Choices on a second major

[ryan21]

hello everyone!
I am currently a junior in a history/historic preservation( bachelors) program. My goal is to get my master's degree in City and Regional planning. Recently i have been weighing three options as a secondary(supplementary) major. They are Civil and Construction Engineering Technology, Drafting and Design Technology, or possibly getting a certificate in GIS. I have been real trouble deciding which one to go with.I would really appreciate any advice, information, or personal thoughts that anyone in the planning field(or in general) has on which one of these might be the most beneficial and useful in regards to City planning. Again I would find any information helpful. Thanks for your time.
Have a good one,
-Ryan21

[Gedunker]

I would rank them thus: GIS certificate, Construction Engineering Tech, Drafting. You will acquire skills in all three (unless you end up in a really large city where you are pigeonholed), so each will be useful. I'd suggest you select the one you like the best and go for it.

Good luck!

[Dan Staley]

hello everyone!
I am currently a junior in a history/historic preservation( bachelors) program. My goal is to get my master's degree in City and Regional planning. Recently i have been weighing three options as a secondary(supplementary) major. They are Civil and Construction Engineering Technology, Drafting and Design Technology, or possibly getting a certificate in GIS. [snip]

These are difficult to give advice for, as we know nothing about the person and personality type. In general,

The GIS will be directly applicable to your Masters and the planning profession. The other two are for a different profession.

Choosing the other two might be good if you want to get out of planning in a few years. But are you of the personality type that does best in interpreting construction drawings or as a mouse jockey drawing CAD and SketchUp (meaning you'll need additional education to make these useful on their own, else you'll be entry-level again)?

OTOH, if you are trying to set yourself up to bail to another major if you don't like where you are going, perhaps you need to take stock of your situation PDQ.

Good luck in your decisioning.

[ryan21]

Thanks very much for your comments. I am quite the geography fan so i am leaning toward GIS...plus math is not my strong suit. I just want to be as well rounded and informed as possible so the comments are very helpful.

[lycosidae]

With any major, expediting your path through undergrad is probably more important than double majors or certificates, particularly when you plan to go right into graduate school right away. Just take a GIS course as an elective, that should be more than sufficient.

[KangaroosRule]

Drafting and design would be my choice. Having a background in design is always benefical. When it comes to entry and second level positions, having a undergrad work with design and postgrad work in planning is the strongest combination out there.

Good luck.