For many high school seniors applying to colleges in California, choosing a major feels like making a lifelong commitment. The anxiety is understandable: with UC acceptance rates reaching record lows, students worry that picking the "wrong" major could derail their dreams entirely. But is your college application major really set in stone?
In our recent Dewey Smart Coach Spotlight featuring Mia Avila, a second-year UCLA student who successfully pivoted from pre-med biology to cognitive science with a computation specialization, we gained valuable insights into how major changes actually work at the UCs—and why you shouldn't stress too much about your initial choice.
🎓 Before you dive in, watch our “Secrets to California College Admissions: Mia's Story to UCLA” webinar, hosted by our CEO, Michael Gao and a UCLA Student Leader Mia Avila. In just 50 minutes, you’ll get a sharp understanding of rocking your UC applications
✅ The Truth About Your Application Major
✅ How Major Changes Actually Work at UCLA
✅ Changing Between Schools
When completing college applications, high school seniors often agonize over major selection. This anxiety is particularly intense for UC applicants, where the perception is that certain majors are more competitive than others.
As Mia recalls from her own experience: "When you're going into your college applications, you shouldn't be so focused on having everything planned out because it's not realistic and it's not reliable."
This pressure stems partly from a misunderstanding about how binding your application major actually is. Many students and parents believe that the major listed on your application represents a contract of sorts—that changing it later would be either impossible or extremely difficult.
The reality, as Michael from Dewey Smart explains, is quite different: "A lot of people think that the college application is some sort of contract that you're signing. It's like if I told the college I'm incredibly passionate about biology, I must study biology."
In truth, "the second you get to college, nobody remembers your college applications. They're locked in a file somewhere for record keeping purposes. The professors don't read your applications, most of the faculty, all the faculty don't."
This perspective reframes how we should think about selecting a major for applications. Rather than stressing about committing to a lifetime career path at 17, students should consider a more strategic approach.
Since your application major isn't a lifelong commitment, how should you approach selecting one? The Dewey Smart team recommends thinking about it in terms of narrative coherence with your existing experiences:
"It's often about what's a major that your resume fits? What's the most strategic major that you can pick, the story that you can weave, that gets you into college, has the highest chance of getting you into college. Because once you get into school, then you can switch to whatever you really want to do or really want to explore."
This approach acknowledges the reality that admission officers are looking for alignment between your stated interests and your demonstrated experiences. If your activities and achievements align well with biology, applying as a biology major creates a coherent narrative, even if you might ultimately pursue something else.
Mia's own experience perfectly illustrates this flexibility. She entered UCLA as a pre-med biology student, but her path quickly evolved:
"I applied as a pre-med student. I came into UCLA as a biology student. After taking a few classes here, after getting a little bit more exposure and networking and taking on new opportunities within the medical sphere, I realized, you know, this isn't for me. And that's OK."
By her second year, Mia had completely transformed her academic trajectory: "I completely switched my major from biology to cognitive science. Took on a new minor, data science engineering, switched from pre-med to pre-law, and I'm a lot happier and I feel a lot more secure."
Her story demonstrates how college itself becomes a journey of exploration and discovery—exactly as it should be.
One of the most illuminating aspects of Mia's experience is her explanation of how major changes actually work at UCLA, information not readily found in brochures or on websites.
"We have this thing called new bruin orientation or new student orientation... a few weeks before school actually starts and you come and you're with students from your school. So, of course, I came in as a bio major, so I was in like the College of Letters and Sciences. But once you're at the orientation, you are able to switch to any major in letters and sciences that day."
This remarkable flexibility means that students can pivot before even taking their first class: "You can be a bio-major and say, I want to switch to chemistry, and they will do it right then and there."
The ease of changing continues throughout your academic career: "Even throughout your first year, you can still switch majors. Second year, you can still switch majors, but it's gonna be a lot easier for you to switch majors as long as you're staying within the same school."
While changing majors within a college (like Letters and Science) is relatively straightforward, moving between different schools within the university (such as from Letters and Science to Engineering) presents more challenges:
"If you're switching from, let's say, bio to English, that may be a little bit harder and there will be some prerequisites that you're gonna have to fill out."
Michael elaborates on this distinction: "If you decide to enter school as an economics major and you now want to switch to an engineering school, which is a separate school, there are sometimes prerequisites that you need to take in order to do so."
For students planning a potential switch between schools, strategic course selection in the freshman year becomes crucial: "You probably want to make sure that you take those prerequisites anyway in your freshman year of school."
Some students apply with a specific plan to gain admission through a less competitive major, then switch to their actual desired major once enrolled. While possible, this approach carries risks:
"If you try to be too smart about college admissions, it's like 'I'm gonna sneak into UCLA by being a physics major, then transfer to be an engineering major.' You're gonna be risks associated with that approach."
Michael advises against this strategy in most cases: "You should only do it if you think this is the only way possible you're gonna get into your intended program. And in most cases, that's just not true."
Instead, he recommends focusing on strengthening your application for your true desired major through enhancements like relevant internships or improved essays.
Perhaps the most valuable insight from Mia's journey is that college should be a time of exploration. Her experience conducting research in three different labs—studying autism, artificial intelligence, and cancer psychology—demonstrates how diverse experiences can help clarify your true interests.
"A lot of the research experiences that I've been able to get were through alumni, because we have an alumni portal at UCLA that you're able to just log in with your UCLA ID, and you're able to chat with alumni, and they can easily get you into research labs here."
These opportunities allowed Mia to discover interests she hadn't previously considered, ultimately leading to her pivot from pre-med to pre-law with a focus on intellectual property—a path that better aligns with her interests in technology and STEM.
Based on Mia's experience, here's what current high school students should remember:
For more strategies on UC admissions, see our article on Cracking the UC System Code.
The college application process can feel restrictive, with high schoolers pressured to define their entire futures at 17 or 18. But as Mia's story illustrates, your application choices are starting points—not permanent decisions.
While strategic major selection matters for admissions purposes, students should take comfort in knowing that colleges generally provide reasonable pathways to change direction as their interests evolve. At UCLA and other UCs, these pathways are often more accessible than many students and parents realize.
This flexibility serves as a reminder that college is fundamentally about discovery and growth. The most successful students may not be those who stick rigidly to plans made in high school, but rather those who remain open to new possibilities and pursue their evolving interests with passion and commitment.
Ready to navigate the UCs competitive admissions landscape with confidence?
Looking for personalized guidance on selecting the right major for your UC application? At Dewey Smart, our coaches—including current UC students like Mia—can provide insider insights on strategic major selection. Contact us to learn more about our college counseling services.
