Applying for unpopular major help with admissions?

[Anonymous]

LOL. They don't let your freshman just switch majors, OP. You can't run that game, they are on to that one. Your kid could double major, or minor, but a double major requires departmental approval. Paperwork, signatures from department heads. There isn't a guarantee.

[Anonymous]

An indecisive kid would be better off getting an associates at a community college and then transferring into a four year. You have to know what you want to major in when you apply to a four-year D1. You.must choose and explain why you are choosing that major/future.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:An indecisive kid would be better off getting an associates at a community college and then transferring into a four year. You have to know what you want to major in when you apply to a four-year D1. You.must choose and explain why you are choosing that major/future.

This is not accurate. To give just one example, students at UVA don't have to declare a major until the second half of their second year.

https://college.as.virginia.edu/declaremajor#:~:text=Students%20must%20enroll%20in%20either,by%20an%20official%20major%20advisor.

[Anonymous]

Most people are doing nothing related to their major after they graduate.

And many, many kids change their major once they get to school. I know I did.

I’m not sure if you guys are all thinking about this from a science lens??? Either way its filled with falsehoods.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:LOL. They don't let your freshman just switch majors, OP. You can't run that game, they are on to that one. Your kid could double major, or minor, but a double major requires departmental approval. Paperwork, signatures from department heads. There isn't a guarantee.

Yale does. You don’t have to declare a major until Junior year, although most do earlier. Only a few majors have separate admissions, such as art and architecture but not stem fields or engineering, and they happen sophomore year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:An indecisive kid would be better off getting an associates at a community college and then transferring into a four year. You have to know what you want to major in when you apply to a four-year D1. You.must choose and explain why you are choosing that major/future.

Are you just making sh¡t up? Sure sounds like it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:LOL. They don't let your freshman just switch majors, OP. You can't run that game, they are on to that one. Your kid could double major, or minor, but a double major requires departmental approval. Paperwork, signatures from department heads. There isn't a guarantee.

It depends on the school. Plenty of schools do not allow or require declaring a major until Sophomore year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:An indecisive kid would be better off getting an associates at a community college and then transferring into a four year. You have to know what you want to major in when you apply to a four-year D1. You.must choose and explain why you are choosing that major/future.

You clearly don't know what you are talking about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:An indecisive kid would be better off getting an associates at a community college and then transferring into a four year. You have to know what you want to major in when you apply to a four-year D1. You.must choose and explain why you are choosing that major/future.

You clearly don't know what you are talking about.

+1000
It’s the same crazy unhinged mom.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:An indecisive kid would be better off getting an associates at a community college and then transferring into a four year. You have to know what you want to major in when you apply to a four-year D1. You.must choose and explain why you are choosing that major/future.

This is not accurate. To give just one example, students at UVA don't have to declare a major until the second half of their second year.

https://college.as.virginia.edu/declaremajor#:~:text=Students%20must%20enroll%20in%20either,by%20an%20official%20major%20advisor.

That is the case at most schools for non-STEM, non Business majors. But I don't believe you can just decide I'm majoring in engineering your sophomore year---you had to be directly admitted as a freshman (or go thru an admission process that is not guaranteed during fresh/soph year).

However, for popular majors/direct admit majors/impacted majors (whatever the hell the university chooses to call it), you typically cannot transfer in easily if not directly admitted.

[Anonymous]

I am not sure if this comes through in other posts but, to me, is the essential point:

Depends on if kid is applying to a particular school directly and what the specific university’s policy is on switching between schools. My kid is arts and letters major (applied to school of arts and letters) at a place that is virtually impossible to transfer into school of business. Applying arts and letters would not have been good idea if he truly only wanted to be business major.

But other schools have different process. And house various majors in various schools (data science is one that you can often take in multiple schools). The devil is in the details. You need to check the specific schools to which your kid will apply.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:LOL. They don't let your freshman just switch majors, OP. You can't run that game, they are on to that one. Your kid could double major, or minor, but a double major requires departmental approval. Paperwork, signatures from department heads. There isn't a guarantee.

Disagree with the above.

Typically one declares one's major in the sophomore year unless the student applied as a direct admit to a particular major such as business or computer science.

Changing majors does not require any of the paperwork described above at the colleges and universities with which I am familiar unless trying to get into an impacted, oversubscribed major.

At Northwestern University, one can change majors easily & more than once. Also easy to double major in different schools/colleges at Northwestern.

State/public universities may have more stringent rules for switching majors if it involved switching schools/colleges within that university.

[Anonymous]

Chances are that it would only help if the university is divided into schools and admission is into the school (and difficult to switch between schools). Nursing comes to mind. Back in my day (ancient history) it was easier to be admitted into Georgetown's nursing school than some other schools. But that's a university where it is very difficult to switch schools.

If you're talking about a major within the college of arts and sciences, I doubt it would help because students can switch majors instantly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It can, but be aware they might be stuck with it, and unable to transfer out.

My son transfereed into a restricted CS program and a notoriiously difficult UC school. However he did lose a year, but he also had a 4.0 in college his freshman year. Everyone likes strong students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:LOL. They don't let your freshman just switch majors, OP. You can't run that game, they are on to that one. Your kid could double major, or minor, but a double major requires departmental approval. Paperwork, signatures from department heads. There isn't a guarantee.

Disagree with the above.

Typically one declares one's major in the sophomore year unless the student applied as a direct admit to a particular major such as business or computer science.

Changing majors does not require any of the paperwork described above at the colleges and universities with which I am familiar unless trying to get into an impacted, oversubscribed major.

At Northwestern University, one can change majors easily & more than once. Also easy to double major in different schools/colleges at Northwestern.

State/public universities may have more stringent rules for switching majors if it involved switching schools/colleges within that university.

Pretty sure Northwestern requires a direct admit for engineering.