What is a "closed major" at the University of California - Berkeley?

I am a freshman applicant to UC Berkeley and I noticed a bunch of information about “closed” majors. What are closed majors? Do they affect freshmen applicants?

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Closed majors are majors that may not accept Freshman/Sophomores like HAAS Business Scool which accepts Junior level applicants after Prereq courses are completed So check the list as a Freshman applicant to see if you will be affected. All Engineering majors in the College of Engineering require a direct admit as a Freshman or Junior level transfer so Sophomores cannot apply for transfer along with Individuals seeking a 2nd BS.
http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/how-to-apply/check-majors/by-campus/berkeley/index.html

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This would be a huge concern for me if I wanted to major it something that was “closed”.

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Are any of the biology related majors closed to freshmen applicants? Also, do most people get the major that they want at Berkeley?

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There are no closed majors for Biological Sciences however the following are selective/capped meaning the following:::

-have a lower than average admit rate
-be more competitive
-have a higher admitted GPA when compared with other majors at that UC (except for creative arts, which replace portfolios for the GPA)

-all Engineering majors
-all Biological Sciences majors
-Art
-Computer Science
-Earth/Planetary Science
-Economics
-Environmental Economics and Policy
-Business Administration
-Linguistics
-Media Studies
-Nutritional Science
-Operations Research and Management
-Political Economy
-Psychology
-Public Health
-Social Welfare
-Statistics

UCB does not consider your alternate major.

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The main biology majors (IB and MCB) are in the College of Letters and Science, which admits frosh as undeclared. However, neither of these is capacity limited, so completing the prerequisite courses with C or higher grades will allow declaring the major.

http://ib.berkeley.edu/undergrad/major/declaring.php
http://mcb.berkeley.edu/undergrad/major/major/declaring

The following are also not capacity limited at UCB:

Earth and planetary science: http://eps.berkeley.edu/undergraduate/declaring-major
Linguistics: https://lx.berkeley.edu/ugrad/apply

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