Humanities or Science ?

Applying to College
1

I am a US citizen but I have been living in a different country for many years now I am starting my junior year in a few months. But right now, I am facing a major dilemma.
I have the option of choosing between two categories of subjects to study for the next two years: Humanities and Science.

If I choose to study Humanities, I will study the following subjects:

History
Political Science
Geography
English
Math
And maybe Computer Science

If I choose to study Science, I will study the following subjects:

Math
Physics
Chemistry
English
Computer Science

Now, I am interested in Humanities but if I choose to study Humanities then I will not be able to study any subject in Science. It’s not that I am not interested in Science but that I am more interested in Humanities. If I had the opportunity to study a Science subject along with Humanities, I would have done so but I just do not have that choice. I am probably also the first student in my school who wants to study Math with Humanities.

Where I live, Humanities is considered as an ‘easy’ stream which is usually chosen by students who are not good at academics. But I scored 95% in sophomore year and I am good at Science too.

My major concern is that US Colleges and Universities look at ‘rigour’ of the course load of the student and I am from a country which has very competitive applicants, usually from the ‘Science’ stream.

I am planning to double major in Computer Science and Political Science/Public Policy.

I also think that I will be able to score well on the SAT Subject Tests for Physics and Chemistry even if I do not choose to study Science so maybe it will help demonstrate my ability in Science?

So, what do you think? Which stream should I go for? I want to study Humanities but will that be a major disadvantage for me?

Also, I am planning to apply to the following colleges, if that helps :

Top Tier UCs
Occidental College
George Washington University
Emory University

These are my ‘dream’ colleges. I also have safety schools on my college list but do you think studying Humanities would be a major disadvantage for me if I want to get into these colleges?

2

I don’t think so. In fact, humanities departments are eager to enrol students because EVERYONE seems tot,hink that they must study CS or engineering. You should take the track you are interested in and do your best. You are not going to be dinged for sty during humanities over maths. GWU of course would be delighted with your poli sci courses. And colleges will be aware of whatever transcripts you send.

I think it is a fallacy that humanities are any less rigorous than maths and sciences. My son, who is a terrible writer and hates English, would certainly agree. Maths and sciences are only two branches of learning. Your records will be judyed on their merit, not on what your class mates did on a completely separate track.

3

I agree with @Lindagaf, humanities seems like the path for you. Three reasons here:

  1. You like humanities, and you're good at it.
  2. If your region is characterized by excellent STEM students, then being excellent in humanities will set you apart from other applicants, and that's a big bonus during admissions. You can easily find ways to demonstrate "rigor", by taking more AP's, or taking SAT subject tests. Outside competitions that will strengthen your application (assuming you stick to political science) include debate (policy, LD, public forum) and academic bowl.
  3. Like you said, you can self-study for the SAT subject tests for science, or maybe insert them as electives in later years. Don't worry so much about not being able to showcase your STEM talent. If it turns out you can't do it through classes or tests, enter some math or science competitions. AMC, AIME, USAMO, USAPhO, PhysicsBowl, Science Olympiad all come to mind.
4

OP lives in a foreign country and may not have access to those types of competitions. However, OP might have access to opportunities in the country he/she lives in, and colleges in the US will most likely be aware of those.

5

@bzhang42 and @Lindagaf thank you for sharing your insight.
Yes, I think I will go for Humanities and although I won’t have access to the competitions you mentioned, I think I can self study for the SAT Subject tests and, as @Lindagaf pointed out, take advantage of other opportunities available to me. :slight_smile:

6

You can self study for AP tests too, but I would just check on if that option is available where you live. It would require a proctor and a place to take the test. You can always enquire with College Board. A Humanities student would,probably do well on AP Lit, English, Psych, etc…

7

It’s worthwhile to mention that other countries also have similar competitions that parallel those which I listed above. Qualifying for any STEM Olympiad Exam (not even the Olympiad team) is significant on applications.

8

US universities generally expect high school students to have a well rounded base including both humanities and science. Neither path seems optimal for preparation to attend a US university.

Is early specialization in high school the norm in the country to that you live in?

9

I think it’s quite common. My British husband elected the math track in high school and that is pretty much all he did. He never even took a basic biology course. He did do English, history, etc…, but at the age of 15 he mostly just studied math. My niece and nephew elected the english track and chem track, and are now in college studying related majors.

10

Humanities would help you stand out as long as you’re good at it. Humanities + computer science sounds a terrific combination actually!!

11

To get an idea of what US universities expect high school students to have completed, here are the UC subject requirement for frosh applicants: http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/freshman/requirements/a-g-requirements/

12

@Lindagaf Yes, the option for self studying for AP tests is available here. In fact, I took AP Computer Science A exam this year and I am planning to take US Gov. and Politics, US History, World History and Calc BC next year.

@bzhang42 Yes, we do have Olympiad Exams here but we usually have to take them through our school. So, if our school does not conduct these Exams then we cannot take these exams.
When I was in middle school, I took these exams and also scored good ranks in National Cyber Olympiad, International Mathematics Olympiad and National Science Olympiad. I was the school topper and district topper in all of these exams and also got Gold Medals but when I began high school, our school stopped conducting these exams.

@ucbalumnus Yes, students have to decide in junior year which path they want to take.

:frowning:

BTW, Thank you for the link. I will be satisfying the a-g requirements either way.

13

wrt #7 and 10: International candidates are not judged by the same criteria as American candidates, but compared to the streams offered by their countries and their results wherein. Most countries “streamline” the last two years so that the students study highly specialized subjects in one field, and a handful of general education classes (or not) in a couple other subjects. It’d be very uncommon to have 4 years of each core subject, for instance. Definition of core subjects may be different - Latin or Philosophy Or Islam may be considered “core subjects”.

@CutieCherryPie: can you ask someone at your school whether they may be able to offer these exams again? It’d benefit all students to compete, and if a student won it’d be positive for the school.

14

@MYOS1634 No, I don’t think so. :frowning: Schools here focus mainly on the curriculum which they ‘have’ to teach and as far as I can tell, the main reason our school stopped offering these exams was that there was no ‘use’ in offering these exams according to them. I am from a really small city and schools here are VERY different from those in America.
I think even parents here would appreciate the fact that schools are focusing more on teaching students what they are supposed to learn instead of encouraging them to take such exams, especially in high school.
Also, the college admission process here is very different from America. It is solely based on academic performance in the senior year of high school and an entrance exam for colleges. So, even students are usually not interested in taking exams like these.

15

@CutieCherryPie You must be damn good at math to have gotten a Gold Metal in the IMO in middle school… :stuck_out_tongue:

Here in the US, certain high schools don’t administer these exams either, but those high school students have the option of signing up to take the exams at local universities or other high schools that will host them. Look around!

16

You might want to write your essay on your love of math. You obviously have a talent for it, and it could give you a legitimate way to mention your math awards in middle school. Unfortunately, middle school achievements are not listed on your college application in the US.

And/or if your counselor at school will be writing a recommendation for you, I would probably ask him/her to mention your talents in math. Given that you have to choose a track, and you want to study humanities, it seems justified that someone with authority should mention your competence in math also. I would definitely ask for that info to be included. The counselor could mention the awards from middle school, explaining that there was no opportunity in high school to continue that.

17

Note that strength in math is useful in humanities and social studies. Many social studies subjects make extensive use of statistics. Philosophy is a humanities major that requires considerable logical thinking that is similar to that used in math.

18

Any way you can register for competitions outside of your school ? Can you look up Math Kangaroo for instance ?

19

@DeeperBlue25 No, I don’t think I can do that. :frowning:
I found this on the official website of the organisation that conducts Olympiads in our country in its FAQ section :

Question - My school does not want to register for the Olympiads, but I am very eager to write the exam. Can I do it on my own?

Answer - We do not encourage individual participation. Students have to register through their schools only.

I will still try to look for other competitions which may be administered in other schools and for which I can register through another school. Thank you for your advice.

@MYOS1634 I searched for info related to Math Kangaroo in my country and turns out it is only administered in one region of our country and only students of that zone are allowed to participate.
:frowning:

20

@Lindagaf Thank you for the idea for the essay.

We do not have counselors in most of the schools here and usually the Principal of the school writes a recommendation for the students if they require one from a counselor. So, yes I can ask him to mention it but my main concern is Science right now because even if I choose to study Humanities, I will be able to study Math. So, instead of asking him to write about my achievement in Math, I can ask him to write about my achievement in Science. Thank you for the advice :slight_smile: