Applying to College of Engineering vs Letters and Science (advice needed)

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Berkeley
1

<p>I'm going to be submitting my UC applications tomorrow and I'm still debating between applying to Cal as a bioengineering major or a neurobiology major. I'm thinking of becoming a neural engineer, so I would rather apply to engineering. </p>

<p>Here's the problem, Cal engineering is super hard to get into. I think I am good enough to get into Letters and Science, but in the back of my mind I think I will get rejected to engineering. Here are my stats:</p>

<p>Asian Male California Resident</p>

<p>GPA: 3.92 UW
4.27 UC </p>

<p>SAT I: 760 CR 780 M 710 W 2250 Total
SAT II: 800 Math 2, 750 Chemistry, 730 US History, 720 World History</p>

<p>127 community service hours
4 years with nonprofit organization
Treasurer and Co-Founder of TOMS Campus Club</p>

<p>AP Scholar With Honor
National Merit Commended
2x Scholar Athlete</p>

<p>4 years Speech and Debate
2 Years Swim Team
2 Years Newspaper</p>

<p>There is nothing I did too really show I am interested in engineering. Also on the application, it advises applicants to discuss their interest in the intended major for the college of engineering in their personal statements. My essays are pretty good and unique, but I did not mention engineering at all. I'm thinking that this will probably hurt me, but how much?</p>

<p>Now if this were any other school, I wouldn't think twice about applying to engineering even if there is a slimmer chance of acceptance, since that is what I want to do. However, Cal is a special case. Both of my parents went to Cal and I have been influenced to love Cal. I visit Berkeley often and go to alot of football and basketball games. Its basically been ingrained in me that Cal is my bar of success or failure. It can be the only school that accepts me and I wold be stoked. Likewise, I can get into UCLA and some privates and I would still be a little sad if I was rejected from Cal.</p>

<p>Now your thinking if I love Cal so much, I should just apply to neurobiology where its easier to get in. If I end up doing that and get accepted, I'll be wondering what could have been if I applied to engineering. I also want to be a neural engineer, so I'm thinking bioengineering is more on that track.</p>

<p>How much of a chance do I have at getting into engineering considering that I did not mention my interest at all in my personal statements. Should I apply to engineering or just go for science? Right now, I am slightly leaning toward taking the risk and applying to engineering. I'll be crushed if I get rejected, but I have to at least try to get in right? Besides there will be other colleges.</p>

<p>damn college apps. i dont know what to do! =[[[[</p>

2

<p>Realistically, you may want to see what graduates of the different majors end up doing:</p>

<p><a href=“https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/Bioengr.stm[/url]”>https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/Bioengr.stm&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/MCB.stm[/url]”>https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/MCB.stm&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/IntBio.stm[/url]”>https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/IntBio.stm&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/CogSci.stm[/url]”>https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/CogSci.stm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Bioengineering has a reputation of being among the most selective of the engineering majors (EECS and Engineering Undeclared are also thought to be among the most selective).</p>

3

<p>What would you say my chances are at getting into bioengineering compared to neurobiology, and which one would you advise me to apply to?</p>

4

<p>It is pretty hard to say from the outside (of the admissions office), and [University</a> of California: StatFinder](<a href=“http://statfinder.ucop.edu%5DUniversity”>http://statfinder.ucop.edu) does not have data later than 2008-2009 (and does not stratify engineering by major).</p>

5

<p>I think that not mentioning engineering in your statement is going to hurt you the most. Your stats are up to par with engineering admits if you visit results threads here on CC. As is you should apply to letters and science. But it would be dumb to go to a university where you couldn’t study what you truly want to. </p>

<p>On a personal note, I applied to the College of Chemistry even though it is harder to get in than L&S!</p>

6

<p>Dude, your test scores and GPA and the extracurricular activities are more than enough to get into engineering. Just don’t accidentally put something like “I would like to study neurobiology under Cal’s prestigious L&S program” for your engineering essay.</p>

<p>If you’re that worried about not getting in b/c you picked engineering over L&S, you can still apply to L&S and then transfer after a semester or two.</p>

7

<p>Changing college from L&S to Engineering is not automatic; current students need to apply to do so and meet specific criteria (including having taken courses for the proposed engineering major and a high GPA):</p>

<p>[Change</a> of College — UC Berkeley College of Engineering](<a href=“http://coe.berkeley.edu/students/prospective-students/admissions/change-of-college]Change”>http://coe.berkeley.edu/students/prospective-students/admissions/change-of-college)</p>

8

<p>Well I have around 70 words to spare in my personal statements. I was thinking of adding a small paragraph about my grandma’s Alzheimer’s disease and how I want to study bioengineering as a result of what I experienced. I’m not sure if that is enough, since it’s only a couple of sentences and not a whole essay based around my interest in engineering. How much of a difference would mentioning it like this make in my chances at getting into engineering?</p>