Does college major affect admissions?

[NorCal510]

Hello all. Long time no see. I came here because I think you guys have a good sense of college.

I applied to the UC system and I particularly want to get into UC Santa Barbara. I applied as a Chemical Engineer but I kind of what to change that. I am leaning towards Economics... I have interest in that and their Econ department is pretty big. Meanwhile, the Engineering department is fairly small.

I still have the option to change majors. Do you think one major will give me a better chance of getting in than the other? Thanks!

[The Reckoning]

apply as a shitty major and then change schools once youre in

[Vertigo]

If you really want to be an Economic Major then do it. Is getting in all you are really interested about?

[baseline bum]

It should be way easier to get into anything besides engineering in a UC (with the exception of a couple of small programs, such as film).

[easjer]

The only reason it should affect anything is if the particular department has an enrollment cap. But if that is the case, then there is usually a separate application process for that college/department/major outside of the standard university application.

[FromWayDowntown]

Do they actually make applicants essentially declare majors before being admitted to school? That seems like a pretty unnecessarily restrictive application process to me.

[CubanMustGo]

Agree. Suggest contacting the UCSB admissions office to see where you stand.

[tlongII]

I think you should concentrate on graduating from high school first.

[Kori Ellis]

Do they actually make applicants essentially declare majors before being admitted to school? That seems like a pretty unnecessarily restrictive application process to me.

In the UC system, you have to apply for College of Engineering compared to College of Letters & Science. So it's definitely harder to get in to Engineering than another major.

You can get admitted into Letters & Science (as undeclared or another major) and then switch majors once you are in school, however. Though that's not easy either.

I actually got into UCLA as an Engineering major and switched in my sophomore year out of it.

[Dr. Gonzo]

Good luck Kid.

[FreeMason]

Yes, it does.

[Kori Ellis]

College of Engineering

Students are selected by major for all engineering and computer science majors. Only applicants with a solid background in advanced high school mathematics will be considered for admission to engineering. This includes high grades in all math courses through grade 11 and enrollment in pre-calculus or higher in grade 12. A student not selected for the first choice major will be reviewed for admission to a second choice major or undeclared major.

College of Creative Studies

Applicants to Creative Studies submit a supplementary application in addition to the general UC application, which is reviewed by Creative Studies faculty. Students are selected within Creative Studies majors only. Applicants not selected for Creative Studies will automatically be considered for admission to the general campus.

College of Letters and Science

Choice of major is not considered in selection except for computer science applicants, who are selected using engineering criteria (see above), and dance and music performance, which require an audition.

More details:
http://www.admissions.ucsb.edu/SelectionProcess.asp?section=selectionprocess&subsection=reviewprocess&selectiontype=prospective_freshman

[baseline bum]

Do they actually make applicants essentially declare majors before being admitted to school? That seems like a pretty unnecessarily restrictive application process to me.

The freshman CS weed-outs at UCLA were pretty rough, and will walk all over anyone who is not interested, good at, and devoted to studying the subject. They also cannot be taken outside of major (or dropped). I'm not sure about the other engineering classes (never took any engineering outside of CS reqs), but I'd be shocked if they were all that different. UCSB is every bit as difficult as UCLA, so it'll most likely be the same there too.

[NorCal510]

hey kori thanks for all that info... but i am a little lost

are you recommending me to keep my major as an engineer or switch it to economics?

i have a pretty good math background, probably 2 years more than i need with all B's and A's.

[Kori Ellis]

hey kori thanks for all that info... but i am a little lost

are you recommending me to keep my major as an engineer or switch it to economics?

i have a pretty good math background, probably 2 years more than i need with all B's and A's.

I'm saying that it's definitely harder to get in the College of Engineering than the College of Letters & Science as an Econ major. So if you are just trying to get in and think anything might be doubtful, then you might consider just going for Econ.

[td4mvp21]

Are your GPA and SATS/ACTS good? What's your rank in your class? Do you take AP/Honors classes?

[NorCal510]

I have a 3.82 state gpa, 3.86 cumulative. 27 on the ACT, average SAT2 scores.

I am ranked in the top 5 percent... 1 AP class (statistics) and no honors.

I think I will take your advice Kori and switch to Econ. Thanks

[Kori Ellis]

I have a 3.82 state gpa, 3.86 cumulative. 27 on the ACT, average SAT2 scores.

I am ranked in the top 5 percent... 1 AP class (statistics) and no honors.

I think I will take your advice Kori and switch to Econ. Thanks

If you had AP Calculus and high SATs, I would say try to get in Engineering. But if you get in as an econ major, you can always switch to engineering if you decide you want to do so. Good luck.

[TDMVPDPOY]

i sugget u select subjects that relate to the course you wanna get into...so you can get a credit transfer.....

[Homeland Security]

Does UC offer yak husbandry as a major?