<p>If you kind of read between the lines, you quickly figure out why it is hard to change majors at Cal Poly. It’s a case of follow the money. Budgets are set for each department. Not sure how they allocate the money, but they do so. Then each department figures out how many students that budget supports. If there is a space, they will accept a transfer. However, if there are more than one person trying to transfer in, guess what, they take the most qualified. And there are always more trying to transfer in than spots.</p>
<p>bjornredtail, you’ve whined about the lack of ability to transfer on another thread and your “solution” was simply a more detailed whine. If you or anyone else wants to change the way things are figure out how to change it. You have to get a system in place that provides funding to the various departments based on the number of students that “want” to be in that department. </p>
<p>If you read some of my other posts you will figure out that I did not attend Cal Poly, but my son does. The college I went allocated at least part of their various department’s funding based on how many students were in that department. Everyone went in as “undeclared”. You could not declare a major, even if you wanted to your freshman year. Toward the end of freshamn year, most departments held freshman picnics or something to get students to want to come into their department. They were recuiting you. This system worked because the school also was a large research institute and funding from that helped even out the annual fluctuation on student numbers. </p>
<p>Who knows, there may be other ways to do this. </p>
<p>If you want to change the system, you need to understand why the system is the way it is. Only then can you recommend changes. And don’t think that they will jump at the idea of changing. You’ll have to play the political game and really work at it to try and effect a change. And your changes may never come to pass.</p>
<p>I believe that few high school seniors really know the difference between some of the majors they are looking at. They have no real experience with them. I also believe that computer science is one in which the reality of the major is not always like the perception going in. </p>
<p>I don’t think that Cal Poly, or any other school, should admitt by department and force the high school seniors to choose. I am also floored by how many that do just that. I grew up on the east coast and went to school there. I can’t think of a single school that forced one to declare a major. But then, that was a long time ago. </p>
<p>My daughter is going to school in New England and went in as “engineering undeclared”. She is a freshman and is trying to choose a major. For her, choosing a major and getting into that department is as easy as checking out the box on a form. But, that is one of the reasons she decided on her particular school.</p>