I may have posted in the wrong location before, so please ignore that.
I am thinking of applying to Tufts ED.
I am stuck on whether to apply for BA in CS or Econ as first choice. Both are in College of Arts & Sciences.
I heard Econ is more competitive than CS, and so perhaps if I should go for CS if I’m equally inclined for either major??
However, I have B’s in my Math HL Class, but I do have a 790 in my Math with 1480 overall. So maybe if I were to apply Computer Science I may not even get in with a not so good math grade, so I’m better off applying for the more competitive Econ major because my grades are more in line with their standards? Is this true?
I don’t think your major matters that much. You apply for the school of arts and sciences and no matter what major you choose, it should be the same since it is in the same school. You can always declare undecided. Also, your SAT is more than enough since I got a 1450 and still got in for the class of 2023 at the school of engineering.
@lookingforward You’ve gotta understand if I’m choosing between Econ and CS with my B in math HL (honors, high level whatever)… I’m pretty sure CS with look down upon it more than Econ relatively speaking, right? I know both need math, but I think CS does more. Wouldn’t you agree?
The catch here is, econ seems to be really popular, so maybe its actually not a good idea to go for econ?
Honestly I wouldn’t overthink the major you apply with. Aren’t Tufts students free to change majors within the school? Why not apply to the school of arts and sciences as undecided (both economics and CS are majors there)?
You need to choose the major where your record best shows your strengths overall and where you have relevant ECs. (Not to mention all the rest that matters in holistic.)
Is that CS? (High schools usually offer more obvious math-sci ECs.) If so, go for CS. You can still take econ classes.
The 790 puts you at the 75th percentile for M scores. Good. Otoh, the 690 drops you down to 25th percentile.
Econ needs both the humanities related skills and ranges into math. CS seems the logical choice, assuming you have the ECs.
@durban Absolutely not. I’ve heard more than one admissions officer from top schools say that they don’t pay much attention to the intended major because: 1) about half of applicants apply undecided and 2) of the applicants who apply with a projected major about half of them change their major while they are at college.
Unless it is a school where you apply by major (which I don’t believe is the case at Tufts) admissions officers fully understand that students are free to change their major once they get to campus. Many students do change majors for a variety of reasons (including but not limited to – they find they don’t love the subject they intially planned to major in, they weren’t doing well in the subject they planned to major in, they found another major they prefer, their long term goal change etc.)
I’ll be honest i was surprised my math score was so high and reading so low… i’m not a super math guy tbh… I actual love social science quite a bit.
It’s weird because although yes my ECs are leaning towards CS (Internship doing Software Engineering, Robotics Team Captain although with Robotics I did a crap ton of diplomacy, organization, planning to build the team up not just building robots so dont discount me there) I also did do things like Quiz Bowl Captain (History, Geography, Arts) and my personal statement is super social sciency about Geography. I was also part of this international academy where we did both science and economic research to solve global problems. So you couldn’t really discount me as not having strong ECs for Econ or CS don’t you think.
I recently made the change that Econ would be better suited to my interests (that’s why my ECs arent super reflecting it because it was ‘recent’) as I would enjoy it more , and be better at it as I have an A in Econ HL, while I have B in Math HL… However, I do want to minor or in a rare case double major with CS… it just comes down to what should I put down as my first preference in “Econ” or “CS”
My LORs is my robotics coach and my social science teacher
This is what I really want to know:
I just want to know with my current status how likely would Tufts accept me as CS?
How likely with Econ?
Now factor in that econ is competitive (its a very competitive major at tufts right?)… is it the same chances as getting accepted with CS now that the competitiveness is factored in?
I know there’s a lot of other things such as the essay, personal statement, but just just bare with me and answer those three questions if you can.
@lookingforward That’s the main thing i’m scared of: “balancing the class”
And the thing is i’m not ‘undecided’… i have decided i want Econ or CS, but more importantly I want to get in.
If Econ is over saturated and I’m cool with going CS then i need to know i should do that…
like you’re saying if they don’t really care about my major then o.k
Is CS not an impacted major? Is econ not an impacted major?
You can put both majors on the Common App. If there’s a Why this Major question, answer for both. You’re strong enough, EC-wise, in both. Adcoms may get past the B.
I’m not saying apply undecided or that they do not weigh major.
I’m saying that your experiences are strong in both. I think you’ve thought through both majors and their relationship to your experiences. You have a low CR score and that B (is this a current grade you could bring up or last year?) It’s a position where you can’t guess your chances with one or the other. Maybe you show both.
Thing is, adcoms may very well like this duality. You’ve pursued two sides, will explore more than one track in college. (That can be refreshing.) Make the decision separate from the B grade.
All this chance thinking is so iffy. You can’t second guess. So many factors will play, including geo diversity.
Tufts does not admit by major. It will make zero difference. They are not evaluating your competency in your stated major. Yes, they look at whether your stated major makes sense in the context of your application—you wouldn’t pass the smell test for a classics major—but beyond that, they are NOT deciding whether you qualify to major in computer science or economics.
Instead of obsessing about something that will make zero difference, you should be obsessing about what IS important to Tufts. That is fit. You must demonstrate that you are a great fit for Tufts University. Know what they are looking for.