True or False: Your intended major makes no difference in your chances of being accepted to a college.
Answer: It depends. (Pro tip: In college admissions, the answer is always “it depends”).
There are a couple of main scenarios under which a student’s intended major impacts their admission to a college. The first is when a college accepts students to a particular major, such as at UT Austin. At UT, students do not apply for a spot at the university at large but for a seat in a specific major. Of course, there are only so many seats in each major. So, when a student applies to one of the more popular majors (like those within the McCombs School of Business, Cockrell School of Engineering, and the College of Natural Sciences), their odds of admission go down. And when that happens, the criteria for admission go up. Some universities publish their freshman class profile by college so students can see the average standardized test score and GPA for their intended major. Look at the differences in admit rate, standardized test scores, and high school GPA among just the first three rows of Purdue University’s freshman profile chart.
COLLEGE ADMIT RATE SAT MID 50% ACT MID 50% HIGH SCHOOL GPA MID 50%
AGRICULTURE 63.0% 1150 – 1390 27 – 32 3.71 – 4.00
EDUCATION 74.5% 1070 – 1260 23.5 – 29 3.52 – 3.95
ENGINEERING 38.7% 1400 – 1530 31 – 34 3.88 – 4.00
Grades and test scores aren’t the only factors considered by colleges that admit to major. High school coursework and extracurricular activities also are viewed in light of what a student wants to study. Engineering departments routinely state that they prefer students take calculus and physics in high school, and selective business programs are increasingly looking for calculus on students’ transcripts as well. Beyond that, some colleges look for evidence of a student’s interest in their major through extra-curricular activities like UIL competitions, participation in pre-professional programs such as DECA and HOSA, and research projects.
Of course, not all colleges admit to major. However, at most selective universities — where there are far more applicants than there are seats in their incoming classes — major is considered. In other words, though some universities are not evaluating a student’s application in light of their intended major, because they have limited seats in each major, students will find themselves in a more competitive pool if they select an impacted major, such as biomedical engineering, computer science, or business. However, at less selective universities and especially liberal arts universities that don’t offer STEM or business majors, intended major is less of a factor in the admissions process.
So, what does that mean for high school students? Well, as much as I wish students didn’t have to decide on their college major in high school, it is a necessity if they want to apply to colleges that admit to major and/or if they are somewhat interested in one of the aforementioned popular majors. Students should at least consider whether they have more of a bent for STEM subjects or liberal arts, fine arts, or humanities early in high school. Doing so will help them select the courses they’ll need to be competitive on their college applications. When students apply to colleges, knowing whether and how their intended major plays into their admission decision can help them make informed choices about which colleges to apply to and/or which major to select to optimize their chance of admission at a particular university.
One way to get started on figuring out what to major in is to take an aptitude and career discovery assessment. I offer one as part of my comprehensive junior/senior package or as a stand-alone service. Reach out to me if you’d like to explore that.
