My son has got admission in UF and is interested in pursuing Computer Science and had put CS in the Common App for the major. From the CS undergrad website (Undergraduate - Computer & Information Science & Engineering), I see the following:
Freshman applicants do not apply to the department at the undergraduate level, but instead apply to the University of Florida in general. All accepted freshman students are required to attend PREVIEW. At PREVIEW, students can declare the major of their choosing. Students will complete “Critical Tracking” requirements during their first year to ensure academic success in the major.
Is there any additional step to admission into Computer Science or do you just have to declare you are majoring in CS at PREVIEW and make sure you maintain good grades in the “Critical Tracking” requirement courses? At many public universities, it is not easy to register for lower division courses, particularly in CS due to the popularity.
Apologies if these sound very basic questions. Since my son will be an OOS student, at the moment we do not know anyone at UF or who has gone there to ask these questions.
I don’t have knowledge specific to CS, but the process is the same for all majors, except maybe those which you have to audition and interview during the application process. Your student can declare or change major at Preview, where he will meet with a counselor and register for classes for the Fall.
Expect that he will not get the exact classes that he wants, it is normal. There are opportunities to switch classes later in the summer and during the drop/add period the first week of the semester. You have to be somewhat flexible in regards to when you take each particular class. Remember, UF does this every year with thousands of students, so it may be new to you and you may think that it is a big problem, but the counselors can guide you through it, they have seen it before.
2 points on the counselors: 1. you have to be proactive while at UF and make appointments early and drive the conversation. Nobody will reach out to your son to make sure he knows what classes he needs to take. 2. He should take the time to understand the General Ed requirements, what classes he should get credits for based on APs/IBs, and what classes he needs for his major. There is usually an 8 semester model plan on the department’s website that helps with planning.
There will be stressful moments, but UF wants your son to graduate in 4 years or less, so they will help if you seek it out in a timely manner. After the first semester, don’t wait until a week before registration to make an appointment with the counselor. That will just add to the stress and he will have to wait in line at the counselor’s office for, potentially hours, to see him/her.