Certainly, that would be challenging and not ideal to switch, but I think he’s nervous about committing to a field right now, with so many interests and talents.
Free tution is free tuition and he loves NY.
UMD is an awesome school.
I think the twoinanddone has it right. Look at each school - the possible majors and ability to transfer.
Listen, many kids go undecided or will change majors - some are harder to get into later than others - but all schools have this option - these kids are 18.
UMD is a top notch engineering school btw.
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I’ll have him look into the process of switching majors.
I think I need to be more specific: he is convinced that engineering wouldn’t really be an option at Fordham.
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The program at Fordham is 3+2 with another university. It usually makes more sense to complete one of the pre engineering majors (Engineering physics, Cs&Informatics, Math&applied math) then get a Master’s degree, especially when the 4 years are tuition-free and the extra 2 years result in a Master’s degree (v. a BS in a 3+2 program).
Yes, it is a 3+2 program for engineering at Fordham, not ideal and much better options at the other schools for engineering.
If he wants engineering, I’d suggest starting in engineering at one of the other schools and then transferring out to political science or music. If he wants to start in another subject and then maybe transferring to engineering, Fordham might be as good a choice as any because the transfer into engineering may require the 5th year.
@twoinanddone and @MYOS1634 , I saw the 3+2 engineering program and pretty much hate it :). But it’s possible to get just a 4-year engineering degree at Fordham, right? Very good point about the easier path of transferring OUT of an engineering degree then INTO. Free tuition is very, very enticing. I hope things will become clearer after our visit to both campuses next week.
No, you can’t major in Engineering at Fordham.
In addition, it’s extremely difficult to double major in Engineering and, say, poli-sci or music. Engineering is sequential and requires specific classes each semester, so it’s hard to add electives that you’d add up to make a minor in something else. The reason it’s very hard to get into Engineering after freshman year is that if you’re not taking the required classes each semester, you’re off sequence/delayed.
A good alternative for him at UMD or Fordham would be to major in one of the possible pre-engineering majors (CS&Informatics, Engineering Physics…) + one of his other majors of interest or both interests as “clusters” or minors, then decide. Those majors would be more flexible and still allow for a Master’s in Engineering if he wishes to go that route.
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I appreciate all this info!
I went to school with a woman who wanted to be an engineer but who also wanted to take a lot of other classes in college. She just planned right from the start to take 5 years (so much easier and cheaper to do in our day). She took piano and mythology and English and enjoyed them all. CU didn’t have minors in those days and if she’d double majored she would have needed 150 credits or more (A&S and engineering were different colleges), so she just explored what she wanted and didn’t worry credit.
My daughter is an engineer and needed 131 credits to graduate. I think 15 credits were the ABET requirements (2 writing courses, a world history) and at the very end, her last semester, I think she had 4-6 credits just to complete the 131 (took tennis and Spanish). All the other things were engineering-ish. Her school had a lot of music for fun activities (a pep band, a small orchestra with professors and staff, musicals) but most students did those for fun, not for credit.
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Updates! Everyone has been very helpful!
Son and I visited Fordham and UMD last week (2 flights, 2 nights, 1 train ride).
At Fordham, it was a self guided tour outside (it’s tiny, but bigger vertically). Son wondered if it’s too small to find his crowd. I also talked to a current pre-law student there. NYC was intoxicatingly beautiful, son loved the energy (he’s been to NYC before).
After dinner in DC (also beautiful, much calmer and grandiose), we got a tour from a current student of UMD who was fantastic and provided us so much valuable, honest info. Son was personally invited by the music director to attend their choir rehearsal, very personable and special. Gorgeous, immense campus. While the surrounding nature was beautiful too, we got an impression that the area around it is not as vibrant as he would like, no real collège town (our point of reference is CU Boulder, high plank), and not as conveniently accessible to DC as advertised, although still an enticing draw. I think he was dismayed to hear that students take the shuttle or Uber to the three bars, the vibe he was trying to avoid.
After both tours, he said he still didn’t know! At the airport, he said he was leaning Fordham.
He almost officially committed on Friday, and on Saturday morning CU Boulder School of Music reached out to him via text and offered a large additional scholarship that brought COA to only $3k more than Fordham! Exciting, but back to debating! Boulder would be a completely different path: Coveted Aerospace program plus Music major. We suggested that he should choose Boulder if he would LOVE to go into engineering and work super hard to earn two diametrically opposing degrees, but that it wouldn’t be a place to discover yourself and search for what he wants to do (most likely).
Last night, he committed to Fordham! We talked about this long journey, that wasn’t all laurels, but still so rewarding and humbling, and allowed him to feel accomplished and wanted. I feel light-headed just thinking about the exciting direction his life is going! Now to celebrate graduation! 
:mortar_board:
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Congrats to you. Sounds like two wonderful opportunities.
We all feel bad when we say no - yet we can only go to one so we have to say no 
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Congratulations! 
What is he going to major in (since he can’t do Engineerin at Fordham)?
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Thank you! He’s Poly Sci on a Pre-Law track, wants to add Theater or Music minor down the road :).
Excellent! And Fordham is grear for those.
Dont forget to return and post his impressions/experience.
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