<p>My son applied to CALS for bioengineering. He got a call from admissions during the process and they asked him if he would be interested in other majors such as biology ( which is a good fit based on his interests). My son replied yes, that interested him too, as he is considering several majors. </p>
<p>His acceptance letter came to CALS but it does not say anything about a major. Does this mean he can pursue either major now that he is in?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance</p>
<p>I would assume he would decide a major when he gets to the college this fall.</p>
<p>I’m read somewhere that we declare majors at the end of sophomore year</p>
<p>Does any one know for sure? I know each college can be different within the University.</p>
<p>I was curious about that too, since I applied to A&S and put down “Biological Sciences” as my main interest; then got a tad worried that I’d be 100% locked into that choice when the department of Bio sent me a letter along with my admit packet. </p>
<p>However, A&S peeps get 2 years to choose their major. [Thinking</a> About a Major](<a href=“http://as.cornell.edu/information/orientation/major.cfm]Thinking”>http://as.cornell.edu/information/orientation/major.cfm)</p>
<p>For CALS…well. Their website is a maze. But I found this ([How</a> to Change Major and/or Advisor](<a href=“http://cals.cornell.edu/cals/current/advising/services/majch.cfm]How”>http://cals.cornell.edu/cals/current/advising/services/majch.cfm)) which directs you on how to change majors if you find yourself wanting to pursue something else, so nothing is totally set in stone. I imagine that they won’t make you decide immediately, but I couldn’t find a page that said exactly when CALS students declared their majors.</p>
<p>I’m a senior animal science major/bio minor in CALS which is the major I applied to.
A&S students and Engineers have to declare a major whereas in CALS you’re automatically in the major you applied under and your adviser will be assigned in that department. I’m not sure how you’d go about determining what major they think he is now, but he should definitely be able to change (or even double major or major/minor) somewhere down the line. My adviser also preenrolled me in a typical pre-vet animal science freshman schedule, but every student can change their schedule during add/drop in the fall.</p>
<p>Thank you for the lnks and for the information!<br>
Sounds like my son needs to call on Monday and find out what major they put him in. If he wants to start on the BEE path, he could do that even if they did put him in as a bio major, correct? He is still exploring and is undecided so following the BEE path may keep his options more open.</p>
<p>TKsmom: I also sent you a message in the other thread re: difficulty of Engineering. Anyway, my son actually was accepted to CALS in the Information Science major. Over the summer he sent an email requesting a switch in major to Environmental Engineering and gave reasons why he wanted to change. In a few weeks, he heard back that he was accepted to that major. It was right before they had to do their online schedule for the fall. Sometimes kids are only allowed to take certain classes if they are in that major, at least they get first priority. If your son in really interested in going the BIO Eng. route/ and perhaps mechanical, then he would need to transfer to the COE. It was an easy process for my son to transfer because he had taken all of the classes he needed for that major, and had gotten pretty good grades. I would definitely check with his advisor first if he is serious about engineering.</p>
<p>If he keeps his grades up and takes the required courses he should be able to switch in.</p>
<p>Bioengineering is available in CALS and my understanding is that the program between the colleges is basically identical, however if you are an in state student, keep in mind that you will pay significantly lower tuition if you are in CALS than you will in the enginnering college.</p>
<p>Cornellan is correct. However, if your son is thinking he want to do Mechanical Engineering, he can only major in that if he is enrolled in the Engineering School. That is what my son did, and as soon as he transferred (this past spring) the tuition increased like $17,000. However, we did not have to pay any more money since they covered it with a grant.</p>