<p>As a girl that is interested in both cellular and molecular biology AND possibly chemical engineering, would it be advantageous to apply as an engineering major than a science major? I have several extracurriculars relating to science, but none specifically to engineering. Any thoughts on this?</p>
<p>I have found that girl engineers are highly valued; it is unique and really makes your application stand out. However, what I have learned from the couple of college visits I went on this summer (Princeton being one of them), is that the admissions committee likes it when one has a couple of ECs that they are really dedicated to. The fact that you have several ECs relating to science is good if you went by this approach. Depending on what year you’re in, it may not be too late to join some classes or find other activities that involve engineering, but in the end you really should put down the major that interests you the most, regardless of how much of an edge it will give you in the application process.</p>
<p>Right. Engineering opportunities are rare for high schoolers, and quite frankly I have no idea how interested I am in engineering b/c I’ve had no exposure for it. Are engineering and science two very different things to major in as an undergrad?</p>
<p>I honestly could not tell you how similar they are… I go to an early college high school and one of the requirements for freshmen was an Introduction to Engineering course. That course was primarily math with a lot of experimenting on the software provided, but this was just general engineering. Seeing that you’re interested in chemical engineering, I could see how chemistry comes into play. Nevertheless, I know some physics is involved.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that if you do get accepted to Princeton, it’s incredibly easy to change your major / department (i.e. into or out of engineering) once you get here. I’m not sure how much being female matters here since our gender ratios in engineering in general are pretty balanced (I think?) while bio is, at least nationally, becoming more female-skewed. (In contrast with, say, physics / math / computer science.)</p>
<p>It sucks that nobody really knows what “engineering” means until you get to college! I mean, people are like, “oh, well you’re good at math / physics / science, you could be an engineer!” but nobody really tells you what that’s like. As an “engineer” who picked CS pretty early on, I /still/ don’t know, since the freshmen eng curriculum for most people is just basic science and math.</p>
<p>One thing to consider if you come here is the Integrated Introduction Engineering, Math, and Physics course for freshmen: [Princeton’s</a> Keller Center: An Integrated Introduction to Engineering, Mathematics, Physics (EMP)](<a href=“McGraw Commons – Online Platform for Course Blogs, Course Websites, and Course Projects”>McGraw Commons – Online Platform for Course Blogs, Course Websites, and Course Projects)
I’ve heard it’s lots of work but very good – you build rockets in your labs instead of doing normal (terrible) physics labs, etc.</p>
<p>If you’re debating between maybe chemical engineering or molecular bio, I would say that if you were to go to Princeton, talking with current ChemE majors / bio majors / etc and taking bio and chem classes would be the way to go. As long as you take care of your freshmen engineering requirements + take some bio, you would probably be able to decide by the end of freshman year. Talking to upperclassmen is a biggie.</p>
<p>As for applying? I don’t know. That’s a tough one…I’d honestly say that you’re good either way. If you apply to be ChemE, then your science EC’s will still look good and obviously relevant, so it probably doesn’t matter too much for you.</p>
<p>Wow thanks so much! That was very helpful. After looking over the princeton chemE handbook, I think I’m going to apply engineering for now. I didn’t know it was easy to switch between schools at princeton. Thank you!</p>
<p>I mean, you have to take a pretty set curriculum freshman year if you’re considering engineering, but the formal process of switching is really easy. :)</p>
<p>No problem, I’m glad I can help!</p>
<p>I’m applying as a BSE in Computer Science because I’ll have an extra essay to demonstrate my passion for the subject.</p>
<p>I’d probably like the Engineering curricula better, anyway, (though the AB letters appeal to me more than B.S.E).</p>
<p>For Computer Science the department website says it doesn’t much matter. If you don’t want to take physics/chem/math do AB (though, as a CS major you’d need math anyhow I figure). If you don’t want to do a language do BSE. (In the CS FAQ).</p>
<p>@Challenged: spot on. I’m BSE COS, and there are really only a few diferences. In addition to the difference between science / language requirements, AB’s do more independent work (4 mandatory semesters vs 1 for BSE’s, though BSE’s have the option of doing up to 4 semesters as well, and it’s super-easy to get an adviser).</p>
<p>Good luck! CS at Princeton is really great. :)</p>
<p>Remember that in the consideration of switching from AB to BSE there are a few things you need to have ready. One is that to be successful in engineering you need a strong physics background. And to switch to AB you will need to meet the language requirement. If you can keep these two factors in the equation then making the switch from one to the other should not be a huge issue.</p>