I’m actually comparing Amherst and Brown on this factor. I’m wondering how intense academics are at Brown and how stressful/hard the workload can be. Also, how seriously do people take their academics compared to at Amherst? Because when I visited Brown I noticed students recommending or boasting about classes just because they were the easiest which was a bit surprising honestly.
Any opinions and personal knowledge would be very helpful in choosing which college to go to! I’m looking for a school where academics are the priority but don’t take up a significant amount of time, so much so that people have a hard time doing fun things for themselves. My sister goes to Wellesley where lots of girls never leave campus or even the library because they have so much work, even on the weekends, so I definitely don’t want that.
Also, on that note, how big are drinking and drugs at Brown?
Can’t speak to the current climate but if you search back through older posts I know I and several other older posters have commented extensively on this
Workload is going to kind of depend on your concentration and the courses you choose. There is so much self-direction at Brown that I don’t think there’s going to be a ‘one size fits all’ answer. My daughter was an engineering major – a lot of work, but not in a cutthroat atmosphere and she had plenty of fun at Brown.
Thanks for the info! I’m planning on being a cognitive neuroscience major, so I imagine it would be in between the workload for a humanities or STEM major (concentration).
One anecdote is not evidence, but I’ll tell this story anyway – my daughter took a mandatory S/NC class with a new adjunct (it was a writing class). The instructor was quite certain that students would slack off because a C was all that was needed to pass the class, and the first day imposed all sorts of stringent rules. Within a couple weeks she changed her philosophy, because she saw that the students were working really hard and putting in top effort because they wanted to learn – the grade wasn’t the point, and an easy pass didn’t mean doing minimal work.
Anywhere you go, you will encounter some students who look for the easy way. Some Brown students take 3-4 very difficult classes per semester, and also take one easy “gut” class.
As for drinking/drugs – I went to Brown many years ago, my daughter graduated a few years ago, and I know students who are there now. My overall impression is that things haven’t changed since I was there – there are students who drink and take drugs, but there is no pressure to do that. If you decide you are not into that scene, that’s perfectly fine, and you will encounter other students like you. There will always be a handful of students who have a drug/alcohol problem, but most students have too much work to get high too frequently.
I don’t know enough about Amherst to compare it to Brown. I don’t know where you live, but look into transportation – if you need to fly, consider what airport you would use and how long it will take to get from home to college. Both are great schools.
If you are worried about drinking and drugs and not into that I suggest you state you want a substance free dorm your freshman year. You will most likely meet a whole group of kids just like you and remain friends for the duration of your time at Brown. As others have mentioned, your concentration will have a lot to do with rigor. Based on my kid’s experience, CS is very rigorous, but most of the kids in that concentration lean that way anyway, and even though it requires a lot of work they more or less have that in common and bond together. Just don’t overdue it your first semester and take 5 classes. My kid did that and never did it again. Try to balance writing intense with science/lab classes and you should be fine.
In my experience the result of the open curriculum is fairly substantial autonomy on just how rigiorous your experience will be with the sky as the limit.
But it’s hard to answer this question because 1) no one has gone to both schools 2) your own preparation and ability are a huge part of what constitutes rigorous.
modestmelody back from the grave!!!
Well, look who decided to drop in on us! Welcome back!