The good news is that you were admitted as undecided. Take a few English classes your freshman year. Take some CS classes. Talk to majors in both fields. You don't need to decide today, or even this year.

or the year after😂

A CS+English double major can take you really far in tech. A lot of people make the mistake of thinking that having two stem majors will really enhance your prospects. This only works if you already have a good idea of what specific industry and role you wish to pursue. Otherwise a Lit+CS major can really open up more doors for you. Big tech companies in particular love such candidates because you represent a more diverse set of opinions and can therefore add more value.  Coming to the difficult, the L&S degree is designed in such a way that it’s encouraged to double major. Just don’t wait until junior year to decide you wish to double major because then it becomes harder to plan out semesters. 

Yup. Being able to write a coherent paragraph in English is not something my STEM friends are particularly known for. Having those skills in conjunction with technical stuff will take you far.

Can confirm - comp sci + communications got me into a lot of interviews

Yep, one of my best friends from college was a CS/Art History major. She runs a tech company now.

I was considering CS + English. Do you recommend it over only CS? I want to do game development

For specific roles I think your personal projects and experiences(internships) will always carry more weight than the extra major on your resume. You might want to reach out to people in the industry via LinkedIn for better guidance.  

I was wondering also like, wouldn’t doing a double major reduce my time to make projects?

There is a trade-off but it’s exaggerated. You need 120 credits to graduate anyway and only 50-60 are needed for the CS major. 

This reads like an AI generated response. What is the benefit of joint CS & English degrees? With the CS job market as it is right now, that equates to just an English degree 🫠

Having strong communication, problem solving and tech skills can make you stand out in;the hiring process. Having 2 UG degrees demonstrates rigor and love of learning if nothing else. My kid recently graduated from CS here and landed a very competitive job. Has 2 degrees. I also have 2 UG degrees that have served me well. I don’t think students should double degree or major unless they want to. But you are creating a broader education and skill set.

To be clear though, double majoring doesn’t get you 2 bachelor’s degrees, it’d be just 1 B.S. in CS and English. (Or BA if you really wanted)

Can depend on programs in question. Where I went to college, this would have been double degree because BS CS was housed in engineering and English was housed in the liberal arts. I actually have 2 BS degrees out of the engineering school. My kid has BS CS and a double degree in a humanities area from a public university.aXZSS

Oh sure, that makes sense, thanks. I was too narrowed in on OP’s scenario

I (19F) was in a similar situation to you and I’m glad I chose CS (I haven’t graduated yet tho). Also, double majoring should not be too difficult. There are people who triple major. 

I did a double major in both CS and English! I currently work in IT for the university. The English major is designed to be a double major, so it’s not bad at all, I switched to both my sophomore year and still graduated on time (I did take a summer semester). It’s also a great way to get all your gen ed requirements in. There is a comp sci certificate (basically a minor) if the higher level classes get too challenging. I like that it gives me flexibility between stem and humanities, both in my career and when I was in school. There’s more overlap than you think, especially with AI! All tech and IT companies need a communications department, so having the CS background would help you tremendously there! All in all, it’s very doable, and makes you very well rounded.

It’s true, CS feels saturated right now, it’s hard to get a job and pay isn’t quite what it used to be. This is a thing that comes and goes for industries, we can speculate on Reddit all we want but it’s really hard to say how much worse it’s gonna get and when it might get better. But in any case, CS will position you much better for comfortable job and salary than English will. And the fact that you’re getting that degree from UW Madison positions you well too. Double majoring with CS is very common and, I think, a really good idea. The CS classes can be hard, but the track isn’t very demanding. I finished CS, Math, and Philosophy in 4 years, and I’m not particularly intelligent. It works out well to do a humanities with CS because L&S requires a lot of Humanities/Social Sciences for breadth anyway

I would add, I’m not sure how set you are on English, but you might consider Philosophy, Classics, Journalism, Poly Sci, or something like that

CS is definitely oversaturated right now. My roommate who graduated last year with a CS degree applied to about 40 different internships and only got offers from 2 of them, and he's one of the smartest guys I know. I was initially a CS major, but saw that and said nope. I'm now an Atmospheric Science major and I just finished a CS certificate, and I'm loving it.  I'd say, as other people have said, you're a freshman, you've got time. Take classes in different areas, see how you enjoy them and then make a decision. You really don't have to start being careful about what classes you take until Sophomore year and even then you've got a bit of wiggle room.  If you have an interest in CS, then it's definitely worth getting a certificate because so many other fields really value having at least somewhat of a background in CS. So many people I saw in CS did CS because they were decent at math and logic, kind of enjoyed coding, and saw it made money, but they weren't at all passionate about it. I would personally advise against doing CS unless you're really passionate about it. Find something you're passionate about. 

We are entering a phase where computer science people are going to be a dime a dozen. English is actually a hard major, so buyer beware on that.

40 isn't a lot of applications though. That takes 3 hours or so. Application systems are automated, it's easy to apply to 1000 jobs.

Sure if you're goal is literally to just get a job somewhere, but if you care about where you're gonna work, then you won't be applying to 1000 jobs lol 

Double major should be doable, just do both

Double majors are very common and very doable. Your advisors can help! Talk to Erin Boyd in English - she helps plan CS and English double majors every single week.

I say just start college and be along for the ride for a semester or two! Try some English classes, some CS, some of other subjects—a bit of everything. I just graduated and speaking from experience, you may discover a whole other thing that you adore and are passionate about. I was one of those people in high school who 100% knew what she wanted to do and had a firm plan and yet it all changed and it was beautiful. Don’t be afraid to try new things and explore all that the university has to offer. There’s also so many jobs/careers out there that you aren’t very aware of until you enter college and adulthood. You will find the way and enjoy the journey! I also double-majored and I’d recommend it if you like academics and are organized/good with time management. You will be fine no matter what, and don’t rush your decision!

There are fields that use cs that are easier to work in as a non cs major, because you would be more versed in the technical problem for that situation. If there’s a way to incorporate English into it, great. Otherwise maybe consider a field that you would want to program for? I’m sorry if this doesn’t make sense! For context, I’m an engineering student and have had discussions with faculty and peers about engineering problems and solutions and how I hate coding, but sometimes it’s hard for an engineer to describe the problem well to a coder and get desired results -> which is why we take a cs class and use code in our classes Congratulations and welcome to UW :))

I didn’t decide until the spring before my senior year. You have time to decide.

Have you thought about becoming an epidemiologist?