You probably recognize that grades and curriculum matter for college admissions. You may be tracking the changing landscape around standardized test scores. But, did you know that at some colleges, students aren’t assessed just on what they did in high school, but also what they want to do as college students? Why and how does an intended major affect college admissions? What does this mean for building a balanced college list?
Colleges have institutional priorities that affect admissions decisions. Institutional priorities might include keeping revenue flowing into the college, staying within the annual financial aid budget, maintaining a target ratio of men and women on campus, or educating state residents or even local students. There can also be an interest in bringing in enough students to keep small programs going, while not over-enrolling other programs.
Direct Admission Programs
Direct admission for certain programs is one way that colleges ensure that they don’t have too many students in a program than they have capacity to teach. Under direct admission, the student indicates an intended major when they apply. There application is compared with those from other students wanting that major, not against all students applying for the college. Successful applicants are not only admitted to the college, but into the major program as well. A competitive program might have higher gpa and test scores than the general profile for admitted students. Direct admissions is often used for high demand programs, including engineering, computer science, and business; but low capacity programs like nursing, performing arts, and professional flight can also be direct admission.
The student’s choice of major can affect college admissions if a specific program requires students to demonstrate an interest in the subject as high school students. For example, prospective nursing students may need to document volunteer experience in healthcare, and engineering students might want to have done STEM activities. Academic requirements often differ by program. Colleges of Engineering and Business Schools often expect students to have taken calculus in high school or be ready to take calculus as freshmen.
A direct admission program might also expect students to have specific high school coursework. For example, students applying to engineering programs may be expected to have taken calculus and physics, , and business students may need to show a prior interest in business as well as a high school calculus course.
Something to realize is that direct admission programs may have lower admissions rates than the college as a whole, may have higher academic profiles for incoming students, and may not have viable pathways for students admitted to the university for other majors or as undeclared/undecided students.
Case Study in How Major Affects College Admissions: University of Washington Computer Science
University of Washington’s Computer Science program is an example of a highly competitive, direct admission program. This 2022 article from Geek Wire describes how demand outpaces seat availability at the UW Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering. In this case, pursuing a computer science major affects admissions by making it much less likely that these students will be admitted to the university.
From the Geek Wire article: “Some 7,587 freshman applicants to the UW for next year picked the Allen School as their top choice for a major — more than economics, political science, nursing, and mechanical engineering combined. The program attracts more students than any other UW major, and interest has increased more than 400% over the past decade.”
“But the Allen School has room for only 550 new undergraduates in the fall. Freshmen can apply for direct admission to the program… It’s highly competitive: only 7% of direct admission students were offered a spot in the Allen School, compared to 52% of applicants to the UW’s College of Engineering, which houses the Allen School.”
It’s even more challenging for students who are not Washington state residents, as the tables below indicate. Not only does the choice of major affect college admissions, but so does state residency. The overall admissions rate for out of state students to University of Washington was 51%, but for Computer Science/Computer Engineering, that drops all the way down to 3%.
3-year University of Washington Average Admit Rates by Residency
| Residency Type | Admit rate |
|---|---|
| Washington residents | 60% |
| U.S. nonresidents | 51% |
| International | 44% |
Source University of Washington, Spring 2022
Direct to College
Engineering Admit Rates, Fall 2021
| Residency type | Admit rate |
|---|---|
| Washington resident | 53% |
| U.S. nonresident | 33% |
| International | 41% |
| Overall | 40% |
Source University of Washington, Spring 2022
Direct to Major
Computer Science/Computer Engineering Admit Rates, Autumn 2021
| Residency type | Admit rate |
|---|---|
| Washington resident | 27% |
| U.S. nonresident | 3% |
| International | 4% |
| Overall | 9% |
Source University of Washington, Spring 2022
What Should Students Do?
First, realize that average admissions rates may be mathematically correct but misleading, when they don’t categorize by major or program. Search for program specific information. This may be a good question for college visits or college information events.
Second, understand that admission to a specific program at a specific university depends greatly on factors outside the students’ control, like the size and popularity of the program. You may need to decide if attending a specific college is more important or if studying a particular major matters more.
Third, create a balanced list that include colleges that don’t use direct admission for your intended major or that have viable exploratory options for freshmen. Don’t confuse popularity with quality. Starting with a broader college list helps give you more choices when admissions decisions are in.