<p>Thanks Everyone for the response.</p>
<p>I’ll let my D make the decision and let her put EECS if that is what she wants.
Her research interest and math and science ECs suggest that she will be fine in the EECS department.</p>
<p>My concern was that Ivies may not like the idea of EECS when the final goal is to do Medicine.</p>
<p>I don’t see why “Ivies may not like the idea of EECS when the final goal is to do Medicine.” For one thing, many students will change their mind, either in regards to their major, or their eventual career path over the course of their undergrad years and schools know this. Furthermore, med schools do not care which major a student takes, as long as the student completes certain introductory science/math/English courses.</p>
<p>Premeds may not be looking upon favorable because they spend so much time studying to get good grades(grade grabing), may not participate in clubs and ECs(colleges want participation). So my suggestion is to leave out the medicine part.</p>
<p>EVERYSINGLE school we looked at had a seperate program for EE, and those programs had different coursework, etc…with a really heavy emphasis on the math and sciences, and many said that it was hard for EE students to switch over to the other schools because their courses were different and the requirements were different, so if she wants to do EE she better darn well be sure its what she really wants, becuase if she does switch majors which iws very common, most likely, she will have course work to catch up on</p>
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Actually, I would argue that pre-meds are very involved because, just as with undergrad applications, med schools look for more than high grades and MCAT scores; they look for involvement in the community, be it ECs, research, volunteering, or any number of other activities. Also, I would say a majority of students go into university saying they are “pre-med” because, well, as high school students, we don’t really have a good idea of just what is out there. Once students actually start experiencing everything university has to offer, many change their minds and find a new passion.</p>
<p>citygirlsmom : I know how hard it is to switch from EECS as I did EECS in my undegrad and know that the curriculumn is very challenging but my D doesn’ want to listen to the old man. Free advice is always frown upon.</p>
<p>That is wy my recomendation was to do Computer Science with pre med or to do Computer Engineering without Electrical Engineering.</p>
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<p>I’m sure that is what they look for if the candidate is marginal. I’m not saying all pre-meds are like that but considering the premed competition, most students will never see the daylights, let alone participating in many activities. But of course, there are always exception.</p>
<p>other’s prolly said this already…</p>
<p>but schools look for passion in an area. go w/ what your daughter loves and express that passion to the max. don’t fake it.</p>
<p>plus, chem engineering isn’t that bad… not as bad as pre-med/biology/chem.</p>
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<p>My brother did something similar. He GPA was not the greatest. He spent 2 more years at UCLA to boost up he GPA. Needless to say, he started medical school much later than usual. He had the same interest as your daughter, computer & medicine.</p>
<p>does your daughter really really really want to go to an IV? And does she want to go because of the name or because they’re great schools? Just a recommendation (as a high school senior almost done with the whole college application process), you AND your daughter should look at other top schools where she has a good chance of getting in. I applied to 13 schools and was accepted to 11. I was a very strong applicant for IVs but because the IVs recieve so many amazing applications, you never know if you can get in because you are probably just as qualified as 95% of the applicants. Remember that IV is a name, and you should look more at the experience of college. And if you don’t qualify for financial aid, but happen to fall in the grey area where it is difficult to pay for college, IVs may not be the right choice.</p>
<p>My son listed a somewhat unusual major (which he truly intends to pursue) for which he had extensive supporting extracurricular involvement and awards. The mixture of acceptances/waitlists/rejections he received from the excellent schools to which he applied is pretty convincing evidence that the major one lists has minimal or no effects on admissions decisions.</p>
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<p>I totally agree with Asa.</p>
<p>In the end it comes down to you choosing how you want to play the admissions game, I guess. </p>
<p>Being hesitant about stating what you’re truly passionate about because you might get denied . . . Yeah. I’d just say, if you get rejected, then maybe that school wasn’t for you. Not getting into an Ivy isn’t the end of the world.</p>
<p>The major she really wants to pursue.</p>
<p>Engineering school is outside of A&S at ivies. As a woman applying to engineering is much easier than A&S. I have heard it’s very hard to transfer from Columbia engineering to A&S. Cornell is a bit easier to transfer within each school, BUT if you want to transfer from engineering to other schools (A&S, Hotel, CAL…) you will lose your spot in engineering, and if you do not get accepted by other schools then you are out. Make sure your daughter wants to go into engineering before she applies to that school.</p>
<p>D2 plans to pursue classics as a major but I do worry that it would be questionable because she’ll only have one year of Latin. That’s all her school offers, unfortunately, and none of the three local colleges offers it. It’s possible that she might travel to Manhattan net summer but that’s the best hope. Otherwise, she has museum volunteering and her IB extended essay which is classics related to show passion. I hope that’s enough.</p>
<p>janas.joker wrote " ‘Her major choice isn’t going to give her an edge in ivy admissions.’</p>
<p>Wrong. At a selective college like Yale, major would play a large part in admissions. I’d suggest putting a fairly unpopular one down (Geography), b/c @ yale you’re not bound by what you write (your daughter will change it Frosh year), but they still need enough kids to fill the Geography department."</p>
<p>This flies completely against what a Yale admissions officer has repeatedly stated. He said that the only use of an applicant’s possible intended major is to give a glimpse into the person’s thinking – that’s all. They completely know that Yale is a place where many people will stretch themselves and explore other majors so what the 17 year old marks is pretty much irrelevant to their decisionmaking whether to admit/reject. Now that’s what Yale says. </p>
<p>And Yale isn’t worried about “filling out a department”. I recall about 1/3 of MATRICULATING frosh stated “undecided” – how’s that for evidence?</p>
<p>Dunno about the other seven.</p>
<p>“What major should my daughter put on her applications to Ivies to maximize her chances of acceptance?”</p>
<p>This is seriously one of the most stupid questions I’ve ever heard. I don’t care if you just really want to go somewhere… saying that you’re considering a major that you’re not in order to “squeak buy” is dishonest and completely disgusting in my view. Some peoplemyself includedwant to get into college on our merits, and not be rejected in favor of people who essentially lie to gain acceptance through departments that they may never interact with.</p>
<p>Look, I realize you really want your daughter to get into Yale, Harvard, and wherever else you’re applying. I really want to get into those places too. What if I don’t get in because I want to major in something popular, and someone else with the exact same interests as me gets in because they lied and claimed to want to major in something obscure? Does that seem remotely reasonable to you?</p>
<p>Ugh, this whole thing frustrates me beyond belief.</p>
<p>"“At a selective college like Yale, major would play a large part in admissions. I’d suggest putting a fairly unpopular one down (Geography),”</p>
<p>This is true only in the rare cases in which a student has shown a deep interest in a subject that isn’t that popular. For instance, if a student has excelled in Latin (for instance has gotten first or second place in Junior Classical League’s Latin national contest), and has self studied Greek, the student could stand out as one of the relatively rare students who’ll be a Classics major.</p>
<p>In general, however, students will switch majors at least twice. This particularly is true at places like Ivies and LACs due to those institutions’ emphasis on exposing students to a variety of fields. Consequently, in most cases, proposed choice of major isn’t going to have much if any influence on admissions. Choice of ECs as well as having outstanding talents/skills/documented interests could greatly influence admission.</p>
<p>Sandybeach : Yes, My D really wants to attend Ivies. Also she won’t be applying for Financial Aid. So that is not an issue.
We know that there is no gaurantee to get in but it is better to leave no stone unturn.
She will apply to other Private Schools with a mix of matches and safeties.</p>
<p>since a huge segment of kids applying to all colleges are premed or prelaw, those are definitely NOT the majors to enter. The history/langauge thing might work IFF your D has ECs in those fields. But, based on your initial post, your D’s background is all premed, so be honest and go for it; otherwise, engineering is a plus factor for female applicants.</p>