Would CS + Linguistics be a good major?

College Majors Engineering Majors
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I want to apply for CS at UIUC, which is an incredibly difficult program to get into. They offer a joint CS + Linguistics major, which I want to put as my second choice. What kind of interests should a person have to pursue a CS + Linguistics major?How stable is a CS + Linguistics degree in terms of employment? Additionally, if anyone knows the difficulty level of being accepted into the CS + Linguistics program at UIUC, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks in advance for any responses.

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  1. Those who enter usually like machine learning and AI.
  2. Very stable. Computational linguists are highly sought after in the Silicon Valley tech scene, such as Google, Facebook, etc.
  3. Quite f***ing difficult to get in. U of I UC may have a high overall acceptance rate, but the Computer Science (and Engineering programs) are notorious for being some of the toughest programs to get into.

I’m also planning on doing this major combo at U of I too, lol.

Are you an Illinois resident?

3

Here is UIUC’s FAQ on second choice majors:
https://admissions.illinois.edu/FAQ/second-choice-major

If you enroll at UIUC, here are the criteria to change into CS or any related major:
https://cs.illinois.edu/admissions/undergraduate/transfer-students

1 Like
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@depressedcynic Yes, but keep in mind that CS + Linguistics is in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences therefore it will likely be slightly easier to get into than regular CS (which is in the College of Engineering). Also, I am indeed an Illinois resident. Are you? If so, are you in the Chicago metropolitan area or elsewhere?

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I’m from the suburbs of Chicago. I live near Glenview. How about you? @blackspiderman

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@depressedcynic Suburbs as well. Naperville.