For this report, “declared major” is based on the 6-digit CIP code that accompanies the ACT-tested students’ enrollment record that colleges submit to the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC). Colleges can report both first and second major for the student as a 6-digit CIP code and/or as a write-in response within a text field. This report is based on information reported for the students’ first major. We used a crosswalk between valid 6-digit CIP codes and ACT college codes to categorize students’ declared majors into the same 18 broad areas that we used for Part 1 of this report. The following documentation highlights the steps we took to prepare the NSC declared major data for this report.

• If the CIP code and write-in response for the first major were missing, we replaced these values with those reported for the second major, when available.
• Where necessary, we updated CIP 2000 codes with CIP 2010 codes using a crosswalk provided by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).
• We checked all reported 6-digit CIP codes in the NSC data file using a list of valid CIP 2010 codes provided by NCES. We found that 39% of ACT-tested enrollment records had no major information (i.e., neither a valid CIP code nor a write-in response). Of the 61% of records that had some type of major information, 48% had a valid CIP code and 13% had either a missing or invalid CIP code but had a write-in response to which a valid CIP code could potentially be assigned.
• We used a crosswalk based on information from enrollment records that had both a valid CIP code and a write-in response to assign a 6-digit CIP code for enrollment records that possessed only a write-in response. In cases in which more than one valid CIP code accompanied a unique write-in response, we selected the CIP code that was most frequently paired with that write-in response. Using this process, we were able to assign a valid 6-digit CIP code to 65% of the enrollment records in which a CIP code was previously missing or invalid. This increased the share of ACT-tested enrollment records that possessed a valid CIP code from 48% to 56%. Recall that only 61% of enrollment records had any major information; therefore, 92% of cases with any major information had or were assigned a valid CIP code.
• We compared the representativeness of the students with a valid CIP code against the entire ACT-tested enrolled population and found no substantial differences in the distribution of students by ACT Composite score, gender, parents’ education level, degree aspirations, or college type (e.g., 2-year, 4-year public, and 4-year private) attended (see table).
• The following decisions decreased the share of ACT-tested enrollment records from 56% with a valid CIP code to 39% with a valid and usable CIP code:
  • We examined the range of CIP codes and types of write-in responses used by colleges, and we realized that colleges have different practices with regard to the assignment of CIP codes to undecided or undeclared students. In particular, we were not able to distinguish between an assignment of undeclared or undecided that was based on students’ intent versus one that was based on an institutional practice, such as assigning a student to “university college” or “general studies” until the student met the necessary criteria to enter a particular program of study. Given these complexities, we elected to remove from our analyses any student who was undecided or undeclared during their first year of college, including those assigned to the 2-digit CIP code “24. Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities.” As a result, we also removed from our analyses those students who selected a planned major of “170 Liberal Arts & General Studies” when they registered for the ACT.
  • We elected to remove students with the 2-digit CIP code “30. Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies” from our analyses given our inability to determine the various programs of study that could fall within this area. As a result, we also removed from our analyses those students who selected a planned major of “190 Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies” when they registered for the ACT.
  • We elected to remove students with the following valid 2-digit CIP codes from our analyses, as these courses of study did not fall within the scope of this report: “32. Basic Skills and Developmental/Remedial Education,” “33. Citizenship Activities,” “34. Health-Related Knowledge and Skills,” “35. Interpersonal and Social Skills,” “36. Leisure and Recreational Activities,” “37. Personal Awareness and Self-Improvement,” “53. High School/Secondary Diplomas and Certificates,” and “60. Residency Programs.”
• We compared the representativeness of students with valid and usable CIP codes against all students with valid CIP codes and found some differences between the two groups. In particular, students with valid and usable CIP codes were more likely to have higher ACT Composite scores and higher degree aspirations, and they were more likely to attend a 4-year public college instead of a 2-year college (see table).
• When determining whether students declared a major that was consistent with their planned major area, we found 17 planned majors (e.g., Osteopathic Medicine) for which few undergraduate degree programs were offered by colleges. For these planned majors, we used the data on the majors that these students most often declared during the first year of college along with our judgment of the typical paths to graduate or professional study in these areas to determine which of the declared majors would be consistent with their planned major area. A list of the 17 planned majors and the three-digit codes for college majors that we considered to be consistent with their major plans is provided:
  • 480 Counseling & Student Services: 454, 480, 500, 510, 512, 513, 899
  • 490 Educational Administration: 490, 500, 510, 513, 516, 517
  • 511 Curriculum & Instruction: 413, 510, 511, 513
  • 515 Postsecondary Education: 510, 515, 520, 524, 526, 533, 590, 895
  • 630 Chiropractic (Pre-Chiropractic): 421, 422, 630, 670, 860
  • 650 Dentistry (Pre-Dentistry): 640, 650, 670, 860, 861, 873
  • 690 Medicine (Pre-Medicine): 690, 860, 861, 873, 899
  • 720 Optometry (Pre-Optometry): 670, 720, 860, 861, 873
  • 730 Osteopathic Medicine: 421, 690, 730, 860, 861
  • 740 Pharmacy (Pre-Pharmacy): 740, 860, 861, 873
  • 750 Physician Assisting: 421, 670, 710, 750, 860
  • 763 Mental Health Counseling: 454, 767, 899
  • 765 Physical Therapy (Pre-Phys Therapy): 421, 422, 531, 624, 670, 671, 765, 860
  • 766 Psychiatric/Mental Health Technician: 454, 766, 767, 860, 899
  • 770 Veterinary Medicine (Pre-Vet): 117, 625, 770, 860, 867
  • 882 Law (Pre-Law): 442, 444, 882, 884, 895, 897, 899
  • 898 Psychology, Clinical & Counseling: 450, 454, 761, 763, 898, 899

A list of ACT’s college majors and respective codes can be found in the Student Information Booklet (PDF; 8 pages).

Comparison of Key Characteristics Across Data Samples Used in Determining Declared Major

Note: Percentages in the table may not sum to 100% due to rounding or due to missing responses.