Should I apply as a Science, Technology & International Affairs major or a Culture and Politics major for Georgetown SFS?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Georgetown University
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1

I’m planning to apply to Georgetown SFS, but I’m trying to decide whether it’ll increase my chances to apply as a STIA major or CULP major. I’m definitely more interested in CULP, but most of my accomplishments are in Stem activities. If I applied as STIA I would probably try to switch to CULP before my freshman year, but I don’t know if it’s worth it. For the record, I:

*Am a low-income Hispanic female (def stands out for a STEM major at least)

  • 3.74 gpa (rises to a 3.88/89 around my sophomore year and stays the same)

*no test scores (Covid)

  • Full IB student + 2 APS (4 and 5 test score) and several honors classes, + took high school classes in middle school (hence the low gpa))

*Have participated in TEAMS and TSA (stem-based extracurriculars) throughout high school, hold an officer position in TSA (TEAMS has no positions)

*best in state for TEAMS since 9th grade, have competed nationally since 9th grade (placed in top 10 in nation in 2017 but technically that’s a middle school accomplishment)

*Have placed third in state for several events in 2018 +19 for TSA, competed nationally 2018 +19 (competitions canceled in 2020, due to Covid)

*Officer and President of Amnesty International chapter at school since sophomore year (member count used to be roughly 20 people, but dropped significantly due to Covid)

*Officer of Beta Club

  • Significantly involved in community, multicultural, and interfaith outreach through my church, hold leadership positions there-- if I apply CULP, I’ll probably try and hype this part of my application up as much as possible, since it involved the most multicultural outreach, as well as a lot of complex ethical decisions that would be interesting to talk about

What do you think I should do? I really like Georgetown, but I know I’m not the most competitive applicant, and I want to increase my chances as much as possible. I also know STIA is a less competitive major. At the same time, I don’t want to end up somehow stuck with taking a major I’m not as interested in throughout freshman year.

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Sorry for the weird bullet pointing btw

3

You really should think about what you prefer. Honestly, there might be more opportunities if you go the STEM route. But if you prefer Culp make sure you have at least a few languages and have some idea of what you do job wise with your degree.
You’ll do better in the program which interests you most. Do you need to decide now? Can you transfer if you change your mind?

4

I’m thinking I’ll go the STEM route since it’s what I’ve been invested in for the longest time, it’ll (hopefully) have good job opportunities, I am interested in the subject, and I can always switch my major to CULP if I decide it’s not for me. Thank you for the advice!!

5

You don’t declare your major until sophomore year, and as far as I’m aware admissions doesn’t take your intended major into account – it’s more of an internal stats-tracking thing for them to see how many people changed interests vs stayed the same between application and major declaration. After all, most high schoolers have had only limited exposure to international relations, and it wouldn’t make sense to ask someone to choose between international political economy and international politics, for example. I’d say go with whichever one you think fits your current interests most. Once you’re on campus and have the opportunity to take some IR classes/talk to current STIA and CULP majors, you’ll be in a much better position to make that decision