Field Interest and the Choice of College Major

We perform exploratory research to understand the importance of interest in the field of study as a determinant of college major choice and examine how the importance of interest varies by student demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. We show that women, White students, and students from advantaged socioeconomic backgrounds rate interest as a more important factor in driving the choice of college major relative to other students. The gender gap in the importance of interest is largest. Gaps by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status are less pronounced but still large.