That's right. Incoming classes are showing an increasing interest in majoring in the sciences as opposed to the humanities. Apparently, this does not sit well with some humanities faculty members. One of them proposed a solution to this situation -- make the applicant's proposed field of interest a factor in the admissions decision. That way, new classes will have an equal number of students intending to majoring in the humanities and in the sciences.
Not only does this approach reek of narrow minded self-protection, it does not take into account the fact that most people change their majors -- especially those expressing an interest in the sciences.
It is usually not in the best interest of society to interfere with the time-tested process of supply and demand. Most interventions are a result of lobbying by people who have something to lose by the natural evolution of society to greater heights. And it would be naive to hold that students' choice of major is solely dependent on interests and beyond the realm of supply and demand. Regardless of what counselors will have us believe, the kinds of jobs that would be open to us upon majoring in a certain discipline does play a role in our choice of major -- especially in the sciences. To be a software programmer, it would help to have majored in computer science. To be a research biologist, it would help to have majored in biology. And it is inevitable that students factor this in when they make a decision about what to major in.
It is undeniable that society is increasingly dependent on technology to go about its everyday business. That calls for not only skills, which we are so very fond of talking about in the context of a liberal arts education, but also a certain amount of knowledge in the sciences. So society is willing to pay more for people who possess this skill and knowledge. This serves as temptation for students to gravitate towards the sciences, thereby meeting society's need for people capable of handling technology. That is how our economy works with regard to any commodity and knowledge is no different. And to artificially try to thwart this process by providing added incentives for people to major in the humanities is highly inefficient.
Who determines the proportions of people majoring in different disciplines? Nobody. These proportions are the product of continuous evolution throughout the history of education to meet society's needs for personnel. And freezing it in the current state, thereby precluding further evolution, would be short-sightedness. If our forefathers had chosen to follow this strategy, we would all find ourselves still studying mathematics and music.
Besides, the suggested solution does not take into consideration the fact that most people change their minds regarding their choice of major. This is especially true of those who come in intending to be science majors. I came in wanting to be a physics major. I moved on to mathematics, philosophy, biology, computer science and finally (finally?) settled on economics.
Moreover, the instant applicants get a hint that it is easier to get into Dartmouth if you express an interest in the humanities, I'm sure we'll have a lot of mathematicians trying to pass themselves off as artists. (Of course, the truly wise will anticipate this and will remain mathematicians because it will then be easier for mathematicians to get in.)
Who exactly benefits from actively attracting more humanities majors to Dartmouth? Not the College, since it will get worse students by denying admission to superior science students in favor of inferior humanities students in order to maintain the quota. Not the students, since the number of students Dartmouth makes happy by admitting remains the same. Not professors in the sciences, since there will be less teaching positions open to them in the long run than they otherwise would have had. It will help humanities faculty, since it will provide more positions and greater security than there otherwise would have been in the long run. Is it really surprising that it was a professor in the humanities who made the suggestion?
This is clearly an example of protectionism exhibited by people involved in an area that is threatened by the forces of supply and demand.
