Has anyone else had problems choosing a second choice major in the SLO application?
There is this note on the CSU impaction matrix for 2019-2020 admission cycle:
San Luis Obispo: Impacted for FTF and UDT in all undergraduate programs (and does not consider alternate majors).
Also on the SLO Website:
Selection to all Cal Poly majors is competitive and we have more qualified applicants than available new student spaces. Therefore, Cal Poly rarely considers alternate or ‘second choice’ majors. Choosing the major that best fits your educational goals is one of the most important decisions you can make as an applicant.
Maybe they have done away with the 2nd choice major for this application cycle. I would call admissions for confirmation.
I read that, too. A call might clear it up, thanks.
We had the same question a couple of days ago. If I remember correctly, the first message specifically said an alternate major for Computer Science at SLO must be selected, but then the selection box was shaded out. The screen froze up and that page wouldn’t come up again. If anyone gets clarification on this issue please post!
Just got off the phone with admissions and they confirmed that it is a known problem and don’t know when it will be fixed. Option 1 is to just submit it by clicking the decline to select alternate major. Option 2 is to wait for the fix.
@1mo1bo and @sbjdorlo: Does the alternate major work for any other campuses such as Cal Poly Pomona? Only asking since only a few CSU’s consider an alternate major in their admission decisions and CPP is one of them.
Good question and I don’t have an answer to that. I’ll let my student know that SLO is aware of the problem.
Thanks, @1mo1bo for the info.
I asked my son and he said the other CSU (Long Beach, Pomona, SDSU) did not ask for an alternate major. I have not looked at his application so I don’t know if maybe he missed it.
If they might fix it, you might want to wait.
My son was accepted to an alternate major two years ago. You never know.
I know that SDSU and CSULB do consider alternate majors so I would not expect to see the drop down for these campuses.
I did submit yesterday without alternate major and the confirmation E-mail from Cal poly said,
If you were not able to select an alternate major at the time you submitted your application and would like to add one, https://admissions.calpoly.edu/applicants/appchanges.html.
and of course I did it from the link.
Thanks so much for sharing this!
I just came back from touring Cal Poly today and a lot of people had this same question. The answer provided was lack luster. “The alternate major selection menu is broken. Wait to submit until it’s fixed.” I also can confirm that Cal Poly Slo does super score ACT for math and english only. This was something i was questioning for a very long time and couldn’t get a straight answer until today about.
@SaintPumpkin, we’re a little off topic, but that is because they super score across platforms. They only use Math and CR from the SAT and Math and English are the most comparable sections of the ACT. So, if you have a high English on ACT and high Math on SAT, that’s what they’ll use.
yes, emailed them and they said it was a software glitch being worked on by the vendor. they said to select no alternate major for now but you can go back and submit a change request when it’s corrected
@ttkk48 On your application, were you able to complete the supplemental section with short answers about awards, honors and presentations? It was an available option last year, but @lindalou7 cannot access it. Wondering if it is still an option this year.
It seems to be fixed. Was able to choose an alternate major today.
Can you choose CS as a second choice major? It seems you can choose CS as first choice and something else as second choice, but if you choose, say math, as a first choice, CS doesn’t come up as a second choice. Is that correct, does anyone know?
There is no way they would consider CS as an alternate if the applicant is not accepted as a Math major in the first place, so that it is why it is not an option.
I have a question about the supplement section where it asks for employment/job held and the # of hours. What’s the best way to answer that if you worked 20 hours/week for 8 weeks in the summer. The question asks for hours over a 12 month period.