Brown is a famous Ivy League university that offers one of the most prestigious undergraduate experiences in the world. It is known as the creative Ivy, offering an academic experience that melds exceptional academics with a way of viewing the world that is grounded in an artistic mindset and approach to life. Lots of artists go to Brown, but far more students are drawn then because of the wide-ranging way of thinking that Brown teaches through their Open Curriculum. Brown receives over 40,000 applications for the first-year class annually, and admits under 2,500. The acceptance rate was just for the Class of 2029. It’s important to note, too, that Brown heavily prioritizes Early Decision applicants. For the Class of 2029, of the class was admitted Early Decision.
Along with a small handful of other top colleges in the United States, what most colleges refer to as ‘majors’ Brown calls ‘concentrations’ instead. Ultimately, majors and concentrations are the same thing, just different terminology. In this post, we’ll refer to the main undergraduate programs at Brown using their terminology.
The most popular concentrations at Brown are, according to , in the physical sciences. In sharing their choice of concentration, students spotlighted the belief that the physical sciences were the best path towards a secure career following graduation. In fact, over one-third of students at the time of the survey reported that they were concentrating in the physical sciences, primarily focusing on engineering, mathematics, physics, chemistry, and computer science. This was a increase in the number of student focusing their studies on the physical sciences since 2014.
Given that as many as one-third of all Brown undergraduates concentrate in just five areas, applying to Brown with the idea of pursuing one of the top five is a long-shot. The problem is that Brown can only assess your application, though, based on what you tell them. They take you, within reason, at your word. So if you say that you want to study engineering, they assess your application alongside all the other students interested in engineering. Standing out in the pool is tough, so we propose a different approach.
Now, to be clear, the strategy we will be proposing is not the same as lying or making things up just to get in. Your application must be authentic to you, but it’s possible the emphasizing a side of yourself that isn’t primarily focused on one of the top programs will increase your odds of getting into the university.
Ideally, you are less than half of the way through high school and have time to make bold changes to amplify particular pieces of your applicant profile, including taking particular courses or deepening into specific extracurriculars. If you have less time, there are still bold actions that you can take to strengthen your application. Below, we’ll break down the specific approach we advise for each of the top programs to increase your chances of getting into Brown.
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If you list one of the five top areas of concentration at Brown — Engineering, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, and Computer Science — as your primary prospective area of study at Brown, you make getting in much more difficult. We guide our students towards a smoother path to acceptance by tailoring their prospective area of academic focus to both set their sights on less competitive or more niche areas of interest while amplifying strengths and underlining their interests.
Instead of Engineering, do Social Analysis and Research
is an extremely competitive program at Brown, and the only students who get in with a focus on engineering are exceptional. It’s possible that you would fall into that group, but most students interested in engineering at Brown are passionate, curious, and capable, but haven’t created a new machine, invented a new process, or completed a long-term internship at an exceptional company. That isn’t because most applicants have done anything wrong. Rather, they are high school students with limited resources. Again, if that describes you it’s not that you have mis-stepped. You are simply human.
If you are an impressive student yet a normal human, you should seriously consider stating Social Analysis and Research as your prospective area of study. What drives you interest in engineering is probably related to problem solving. That same desire to untangle problems is at the core of the Social Analysis and Research program.
To strengthen your application with Social Analysis in mind and without completely striking out your engineering interests, add a history or culture course, continue getting exceptional grades, and pursue a research opportunity either independently or in support of a graduate student at a local university.
Instead of Mathematics, do Behavioral Decision Sciences
is another extremely competitive program at Brown, which means that standing out as an applicant is pretty tough. Obviously, Brown wants to see impeccable grades and scores. With mathematics, it can be tough to build a compelling program beyond those two metrics unless you have access to additional accredited math courses or expensive specialized summer programs. If you do have access to those things — awesome. But most students don’t.
For most students, they can take the hardest math courses at their school and add on some dual enrollment courses at the local community college, and still not jump off the page compared to other top applicants. This is why we recommend shifting your application to focus on a potential course of study in .
Your strong math grades will be crucial to an impressive application to pursue Behavioral Decision Sciences (BDS), but BDS offers additional ways to add color and nuance to your application that aren’t really relevant for a potential Brown student with a singular focus on mathematics. To prep for your application, add a psychology course (through school, community college, or accredited online), engage with an extracurricular that is relevant to psychology, philosophy, or neuroscience. Begin studying computer science if you haven’t already. You don’t need to be a whiz, so an online summer intensive through a coding bootcamp would work for this. Basically, round out your Brown application to make it stronger.
Instead of Physics, do Earth and Planetary Sciences
is the building block of all other sciences, and the Brown program is committed to both teaching and research to support elemental breakthroughs. Like with mathematics, applying for the physics program presents problems even for strong students because you can’t assume that you will ever have the highest grades of all applicants, the highest scores, or even the best outcomes in programs like Science Olympiad.
It is much easier to differentiate when you write your application with the program in mind. This isn’t necessarily because the program isn’t as competitive nor as popular, but rather because there are more ways to amplify your applicant profile in advance of pressing submit. Plus, all your high level math courses and extracurriculars will still strengthen your application.
We encourage our students to get a summer job as a science day camp for elementary school students, join or lead an environmentally-focused club as school, and build a passion for an issue related to our earth (or planetary science) that you can take action advocating around, building community for, or actively addressing in your community today.
Instead of Chemistry, do Education Studies
Like physics, Brown is a leader in the field not just because cool chemistry is happening on campus, but also because Brown is committed to training the next generation of chemists. The opportunity to participate in outstanding research in chemistry at Brown is especially exciting for applicants, and we understand why so many students are drawn to the program.
What we recommend, though, is actually focusing your application on a field that it is quite likely you have already engaged with because you care about chemistry: education.
The program at Brown hits the core of what Brown wants to be creating in their community on campus and throughout Providence, Rhode Island. Through the Education Studies program, Brown cultivates teachers and education professionals who are passionate, driven, and who care deeply about working with students of all ages. We advise our students select this program, continue doing everything they are already doing for Chemistry, and then also add on regular commitment to tutoring, working as a counselor at an educational summer program, and actively engaging in teaching younger students what you already love.
Instead of Computer Science, do Science, Technology, and Society
is one of the top majors (if not the top major) nationally, and students have been drawn to it for decades by promises of high starting salaries and job stability. We expect AI to shift this as entry-level jobs are being gutted all across the board, and especially in the computer science field where AI Agents are as good as junior coders and far cheaper. Brown is trying to roll with this by hiring new professors specializing in AI for the computer science program, but we also foresee the program having to adjust significantly to thrive through the times that we are in.
We are encouraging our students to embrace the way that the world of tech is changing by focusing their application on the program. This program bridges the humanities and the sciences. Students study the way technology across all fields is impacting the human race, and thinking through what comes next.
We especially love this switch because it doesn’t require you to stop doing the computer science that you love. It also doesn’t require you to add a ton of activities and classes that you have no authentic interest in. If you are passionate about code, you are definitely interested in the intersection of technology and society. So, continue coding but look for ways to connect what you are making to your peers’ relationship to technology. That could be an app that helps your friends, or running a hackathon for your school aimed at solving a community pain point. The most interesting additions to your application will be found at that intersection between the people you love and the tech that fascinates you.
If you are committed to applying with one of the top 5 concentrations as your primary area of interest, we recommend focusing in. For example, instead of just picking “physics,” you should select a program within physics like “.” Then, of course, you need to add extracurriculars and, when possible, courses to underline the authenticity of that interest.
Remember that the strategy for Brown is heavily grounded in the by their Open Curriculum. There are some programs at Brown, though, that don’t allow for flexibility. For example, which with fabulous and a moon shot for even the strongest applicants. Whether you want to aim for PLME or approach Brown with a more strategy-first approach, we can help. We are known for our creativity and strategic thinking.
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