So I believe that I want to major in urban planning in college. For the past three years of high school, I was dead set on becoming an engineer before realizing I had more of a passion for policy making. This is what led me to my current intended major of urban planning. I’ve been researching schools with great programs, and it seems that Cornell has a great one, and it has been one of my dream schools for a while. I was originally going to apply as a civil engineering major, but now I am considering applying as urban planning. However, I am worried about applying to the school of Architecture Art Planning. I know that it is much smaller than the School of Engineering, and I am unsure of how selective it will be in comparison. I’m also not sure what they would be looking for in regard to extracurriculars for an urban planning major. My activities are are geared more toward science (Science Olympiad, biology research, SNHS) with some political (volunteering on political campaigns, voter registration); would I even be qualified at all to apply as urban planning? Regardless, Cornell is a far reach, and I know you really shouldn’t apply to a certain school within a college to increase your chances, but is there any benefit to applying as civil engineering over urban planning? Overall, should I apply as civil engineering as I had planned for years or take a chance and apply as urban planning with a lack of urban planning ECs?
Historically the Architecture college as a whole has been very highly selective. However the admissions breakdown between its art, architecture and urban planning majors has never been made public to my knowledge.
IMO any applicant to a specialized program should ideally be able to demonstrate a well-founded reason for their interest in it, and likelihood of success in the program.
No such program wants to be used as a “back door” to wiggle into some other college or program.
Urban Planning is a very common master’s-degree program, for individuals who have developed such interest and affinity well past their high school years. IMO it is the more unusual individual who has developed such level of commitment while still in high school.
Still, the program apparently does not expect all of its undergraduates to become planners per se. On its website they say, “Recent urban and regional studies graduates have gone on to careers in local government, urban design, environmental and international law, real estate and development, city planning, social policy, public health, and medicine.”
So I would guess you probably do not have to demonstrate that you necessarily definitively want to become a planner- though that may help- but you should be able to articulate why you want to study what they are teaching there. In both words and deeds as evidenced by what you have actually done in your schooling and outside of it.
All this is IMO, I have no inside information about any of this.
Civil engineering is a different discipline. It is not a leading background for urban planning, from what I’ve read briefly. The list of common jobs/careers taken by Civil engineers will not look very much like the list above. If you are more interested or oriented to that path, do that.