Here are my S22’s impressions of the schools we visited over the past two weeks. He is interested in IE/Stats/Data Science.
WPI: Nice, compact campus. Stem focused with emphasis on practice (projects, co-ops, internships). Close to us. S22 liked it a lot.
UMass Amherst: Not the prettiest campus, but good in his areas. Great food. Good choice for us as the in-state flagship.
Temple: Nice, compact campus with many new facilities. Got a tour of the business school because Stats is in that school. Many employer connections in Philadelphia. Campus appears to be safe, but the area around it not as much.
UPitt: Nice campus and facilities, well integrated with the city. Honors program seemed interesting. S22 liked it.
CMU: Self-guided tour. Nice campus, but a bit away from the city. obviously, top-notch academics.
Ohio State: Defined campus with its own character despite being in city. Good relationships with employers in the region. Academics strong, and football fanaticism stronger. Liked it.
Denison: Tour was good and campus is lovely. However, a bit on the smaller side from S22’s perspective.
Case Western: Nice campus, integrated with eastern Cleveland. Neighborhood appears to be safe. Strong STEM programs. Flexible curriculum.
Purdue: Strong engineering program and appealing campus. Many co-ops and internships available as a result of good relationships with employers. Lots of new facilities.
Indiana: Lovely campus with lots of greenery. Nice college town. Programs in S22’s areas of interest do not appear to as strong as some of the others.
Illinois: We toured the campus by ourselves. A bit of a letdown compared to peers because many of the engineering buildings appeared to be run down.
Wisconsin: Beautiful campus on Lake Mendota. Well integrated with city. Strong academics.
Carleton College: Nice campus. Strong academics. But S22 felt it was too small.
Iowa State: The revelation of the trip. Focused and friendly admissions department with strong attention to detail. Safe, very nice campus with state-of-the-art engineering facilities. Just an hour from Des Moines and ISU provides a shuttle.
St. Olaf: Had a good tour. Friendly admissions personnel. But, as with other LACs, S22 felt it was too small.
Macalester: Nice, compact campus in attractive section of St. Paul. Well integrated into city. Too small for S22.
Minnesota: Nice urban campus, on the banks of the Mississippi. Feels quite safe. Strong engineering and science programs with good internship, co-op and job opportunities. Nice dorms. Minneapolis transit system runs through campus.
Santa Clara University: Did a self-guided tour while visiting family. Campus is nice and seems to be safe. Strong connections with Silicon Valley and STEM facilities appear to be good.