Hi, I got to Sachem High School East and I’m starting senior year with APCalc AB, APStats, Physics C, APCS, AP English 12, AP GOPo, along with a 4.0 GPA. I have questions. I need general information, I am aware colleges have different policies but I want to double major in CS and another major. I don’t know exactly how hard this is but CS comes naturally to me so I wouldn’t bother doubling my work loads. I am aware some colleges branch EE and CS together into one major like MIT and other Tech Institutes but if not I want to know how hard is it to do these two together. I am an amazing math student no doubt about it, I am very self studying and I have taken Pre-Calc and other math classes over the summer at my community college (I needed the space to explore for fun classes like Psychology! P.S. Hated psychology) I aced it like no problem didn’t even pick up my textbook (not to brag but it so sounds like I am haha…) I want to know how demanding it is to do these both… I like both fields and the math behind them both so any guidance would nice!! I am planning on applying for 5 American universities (MIT the top) and possibly Hamburg institute of Tech and other German colleges (I speak German and want to be taught in another language honestly, different experience away from America!) Their programs are very strict some requiring CS in high school or no can do! So I would like to know your ideas, guidance. Also what kind of computer do you need for CS. I have a MacBook Pro which I code websites and apps on which is phrnominal but I was wondering if there are betters. I have never had a windows in my life (lol for real) I don’t game on PC or anything so I never saw use for it but do PC have better coding? If not do you suggest I get the latest MacBook when I go to college because my MacBook is old like 3 years and it’s hard drive is going down in the sewers progressively… Anywho, guidance and advice is needed! Also… Is CS a lot of theory? I love theory honestly it’s beautiful I’ve only seen the coding aspect of CS from online classes and textbooks but I hope there’s theory like algorithms, functions, and others!!! Please let me know! I might have to get a minor in math or take some chaos theory because I loveee theory!!
For most people double majoring in CS and EE would be pretty hard. And it would be tough to graduate in 4 years. I’d look for a CS program that lets you take lots of EE classes as electives.
All the best to you on your challenging path! I would suggest not settling on a laptop until you are starting freshman year, as many colleges and CS programs recommend a particular model, or load a customized set of software on it. Often these hardware/software packages are good deals. My son just started in CS and EE, and he decided to buy a new laptop on top of his pretty new very good one for the software some which was not commercially available, and also to take advantage of the campus repair shop should anything go wrong.
You’ll get plenty of theory in CS, but CS/math is a very common double major. You are taking a lot of AP classes, which can help make room for a double major, but if you can transfer 5-6 community college classes in math, CS, or science that can help a lot.
This is not the case at all for most CS colleges I know. As long as your computer is strong enough, the model shouldn’t matter at all. You can dual boot or virtual machine any OS you need for a specific class, and most things run on all 3 big OS’s.
I’m sure some schools offer some good discounts, though, which is a good reason to wait.
Curious - what software was this? I’ve never heard of software not being commercially available, open source, or otherwise available in some way. Was it college specific? Beta versions?