tired of teaching or want something new my degree allows me to find other jobs in my field.

This degree teaches you the standard that should be practiced at a preschool and what to look for when finding not only a job, but also a school for your kids.  You learn about curriculum, nutrition, theorists, and safety.