u Wenjing, a sophomore in the School of Journalism and Communication at Shanghai International Studies University (SISU) joined her first Japanese class packed with students two weeks ago in the evening of Monday. After taking 8 classes in the daytime, she seemed to be a little tired but still concentrated.

Over 600 sophomores in SISU chose to pursue minors like Xu Wenjing in 2015. They will study in SISU’s Songjiang Campus or other partner universities like Fudan University for 2 or 3 years.

The subjects vary owing to special features in different schools. SISU students, where more than 350 of them students minor in, chose language courses mainly. While in Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, nearly 70 percent of students chose to minor in accounting.

“I find it difficult but interesting, I would have chosen French as my major if I got a higher mark at the college entrance examination,” said Liu Weiqi, a sophomore majored in Business Management. It shows that nearly 80 percent of students choose their minors according to their personal interests, conquering the reason of job prospects or integration with majors.

Students chose minors would bear an extra task apart from their majors. “Frankly, I spend the same time on my minor as my major, if not more,” said Qin Huihui, who minors Economics in Fudan University. “The teachers only give lectures on the basic theories, so you’re supposed to prepare and revise the lessons”, Qin said.

Tough work may lead to giving up. In the second year of minor study, the students stayed dived into almost half, according to the Office of Academic Affairs at SISU.

“I find myself lose the original interest and studying Law become boring and really tiring,” said Hang Xu with resignation who gave up his minor in East China University of Political Science and Law. “Maybe the reason why I chose to minor in law was no more than an urge impulse,” Hang said.

The reason of perseverance is similar, but why giving up is distinct of each person. Li Feifei, in her last year of university, said she took an study abroad program for one semester in the United States and found herself fell far behind when she came back, so she chose to quit this September.

The teachers also hold different opinions about this dropping out in midway. Liu Changjing, a lecturer of French believed this phenomenon is reasonable because a quarter of students went abroad in his class in the second year of minor study.

But Wu Xianlian, another lecturer of French thought the exam was a little too easy. “I believed half of the students are not qualified to join in the second year’s study, rules shall be stricter,” Wu said. “After all we should be responsible for our students.”

While teachers in Fudan University believe minor study and major study should be treated differently, “We just want to raise their interests and teach some basic knowledge,” said Zhong Chuhui, a lecturer of Finance. “Minor study shouldn’t replace or weaken the study of major study.”

However, many students chose their minor to compensate the pity of not having entered their ideal degree programs in SISU according to the statistics.

On October 20, the students who failed to pass the examination last semester will take the make-up examination, one students minored in Japanese indicated that said actually, her minor were the most considerable difficulties among all of her courses indeed.