<p>I'm applying to JH for liberal arts, not pre med, and I'm curious about the difference in acceptance stats, because I've heard the difference is HUGE. Would I have a chance with a low 1300s/1900s, a 3.4 cumulative gpa (major upward trend, 2.3 freshmen/mid 4s senior, explained in my essay due to moving to a different state and problems at home), great recs and decent ECs (including a year of student gov)?</p>
<p>Yes you have a chance, but you’re mistaken about there being a “huge” difference for non-premeds. Think about it. Premed is not a major at Hopkins; you can major in anything, take the courses which medical schools require, and apply to medical school. Therefore, the admissions office has no idea as to who will be or won’t be “premed” following admission. It can’t, therefore, base an admissions decision on such an amorphous factor. As a result, the same criteria are applied to all applicants (except for BME applicants, who have to be accepted by the department in addition to the University).</p>
<p>That said, it is true that the University receives far more applications from potential biology majors than it does for potential philosophy majors, and that the math and science scores for potential philosophy majors are probably lower than for potential biology majors. On the other hand, the verbal and writing scores of the former are also probably higher than the latter. The bottom line is that you really cannot game the system. If an applicant spends most of his/her free time in high school working in a biology laboratory but lists art history as the probably major on the application, it is not going to be any easier to gain admission (and perhaps harder, if the admissions officer suspects that the applicant is being less than frank).</p>
<p>What about business? I’m undecided on what I want to study but will now when I apply, so would my admit chances be similar for business?</p>
<p>FYI, Hopkins doesn’t have a business major for full-time, four year undergraduates. (The bachelor’s program in the business school is for students who transfer after 2 years of college and isn’t considered part of the traditional undergraduate programs at Hopkins). For people interested in business, there is an Entrepreneurship and Management minor as well as a Financial Economics minor, in addition to the Economics major.</p>
<p>Thanks, very helpful.</p>