<p>I'm interested in studying health policy and in Northwestern University.
I have a problem here though.
The School of Education and Social Policy matches my interest, and I think I can write a good Why Northwestern essay, but the school is so small that the admission looks really competitive. The school has only 300 undergraduates.
The Weinberg College is much larger and therefore picks more students, but I am not confident that I can write a good Why Northwestern essay if I apply for the College.</p>
<p>It depends on your enthusiasm and current level of dedication to the field of study that you wish to pursue. The reason that there are so few undergraduates at SESP is because many students do not realize that they want to pursue something unique in the school (they think SESP = teacher education), so NU likes to leave spots available for transfers. How does this relate to you and your enthusiasm? Expressing your interest and devotion to this vocation through extracurriculars (volunteering, etc) and essays. For example, I was accepted today to SESP under ED with what I would say slightly below average stats, but I had a lot of extracurriculars that aligned with my intended major (secondary education), had great letters of rec from teachers that I had asked to write about my beneficence to the university, and how I would make a good teacher. In addition, I clearly, repeatedly spoke of how devoted/committed to this vocation I was in unique ways, both in my common ap essay and the Why NU essay. Especially in SESP, being the smallest and often transferred to, they are looking for commitment. So if you are enthusiastic and committed, go SESP. Just remember that things can change and that just because I got accepted doesn't mean my solution is the right one.</p>
<p>I am not sure if SESP is harder to get in. Yes, the enrollment is small but maybe proportionally, not as many people apply? If the school has 300 undergrads, that means each class should have about 70-80 students. The freshmen class usually starts with only about 40 students however. Then it gets bigger by taking many transfers from other NU schools. I am not sure if they consistenly under-enroll (which would be great for you) or just want to leave some room for transfers.</p>
<p>FYI: average SAT score for SESP by year. The trend has been erratic, unlike the upward one for other schools. It's usually either the lowest or second lowest. The 2007 average surprised everyone.</p>
<p>Rits>Well, I'm dedicated to social policies, and my extracurriculars and my commonapp essay are toward my area of interest.
Sam> Thanks for the information!</p>
<p>I guess I should apply to SESP then.
Thanks everybody!</p>
<p>I'd go SESP, each school is relatively difficult to be admitted to. (ex: Weinberg has more room, but more people apply, ergo more competition) Go with what you're interested in, it'll be a better statement. :)</p>
<p>As far as the programs in SESP, the distribution requirements are the same (actually we have one less than Weinberg), and we have no language requirement.</p>