Had national accolades in history as well.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A kid who will potentially end up double-majoring in, per your example, biology and Asian studies is still taking up lots of resources in an oversubscribed major. The difference from someone who is a straight bio major is a couple more filled seats in an Asian history class. The situation for a computer science and humanities double major is even worse.

A cursory examination of most kids’ applications will make clear if this undersubscribed major kid (sincere interest or not) will easily switch to or double major in an oversubscribed field.

The issue then is — or should be — not so much showing a real interest in an unpopular major, but in likewise demonstrating a complete lack of interest in an oversubscribed major(s). College admissions can be a slow turning boat, but admissions officers will catch onto this nuance pretty soon, if they haven’t already.

OP here:

All good food for thought. But I want to challenge your assumption.

If you just don’t list any of the other “oversubscribed” ECs/interests? I mean, that’s why it has to be authentic. You really have to have a demonstrated interest in the undersubscribed major evidenced by activities, LOR, essays.

My kid is a senior and got some advice from a kid a few years older from the same high school now at Stanford. She is a computer science major now, but got into Stanford with “history” listed as 1st choice major. She didn’t list one computer science EC on her activities list because she was so super involved and well rounded that she had plenty of humanities extracurricular and in-school leadership. But she knew getting into college as an Asian computer science girl at Stanford was impossible. Had national accolades in history as well.

That girl is now majoring in computer science and minoring in history. She might also be doing something with digital humanities I think.

Anyway, is that wrong? These schools are asking you to contort yourself and create a compelling “narrative” for them anyway. If all of this is true, you’re just hiding parts of yourself, how is this wrong?

Mind you my kid isn’t interested in any of these 3 majors that I originally mentioned. I’m using this as a hypothetical because I don’t want to out their true interest, but it is 100% not related to stem CS or engineering. All arts & sciences.

Anonymous wrote:I know many people who did this successfully.
Classes, obscure languages/cultural "studies," even English departments are dying on the vine nowadays.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A kid who will potentially end up double-majoring in, per your example, biology and Asian studies is still taking up lots of resources in an oversubscribed major. The difference from someone who is a straight bio major is a couple more filled seats in an Asian history class. The situation for a computer science and humanities double major is even worse.

A cursory examination of most kids’ applications will make clear if this undersubscribed major kid (sincere interest or not) will easily switch to or double major in an oversubscribed field.

The issue then is — or should be — not so much showing a real interest in an unpopular major, but in likewise demonstrating a complete lack of interest in an oversubscribed major(s). College admissions can be a slow turning boat, but admissions officers will catch onto this nuance pretty soon, if they haven’t already.

OP here:

All good food for thought. But I want to challenge your assumption.

If you just don’t list any of the other “oversubscribed” ECs/interests? I mean, that’s why it has to be authentic. You really have to have a demonstrated interest in the undersubscribed major evidenced by activities, LOR, essays.

My kid is a senior and got some advice from a kid a few years older from the same high school now at Stanford. She is a computer science major now, but got into Stanford with “history” listed as 1st choice major. She didn’t list one computer science EC on her activities list because she was so super involved and well rounded that she had plenty of humanities extracurricular and in-school leadership. But she knew getting into college as an Asian computer science girl at Stanford was impossible. Had national accolades in history as well.

That girl is now majoring in computer science and minoring in history. She might also be doing something with digital humanities I think.

Anyway, is that wrong? These schools are asking you to contort yourself and create a compelling “narrative” for them anyway. If all of this is true, you’re just hiding parts of yourself, how is this wrong?

Mind you my kid isn’t interested in any of these 3 majors that I originally mentioned. I’m using this as a hypothetical because I don’t want to out their true interest, but it is 100% not related to stem CS or engineering. All arts & sciences.

Anonymous wrote:Is this why on the Instagram posts the private school kids have majors like English or anthropology or migration studies and all the public school students have math or science majors, computer science or engineering?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many highly-selective private universities do not admit by major within the Arts & Sciences school. The choice is the school, such as A&S, engineering, business, nursing, and sometimes other random schools like education or communications/journalism.

But don’t they consider it? They can’t have a whole class of Bio or Econ majors?

At least that’s how it was explained to us by a private college counseling firm as it relates to private T25.

Sure you’re not admitted to a major and nobody will hold you to it. But they are looking for evidence of whatever you list. And you’re typically compared to others who also list that same major. So you better have all the “stuff” - awards, ECs, classes and more showing evidence for major.

Anonymous wrote:Encouraging my son to major in Latin at a top school. He’s a 4.0 UW gpa at a rigorous school, but a white male with very meh ECs. Hes going to do a dig in the Middle East over the summer, and is volunteering at a museum to try to boost this faux niche interest. He’s going to end up in graduate school, likely for law, anyway so his undergrad major (if it was not going to be science regardless) does not matter.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From another post, how many senior parents (or their paid college counselors) evaluated the benefits of applying to different majors strategically for T25 selective schools? Or other junior parents: how are you thinking about the below?

For example, your kid was interested in a major in arts & sciences like psychology or maybe biology. But because bio is oversubscribed and psychology is a more common (soon to be oversubscribed) major, and the kid also showed a real academic, personal, and EC interest in Asian American history (LOR from history teacher, school's history club, special project or paper, national history day stuff, personal family tie, etc.), then did you have your kid apply for what would have originally been a 2nd or 3rd choice (Asian American Studies) as the first choice/stated major (knowing that in arts & sciences, you are generally free to move around)?

I understand you can't "fake" this. But I'm talking about a non-STEM kid interested in 2 or 3 majors in arts & sciences. If your kid considered this, did you research how many majors graduate each year from these majors for each of your reach schools? Assuming competitive stats and rigor obviously which is always the first bar.
1. And what was the outcome in REA/ED and RD?
2. What worked and didn't work for your kid?
3. Did you look at all of the Tableau or college raptor data for each college's graduating majors to figure out which majors are "undersubscribed"?
4. Any resources you might suggest?

https://www.berkeley2academy.com/single-post/major-selection-is-a-major-deal-how-to-strategize-for-college-applications

You are gross. That’s all. Feel sorry for your kids’ contrived lives.

Anonymous wrote:A kid who will potentially end up double-majoring in, per your example, biology and Asian studies is still taking up lots of resources in an oversubscribed major. The difference from someone who is a straight bio major is a couple more filled seats in an Asian history class. The situation for a computer science and humanities double major is even worse.

A cursory examination of most kids’ applications will make clear if this undersubscribed major kid (sincere interest or not) will easily switch to or double major in an oversubscribed field.

The issue then is — or should be — not so much showing a real interest in an unpopular major, but in likewise demonstrating a complete lack of interest in an oversubscribed major(s). College admissions can be a slow turning boat, but admissions officers will catch onto this nuance pretty soon, if they haven’t already.

Anonymous wrote:From another post, how many senior parents (or their paid college counselors) evaluated the benefits of applying to different majors strategically for T25 selective schools? Or other junior parents: how are you thinking about the below?

For example, your kid was interested in a major in arts & sciences like psychology or maybe biology. But because bio is oversubscribed and psychology is a more common (soon to be oversubscribed) major, and the kid also showed a real academic, personal, and EC interest in Asian American history (LOR from history teacher, school's history club, special project or paper, national history day stuff, personal family tie, etc.), then did you have your kid apply for what would have originally been a 2nd or 3rd choice (Asian American Studies) as the first choice/stated major (knowing that in arts & sciences, you are generally free to move around)?

I understand you can't "fake" this. But I'm talking about a non-STEM kid interested in 2 or 3 majors in arts & sciences. If your kid considered this, did you research how many majors graduate each year from these majors for each of your reach schools? Assuming competitive stats and rigor obviously which is always the first bar.
1. And what was the outcome in REA/ED and RD?
2. What worked and didn't work for your kid?
3. Did you look at all of the Tableau or college raptor data for each college's graduating majors to figure out which majors are "undersubscribed"?
4. Any resources you might suggest?

https://www.berkeley2academy.com/single-post/major-selection-is-a-major-deal-how-to-strategize-for-college-applications