Vanderbilt's five undergraduate schools: Where fall 2027 applicants belong

Vanderbilt now has five undergraduate schools for the fall 2027 admissions cycle. Students who apply for fall 2027 are the first entering class who can choose the new College of Connected Computing, or CCC.

That change makes a familiar question harder: Which Vanderbilt school should you apply to? The answer is not "whichever one seems easiest." Vanderbilt does not publish a current school-by-school rule that makes one route a shortcut. A school that does not fit the rest of your record creates a different problem. Your classes, activities, and stated interests should make the choice believable.

The practical answer is this: choose the school that should own your primary degree. You can take courses across Vanderbilt. You may be able to add a second major or minor later. But your home school sets the core, assigns your advisers, and controls which major can be marked as your primary one.

For fall 2027 applicants, the five choices are:

• College of Arts and Science.
• School of Engineering.
• Peabody College of Education and Human Development.
• Blair School of Music.
• College of Connected Computing.

Vanderbilt's current academics page lists all five. Its At A Glance page says CCC begins admitting students for fall 2027. If an older guide still says Vanderbilt has four undergraduate schools, it is out of date.

What does your Vanderbilt school choice actually control?

Your school choice matters more than an intended-major box. It is not a four-year prison sentence.

Vanderbilt's form asks for a school of choice. After you submit, the MyAppVU portal now lets students update that school choice. Once enrolled, your home school sets the degree plan you must finish. A second major from another school can add a field of study. It does not quietly replace your home school's degree rules.

The major question works in a distinct way at each school. Arts and Science gives students room to explore before they declare. Engineering has a shared first-year base and lets a new student be undecided within the school. Blair students complete a separate arts review, even if they settle on a music major later. Some Peabody teaching programs add their own essay. CCC now gives computing-first students a home of their own.

This is why "I might study psychology and computer science" is not enough to pick a school. You need to decide which subject should shape the degree. Are you a psychology student adding computing? A computer scientist using code to study human behavior? Or a future engineer building a new system? Those students may take some of the same classes. Their required courses will not be the same.

College of Arts and Science: Start here for liberal arts and sciences

Arts and Science is the natural home for students whose main subject sits in the humanities, natural sciences, math, or social sciences. That includes economics, English, history, math, neuroscience, political science, psychology, and sociology. It also fits students who want a broad base but are not ready to name one field.

For students who enter after fall 2025, the old AXLE core is no longer the right guide. The current A&S College Core calls for 11 courses and at least 16 capacity tags. The five areas are written and creative expression; systemic and structural reasoning; cultural and interpretive investigation; data literacy and computational thinking; and ethical and social engagement. Students also take courses in the humanities and fine arts, social and behavioral sciences, and math and natural sciences.

That structure is a real fit clue. Arts and Science works well if you want the core to pull you into many ways of thinking. A future doctor can major in English or neuroscience while taking pre-health courses. A future policy analyst might pair economics with history. Pre-med is not its own school or major. Vanderbilt's pre-professional guidance says pre-health students may choose any college major.

Pick Arts and Science when a liberal arts field is the center of the plan, not just because you are unsure. If every example in your form involves building devices, testing a prototype, and advanced math, Engineering may tell the cleaner story. If your record is built around teaching, learning science, or how groups work, look closely at Peabody instead.

Students comparing broad school structures may also find our guide to what the University of Pennsylvania is known for useful. Penn and Vanderbilt both let students study across schools. Yet home-school rules still matter at both places.

School of Engineering: Build systems, devices, and technical solutions

Engineering is for students who want it to anchor the degree. Vanderbilt has biomedical, chemical and biomolecular, civil and environmental, electrical and computer, and mechanical engineering. The school also offers Engineering Science through its Division of Engineering Science and Management.

The first year has a shared technical base. Vanderbilt's current Engineering first-year page lists chemistry, math, three Introduction to Engineering modules, and a Liberal Arts Core course or elective. Students who enter without a set engineering major get an adviser to help make that choice. The common start does not mean each major has the same four-year plan. Later requirements and course sequences become much more exact.

Your high school work should make that load seem real. Take the strongest math and lab science courses you can handle. Make sure your application shows why you want to use them. "I like technology" is too vague. Building a low-cost sensor for a greenhouse gives the focus a shape. So does a traffic model or a device you rebuilt after it failed.

Engineering and CCC now sit next to each other on the form. That creates the most likely point of doubt. Here is the clean split:

• Choose Engineering when your main question is how to design or improve a physical, biomedical, electrical, or environmental system.
• Choose CCC when computer science, data science, or AI is the main field rather than a tool inside an engineering field.

There will be overlap. Computer engineering still joins hardware and software. A biomedical engineer may use machine learning. A data scientist may work on transportation or medicine. The choice comes down to which required base you want to finish.

Our Duke Trinity versus Pratt guide uses the same test. Compare required first-year courses, not just major names. A broad major can still live inside a tight degree plan.

Peabody College: Study learning, development, and organizations

Peabody is not only a school for teachers. Its current college programs include education, child development, cognitive studies, child studies, and human and organizational development. The common thread is people. Peabody asks how they learn, grow, work together, and respond to institutions.

That makes Peabody a strong fit for several types of student. One may want a teaching license and field work in Nashville schools. One may care about research on how children grow. A student drawn to teams, group change, consulting, or social impact may like Human and Organizational Development. Peabody calls HOD Vanderbilt's largest college major.

The application can care about the exact program. On the fall 2027 first-year application page, students who select Elementary Education, Secondary Education, or Special Education answer an extra short response. It asks about their experience with and interest in becoming an educator. That is not a broad "Why Vanderbilt?" prompt. It asks for proof that teaching is a well thought out choice.

Choose Peabody when your core question is about learning or human growth. Do not choose it because "education" sounds less technical than psychology or economics. If you want cognitive science mainly as a lab science, compare the Peabody and Arts and Science degree plans. If you want to teach, check the license rules early. These programs have field work and course sequences that can be hard to add in junior year.

Peabody also makes sense for students who like hands-on work. HOD pairs liberal arts study with human growth, organizational theory, service learning, and decision analysis. It is not Vanderbilt's undergraduate business school. Vanderbilt does not have one. Students drawn to organizations should read the required courses. Do not translate the major into "business" and stop there.

Blair School of Music: Apply when music needs to be the degree

Blair is the clearest school choice because admission includes an artistic review. If you want deep music training, private study, ensembles, theory, ear training, and performance to shape your week, Blair belongs on the list. If you mainly want to sing in an ensemble or take lessons while majoring elsewhere, you may not need Blair as your home school.

Blair offers the Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Musical Arts. The Bachelor of Music paths include performance, composition, jazz studies, and integrated studies. The Bachelor of Musical Arts is for a serious musician who also wants a focus, minor, or second major outside music.

Each fall 2027 Blair student must first submit a Vanderbilt application. The separate Blair form then opens in MyAppVU. Vanderbilt's current Blair application page calls for:

1. One artistic recommendation, with a second optional.
2. A music resume.
3. A full repertoire list.
4. A prescreen video.

For Early Decision I, the full Vanderbilt and Blair files are due November 1, 2026. For Early Decision II and Regular Decision, December 1 is the priority date. January 1, 2027 is the final date. Students who pass the prescreen are asked to audition on the date tied to their plan. Blair says it will not offer other audition dates. Check the live schedule before you pick a plan.

The exact prescreen and audition list depends on your instrument, voice, composition, or jazz area. Blair's current repertoire page says all students send a prescreen video. Composition students send scores, recordings, an instrument or voice video, and a short note on one piece. Their next round is an interview with faculty. Do not wait until the due date to learn these rules.

Students outside Blair still have music options. Vanderbilt says non-Blair students may audition for ensembles, private lessons, a music second major, or a music minor. The timing and audition differ from first-year Blair admission. That route fits a student who loves music but wants Engineering, Arts and Science, Peabody, or CCC to control the degree.

College of Connected Computing: The new choice for fall 2027

The College of Connected Computing is Vanderbilt's first new college in more than 40 years. Vanderbilt Admissions says it starts admitting undergraduates for fall 2027. A November 2025 official announcement says its first undergraduate class arrives that fall.

The current CCC degree page shows four bachelor's paths:

• Bachelor of Science in Computer Science.
• Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science.
• Bachelor of Science in Data Science, open for fall 2027 entry.
• Bachelor of Arts in AI Design and Practice, open for fall 2027 entry.

The college also lists minors in computer science, scientific computing, data science, and generative AI. A student can use computing from a different home school without making it the main degree.

The two computer science degrees point to distinct goals. The B.S. offers a deeper tech base. It fits a student who wants computing theory and software work at the center. The B.A. leaves more room to cross fields and take open electives. Data Science joins computing, statistics, and knowledge in a chosen field. AI Design and Practice pairs AI theory with the work of making systems people use.

Choose CCC if you want one of those computing fields to be your main academic identity. Do not choose it just because every field now uses data. A political science student who wants a data science minor may still belong in Arts and Science. A mechanical engineer who uses computer models may still belong in Engineering. The new college gives computing-first students a clear home. It does not mean everyone who codes must move there.

There is one reason to recheck the live pages before you submit. Vanderbilt is still building the college. Current students are moving through new rules. Fall 2027 students should trust the admissions page and their own portal for the school and program choices that are open. Do not trust a four-school article from an old cycle.

Can you study across Vanderbilt's five schools?

Yes, but "cross-school choice" does not mean each mix works on its own.

Vanderbilt Admissions says most students take classes across undergraduate schools. The registrar's major and minor declaration guide adds the key rule. Only a major from your home school can be marked as your primary major. Your school and primary major set the degree you earn.

Second majors and minors are possible. Each school can set rules for prerequisites, auditions, and available space. These examples show why you need to read the details:

• Arts and Science students with a second major outside A&S must still earn at least 90 credit hours in Arts and Science.
• Engineering students can add approved second majors or minors inside or outside the school. They must still finish the engineering degree rules.
• Blair students may add majors in Arts and Science or Peabody and several CCC areas. Blair says they cannot add an Engineering second major. A student who wants both Engineering and serious music will often make Engineering the home school and add music.
• Non-Blair students who want a music second major or performance minor often take one term of private lessons before they audition for that program.

This is also why the choices at a quarter-system school may not map well to another school. Our guide to the Northwestern quarter system shows how a calendar can create more course slots. Vanderbilt uses semesters. The main limit is often a home school's course sequence, not the number of interesting courses on a site.

Start with the required courses for your main degree. Then see what room remains. Reverse that order, and you may build a great list of majors that does not fit in eight terms.

Can you switch schools after enrolling?

Vanderbilt has a process to switch schools. It should be a backup route, not the plan when you apply.

Under the current registrar policy, a Vanderbilt student can normally ask to transfer after two full-time semesters. A student who came to Vanderbilt from a different university may ask after at least one full semester at Vanderbilt and reaching sophomore standing. In both cases, the student must meet the new school's rules and send the university transfer application. The new school reviews grades before it says yes or no.

The due date is the last day of exams each term. A transfer is not a sure thing. Each school and program can set its own prep, GPA, portfolio, audition, or course rules. Blair transfers must still pass its arts review. A move into a set engineering or teaching program may need close course planning. CCC has its own new rules while the college opens.

So yes, students change course. But "I will apply to one school and transfer right away" is weak planning. You spend at least a year under your first school's core. A later move depends on meeting the rules and getting a yes. Apply to the school you would be willing to stay in.

A five-question Vanderbilt school fit test

You do not need a perfect career plan at 17. You do need a defensible first academic home. Answer these questions with courses and work you can point to:

1. Which subject should fill the largest share of my required courses?
2. Which first-year course plan would I still want if I changed my planned major?
3. Does my high school record show that I am ready for that work?
4. Am I counting on a second major, transfer, or audition that is not a sure thing?
5. If the second field went away, would I still choose this home school?

The fifth question often settles close calls. If you took music from the plan, would you still want Blair's degree? Without the data science minor, would psychology still make Arts and Science the right base? If computer science went away, would you want an engineering field? Or would the full Engineering plan stop making sense?

Once you have a real Vanderbilt fit, put it back into a balanced list. The free AdmitYogi School Matcher compares your school record with real application data. It returns reach, target, and safety matches. It does not choose your Vanderbilt home school or predict Vanderbilt's official decision. Use it to check your full list after you have done the course work yourself.

Our guide to what Rice University is known for is a useful check if you want a research school with engineering, music, the liberal arts, and a residential culture. Compare the required degree plans, not just the shared labels.

Common applicant scenarios

"I am pre-med and interested in neuroscience." Start with the neuroscience course plan and the home school that offers the main major you want. Medical schools do not demand one college major. Make sure the degree leaves room for the needed science courses.

"I want business, but Vanderbilt has no undergraduate business school." Compare economics in Arts and Science with HOD in Peabody. Then read the required courses. Economics studies markets and economic behavior. HOD studies people, organizations, and change through a hands-on social-science lens. Neither is a hidden B.B.A.

"I want computer science and philosophy." Decide which field should own the degree. CCC can give you the main computing path with room for study in the humanities. Arts and Science may make sense if philosophy is the main field and computing is second. Check the current rules for adding the computing program you want.

"I want music and engineering." If engineering must be the main degree, apply to Engineering. Then check Blair's second-major, minor, lesson, and ensemble routes. Blair says its home-school students cannot add an Engineering second major.

"I want to teach high school science." Peabody's Secondary Education program needs a close look. A teaching license takes more than a few education electives. The fall 2027 application also asks education students for evidence of their interest in becoming a teacher.

"I like AI, but I do not know whether I want to build models or study their effects." Read the CCC degree plans and Arts and Science choices side by side. AI Design and Practice may fit a student who wants to build tools for people. A student drawn mainly to ethics, policy, the mind, or culture may prefer a different main major plus computing courses.

How to make the choice before you submit

Open five tabs, one for each school's current course plan. Do not start with the sales copy for each major. Find the degree rules and sketch the first four terms.

Mark the required math and science sequences, core courses, field work, studio or ensemble work, and prerequisites for the second field you want. Then circle the courses you would take by choice. A school is a strong fit when both groups make sense. If you only like the electives and resent the required base, that is a warning.

Next, read your own activities list. Your school choice does not need to match every club. The academic path should still have evidence. A CCC student might show steady coding, data work, or an AI project. A Blair student needs the arts record and prescreen. A Peabody teaching student should be able to discuss real work with learners. An Engineering student should show strong math and science plus a reason to build. Arts and Science can hold many paths. But "I like everything" still needs a few clear questions.

At last, use MyAppVU if your thinking changes after you submit. Vanderbilt now lets a student update the school of choice there. Do it because new facts changed your school plan. Do not do it because a forum claimed one school was easier.

Fall 2027 is a year of change at Vanderbilt. The fifth school creates a real new path, most of all for computing students. Do not chase the newest label. Pick the set of required courses you would still finish after your first college plan changes.