Anonymous wrote:So does it improve your chances to apply as a biology /premed major or as one of these? Are these less oversubscribed than biology ? Then just switch to biology once you get there?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We absolutely know kids this cycle that did the ‘undersubscribed major’ route. One student at our private was all about ‘premed/biology’ - once he started with the private counselor he applied as ‘medical humanities/medicine and society’ type of major. The counselors took his ECs and helped adjust them to fit the new major. Did not have the ‘highest stats’ or ‘highest rigor’ from his class. That plus full pay, private feeder school - in ED at Ivy. Another kid we know switched from bio/premed to philosophy/religion. Also with great results.

How do you know what their private counselor did? This is fictional. Which ivy has medical humanities as a major? You are making this up.

Yale : History of Science and Medicine
https://hshm.yale.edu/undergraduate-major/pathways/pathways

Columbia:
https://icls.columbia.edu/undergraduate-program/medical-humanities-major/

Isn’t that just a fancy name for medical anthropology? Many premed choose that major it’s not unusual or niche.

Anonymous wrote:Definitely this one too
UPenn : Health and Societies

Less so but could still be done with traditional premed ECs

Stanford : Community Health and Preventative Research
Princeton: History of Science, Technology and Medicine

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We absolutely know kids this cycle that did the ‘undersubscribed major’ route. One student at our private was all about ‘premed/biology’ - once he started with the private counselor he applied as ‘medical humanities/medicine and society’ type of major. The counselors took his ECs and helped adjust them to fit the new major. Did not have the ‘highest stats’ or ‘highest rigor’ from his class. That plus full pay, private feeder school - in ED at Ivy. Another kid we know switched from bio/premed to philosophy/religion. Also with great results.

How do you know what their private counselor did? This is fictional. Which ivy has medical humanities as a major? You are making this up.

Yale : History of Science and Medicine
https://hshm.yale.edu/undergraduate-major/pathways/pathways

Columbia:
https://icls.columbia.edu/undergraduate-program/medical-humanities-major/

Anonymous wrote:We absolutely know kids this cycle that did the ‘undersubscribed major’ route. One student at our private was all about ‘premed/biology’ - once he started with the private counselor he applied as ‘medical humanities/medicine and society’ type of major. The counselors took his ECs and helped adjust them to fit the new major. Did not have the ‘highest stats’ or ‘highest rigor’ from his class. That plus full pay, private feeder school - in ED at Ivy. Another kid we know switched from bio/premed to philosophy/religion. Also with great results.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherrim/2026/02/27/how-college-admissions-officers-spot-over-coached-applications/

One of the most glaring signs that a student has been coached is that they are applying to a niche major without the transcript or background experience to justify their interest. Families are sometimes advised to target smaller applicant pools by pursuing less common concentrations—Archaeology, Classics, Slavic Studies, or other highly specific fields—under the assumption that fewer applicants mean better odds. But simply stating that they are interested in the topic is not enough to compellingly show their preparedness or intent to pursue that discipline. Particularly in niche fields such as these, admissions committees will be looking for specific coursework, extracurricular involvement, and summer programs to demonstrate students’ tangible knowledge of the field and their reasons for applying. In the absence of these meaningful experiences, the choice will likely be interpreted as a strategic attempt to “game the system” rather than a sincere desire to enter the field.

I feel like to me the overcoached kid is the one who wants some very specific niche major, and whose parents have made sure they do have the matching extracurriculars.

The kid you describe is badly coached, but that's not the same as over coaching.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We absolutely know kids this cycle that did the ‘undersubscribed major’ route. One student at our private was all about ‘premed/biology’ - once he started with the private counselor he applied as ‘medical humanities/medicine and society’ type of major. The counselors took his ECs and helped adjust them to fit the new major. Did not have the ‘highest stats’ or ‘highest rigor’ from his class. That plus full pay, private feeder school - in ED at Ivy. Another kid we know switched from bio/premed to philosophy/religion. Also with great results.

How do you know what their private counselor did? This is fictional. Which ivy has medical humanities as a major? You are making this up.

Anonymous wrote:We absolutely know kids this cycle that did the ‘undersubscribed major’ route. One student at our private was all about ‘premed/biology’ - once he started with the private counselor he applied as ‘medical humanities/medicine and society’ type of major. The counselors took his ECs and helped adjust them to fit the new major. Did not have the ‘highest stats’ or ‘highest rigor’ from his class. That plus full pay, private feeder school - in ED at Ivy. Another kid we know switched from bio/premed to philosophy/religion. Also with great results.

Anonymous wrote:We should do a poll - bet most ppl here whose kid got into a T20 were undersubscribed majors.