@anon45019500 is a former admissions officer at Stanford. He has multiple posts on this site over the past couple of months about being a compelling applicant.
Your application, essays and other supplemental material needs to show:-
- your intellectual curiosity for the academic subject(s)/area(s) you are applying for
- show (not tell) how your activities and studies have brought you to wanting to further study these areas
- how the university /college will help you further your intellectual discoveries AND how you will benefit the university community with what you bring to the table
So: you can be undecided between business/science/CS, but can you show your intellectual curiosity in these areas and their potential overlaps?
Business, neuroscience and CS overlap, there is a lot of research out there, even reading someone like Adam Alter from NYU who researches and writes on marketing and psychology and the use of tech.
Can you explain to Columbia how their common core will help you explore these overlaps? If it doesn’t (and I don’t know enough about the core to say more), then don’t apply there! Maybe Brown, with a more open curriculum would be a better option?
What about a Liberal Arts College (LAC) like Amherst where you could study Econ, Neuroscience/ Biology and CS?
Does Wharton at Penn give you enough scope to explore these overlaps and decide what really intellectually grabs you? Again I know little about Wharton and how the school is structured and whether taking outside classes is an option.
You do have time to really sit and consider your applications. Don’t just apply to the best known department at various prestigious schools. This is not showing any of that discernment about what they offer and how you/they make a great intellectual and personal fit.
AND: how much can your family afford to pay for your college education? Make sure to run the Net Price Calculator for each school
And other posters - feel free to say I am talking nonsense if needed!