Does applying to a different major increase/decrease acceptance chances?

Applying to College
, , , , , ,
1

Ive heard people say CS is difficult to get in compared to rest of majors.
Is that the case? if so, what major should I go ahead with? below is a brief of my profile

Academics and Background

• School: top of my class

• Academic Interests: Computer Science, Mathematics

• Honors: India Topper in IGCSE Hindi (Cambridge); 5th in Caltech Math Meet (worldwide); Rising Star Humanitarian Award (Indian Red Cross Society); ranked 36th in ISTSE; Intl Rank 1 in IMUN Math & Sci Olympiad; Finalist in Cognitive Classroom challenge in New York Academy of Science (we built an AI-AR education system)

• SAT: 1410 superscore; Lower than I’d hoped (concerned this will be a setback)
• ACT: 26; Lower than I’d hoped (concerned this will be a setback)

Extracurriculars & Projects

• Founder & CEO of STEMExpedition: Built a community with 3,000+ members, hosted global STEM events, created an AI therapist tool for mental health support

• HBV Risk Assessment Research with Stanford Asian Liver Center: Developed an AI tool to assess Hepatitis B virus impact and support early intervention

• Edumadeasy: Created a platform for IGCSE resources, reaching 15,000+ students in 100+ countries

• Employmentally App: Designed to connect local vendors with workers to reduce unemployment in my region

• Volunteer Work: Active with the Indian Red Cross and Dera Sacha Sauda, volunteering at blood drives, and providing educational support to underserved communities

Leadership

• Academic Minister & Head Boy: Led multiple school initiatives and events, including a 1,000-attendee webinar on cybercrime prevention

• New York Math Circle: Selected for the most advanced level and later served as a Teaching Assistant

Additional

• Research Papers: Published on topics from algorithmic problem-solving to compact MRI systems for low-resource settings

• Personal Story: My background and financial struggles have driven me to become self-sufficient and help support my family through freelance AI/web development projects

  • did a semester at Stanford (Stanford ULO) in Multivar Calc and Linear Algebra.

thanks in advance

2

The highly selective schools that you have on your list (like MIT) don’t admit by major so it won’t matter.

Yes, some schools make it easier to get accepted under a different major. However, these schools typically restrict your ability to switch into high demand majors like CS later. This approach isn’t very helpful unless you’re okay with graduating in the major you were originally accepted into.

4 Likes
3

I’ll add - pursue your desired major over school.

If you get into CMU for psychology, how will that help you pursue your future goals ?

Many colleges of various selectivity offer CS in the US. Make sure you have assured admits, both admission wise and affordability, if you 109% want to study in the US (can’t tell if you are international or not).

Your SAT far exceeds your ACT and yes it will be a problem for this set of schools, especially if the math is low.

Your overall outside of class is impressive.

Best of luck.

4

CS is an impacted major at a number of US colleges. That means that they don’t have enough seats to accommodate every student who chooses that major.

So, if you pick “Child Development”, you had better be happy with that diploma.

5

That brings to mind a quote from SpongeBob, “Why, once I met this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy who knew this guy’s cousin…”

Or, from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off;: “My best friend’s sister’s boyfriend’s brother’s girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who’s going with the girl who saw Ferris pass out at 31 Flavors last night. I guess it’s pretty serious.”

Or, from REO Speedwagon’s “Take It On The Run:” “Heard it from a friend who / Heard it from a friend who / Heard it from another you been messin’ around”

Just because you heard something fourth-hand does not make it true. :rofl: On a related note, don’t take college admissions advice from 17 year olds who don’t know how much they don’t know.

Now, to answer your question, most universities don’t admit by major. From the colleges you tagged, CMU CS is housed in a separate school, and they do admit by school. Penn CS is part of SEAS, and they do admit by school. So for Penny, it’s not an issue applying for chemical engineering and switching to CS, but applying for math and switching to CS requires an internal transfer which may if may not be easy

Bottom line, if the school admits by major/school, you better be happy getting a degree in the major you select on your application, because there is no guarantee to can switch to an impacted major

For more details, see chapter 7 of my book entitled “If it were that easy, everyone would do it.”

7 Likes
6

The idea of applying for an “easier admissions” major and then switching to your actual desired major after starting university is something that admissions officers have already thought of. There are generally two ways that they prevent this. Some universities (MIT, Harvard, and Stanford come to mind) do not admit by major. Your choice of major will not change your chances of admissions. Some other universities make it difficult or in some cases impossible to change to a highly popular major, such as computer science.

At least in the US computer science is a career where it really does not matter which university you graduate from. There are a lot of universities that are very good for CS. MIT graduates and Stanford graduates routinely work alongside UNH and U.Mass and Rutgers and San Jose State graduates and no one cares where anyone got their degree. In most cases your coworkers will not know where you got your degree.

As an international student you should however assume that you will not be able to stay in the US after graduation.

You should apply for the major that you actually want. Then attend a university where you get accepted for your intended major.

A 1410 SAT score and a 26 ACT score are low for the highest ranked universities in the US, such as MIT, Caltech, Stanford, Brown, Carnegie Mellon, and the other schools that you listed. How are your scores split between the Math versus English parts of the SAT, and how are your scores split between the four parts of the ACT? Based on your original post your English seems to be quite good and probably fluent.

Admissions to the highest ranked universities in the US is a reach for international students. Make sure that you apply to safeties, which are likely to be in your home country.

Depending upon your budget, and particularly whether you require need-based financial aid, you also might want to consider some other schools in the US where admissions is a bit more likely (or at least a lower reach) such as U.Mass Amherst.

1 Like
7

Yes! And I’ll add to that: if your profile, interests and ECs scream “CS” or “STEM” and you apply as an art history major, the AOs are going to see right through that.

4 Likes
8

OP: I understand the thought process behind your question. I know of a few folks who feel that their applications were given a boost by applying to under-subscribed majors to elite universities even though the universities did not admit by major. However, as noted above by another poster, these applicants had substantial evidence of their interest in the under-subscribed major (was then typically classics or a foreign language such as German) and actually intended to major in that area of study.

1 Like
9

If major matters for frosh admission, then the major that is more difficult for frosh admission is likely to be difficult to change into after enrolling.

For example, at CMU, division matters, and SCS (where the CS major is) is the most difficult one for frosh admission.

But changing into SCS after enrolling requires a 3.6 college GPA in specified prerequisites in order to apply into a competitive admission process, with no guarantee of admission.

https://csd.cmu.edu/academics/bachelors/guidelines-transfer-or-dual-degree

The reason that this is the case is that CMU SCS is filled to capacity in frosh admission, so there is very little space for those trying to change into it later.

10

I know this wasn’t targeted specifically at me (I’m 18 anyway) but I can’t help but feel attacked :joy:

In all seriousness though, I make it clear I’m a college student, not a parent, and not a professional. I know I don’t know a lot, but I like to think I do a decent job :grin:

Anyway, I laughed at that whole message. Thank you. :laughing:

On another note, that made me remember that I’ve been on here for four years. That’s crazy…

9 Likes
11

You are valued !!!

6 Likes
12

You need higher test scores for those schools. I don’t think you are in a demographic which would be helped by strategically picking a major to avoid competing with the other 1500+ SAT/34+ ACT CS applicants.

13

It was not. Plus you’ve been on CC awhile, and I think you’d know not to give the advice given to the OP :grin:

3 Likes
14

I know more than one student who applied as Classics only to switch to CS during the first week on campus, but ECs and recommendation letters need to support the major. An application without a cohesive through line is not going to be successful anywhere.

3 Likes
15

But was it a school that admitted by major? And if so, was it a top school?

16

These are two majors your list/profile is pointing to, CS in particular.

Your test scores are low for selective schools, especially superscored - I am not sure if you are Senior this year or next, but you may consider retaking tests, and probably stick to SAT vs ACT in your case.

1 Like
17

Not by major, and yes. The switch is not an issue at many of the ivies. At Princeton, although you technically declare engineering (or not) on your application and answer the appropriate prompt, it’s easy enough to make the switch once you arrive on campus as long as you have the requisite background (calculus and physics).

Again, you have to answer a question about why you are planning on pursuing either degree (or going in undecided).

1 Like
18

Thankyou so much all!
I’m even more confused now :sob:

I think i’ll stick to putting CS as major.
I’ve also applied to low-tiered schools: Vanderbilt, Amherst College, Umass Amherst, Drexel, Wesleyan, Notre Dame, Northwestern

19

These are not “low-tiered” schools compared to ones you tagged in this thread, Vanderbilt, Northwestern and Amherst are more selective than CMU, for example, if you look at general acceptance rate, but for CS acceptance rate is even lower for schools you listed. Your list seems to be based on schools’ prestige/brand rather than its CS major ratings/outcomes/reputation.

7 Likes
20

All the schools mentioned are reaches besides Drexel and MAYBE UMass. I don’t know how you reached the conclusion that these are “low tier” schools. The other schools mentioned other than Drexel and UMass all have around 10% acceptance rates or lower for unhooked applicants.

2 Likes