从今天开始，我将会解答读者在美国大学申请过程中的问题及疑虑。欢迎大家留言。

今天解答的问题：

1. 除了成绩EC什么才能让一个candidate脱颖而出呢？比如是不是EC能体现一条主线比较好？就是能和你填在commonapp上的intended major联系起来？

2. 如果double major的话workload会不会很大?

3. 我比较担心学一个social science学科毕业后好不好找工作的问题...学校有没有那种fair之类的，像sociology psychology这种专业好找工作嘛...都可以做什么？

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In terms of applying to competitive universities and colleges, I firmly believe in coherence. From my interaction with friend here, I can see that everyone has a personal “brand image” / unique aspect in terms of personality, individuality, etc. This comes in many different forms, including intellectual curiosity, extracurricular passions, leadership, etc. My friends and I concluded that “we are all ‘weird’ in some ways”, haha. It’s a tough question, but as you might have heard, there is not a single way to define qualities that help one stand out in the pool of applicants. Having a coherent story that ties with your intended major / current extracurricular engagements definitely is significant. You need to think very carefully about what defines you as a person, leader, student, friend, etc. Honestly, most students at my college would end up majoring in something other than the one(s) stated in Common App back in high school. 

I would say that for my Common App, I highlighted the core of my personality and linked all aspects of it to the entire package (e.g. the IB courses I chose, my extracurricular engagements, leadership positions, Personal Statement, college-specific Supplement). Have a holistic picture is crucial.

If you choose to double major, the workload will still be manageable, I’d say, but certainly challenging. There is a certain number of credits required for graduation, so on average, we take 4 full-credit courses each semester. I encourage you to consult your advisor in the 1-to-1 sessions. 

Economics is very popular. It is relatively easier to find employment opportunities with an Econ major. A book on career planning that I would recommend (though you don’t have to look into this yet) is “What Color is Your Parachute?”. It gives you a better idea of potential careers and the job application process, which I find is not that dissimilar to the college application process.

Regarding your question on career development, we have a Career Development Office that offers both internship and job opportunities off and on-campus. I would say that at this point, do not worry too much about career paths / job opportunities. At this moment, I am still exploring the resources my college has to offer, but I can assure you that there are many job fairs and info sessions. We have an internal website that is dedicated to this area. This really changes all the time for many students, including me, and my college encourages students to explore everything. There are many Sociology / Psychology-related opportunities in the area. With a degree in Sociology / Psychology, you could become an educator (depending on your personal interest), or a sociologist / psychologist… Since I haven’t taken courses in Sociology or Psychology (yet!), I don’t have too much to say here, but in general, there are plenty of opportunities although you could potentially argue that the startup salary is not as high as in fields including Computer Science…