Hi, @fatherofsam - thanks, that’s interesting about the class size and the lack of a cap.
My D hasn’t applied only to schools that offer that design+tech mix, but she definitely would prefer that kind of crossover. She was already accepted to the CompSci+Design combined major at Northeastern (with some merit aid, but not an “offer we can’t refuse” amount), and she likes NU and Boston a lot, so that kind of sets the bar for east coast schools for her. RPI’s program has some strengths that NU’s does not, but the school also has some drawbacks compared to NU, at least from my D’s perspective. We haven’t visited Troy yet, and RPI is definitely not the kind of school to commit to sight-unseen - we’ll have to see whether they make it worth planning a trip. (Not to sound like I think Rensselaer ought to fall all over themselves bribing my kid to attend! For all I know she might not even get in - I’m just describing where we’re at, decision-tree wise.)
Closer to home, she applied to the HCDE program at UW Seattle, and the CogSci major at UC San Diego, which has both Computational and Design tracks. She’s been accepted to CompSci at Cal Poly, and they have a “Liberal Arts & Engineering Studies” program within which she could theoretically include psych and design coursework in her program. UC Davis also has Design, CompSci and CogSci departments all with “Letters & Science,” but how well they would blend into a coherent program is in some question. She has also gotten into several Industrial Design and Environmental Design programs, but has since decided she wants more of a CompSci/CogSci/Design focus.
She still has 11 schools to hear back from (including RPI, UW, and five of the UC’s), so it’ll be an interesting couple of months, seeing what the final options are and making a decision! Does your D already have a “default plan” in place, or is it all up in the air until next month?