<p>Which College is better: Brown U or JHU?
Hi, I'm a high school senior with good grades (honor roll sophmore and junior year) in a tough school (we have the IB program, so I take all IB classes and three higher levels.) I like brown because they have no core curriculum (and thus I wouldn't have to take a foreign language, my biggest academic weakness. I also like hopkins, but hopkins is literally 10 min from my house and I have lived in the city my whole life. I like english, and want to major in english. Which school would be better? Hopkins or Brown? Brown is more of a stretch for me to get into, which actually makes it more of a personal challenge for me to get in.
I've been doing a ton of research, which if anything is just making me more confused.</p>
<p>Brown is a "better" school than JHU. JHU is known for having a good writing program, though. If you think you'll get into JHU why don't you to ED to Brown and RD to JHU? It sounds like you want to get away from home anyway...</p>
<p>^ i second that.</p>
<p>Yeah, if you are interested in English or Creative Writing, Johns Hopkins is very good at that. It has a top program in Writing Seminars for undergraduate students looking to major in that area.</p>
<p>Brown RD is brutally tough and I can't expect Brown ED (unless someone can look up the facts and prove me wrong) to be any more easier anyways so. Very hard to get into Brown, JHU may be a bit easier.</p>
<p>Both are ranked highly in the USNews report, fine education which ever school you pick. Brown has that extra Ivy league edge factor if you are looking for that prestige edge.</p>
<p>If you want, you could apply ED to Brown and see if you can get into Hopkins RD. Do you want to stay close in Baltimore?</p>
<p>You have to game it out, assuming Brown and JHU are your top choices.</p>
<p>Scenario 1: Apply to JHU ED, get accepted.
Downside risk: you might have gotten into Brown.</p>
<p>Scenario 2: Apply to JHU ED, get rejected/deferred.
Downside risk: none, the odds that you would have been accepted Brown ED, but rejected JHU ED, are relatively small, you can still apply Brown RD as well.</p>
<p>Scenario 3: Apply to Brown ED, get accepted
Downside risk: no chance to go to JHU if that was really your first choice</p>
<p>Scenario 4: Apply to Brown ED, get rejected
Downside risk: You missed your chance to apply JHU ED, which would have increased your chances of acceptance there; you apply JHU RD and get rejected.</p>
<p>I think Scenario 4 is scary, frankly, if you really think you want to go to JHU.</p>
<p>As another person who lived in B'More all my life...go somewhere else! Even if you like Baltimore (I do), it's really nice to get outside of the freakishly small Baltimore bubble...if you really miss it, you can always go back for grad school or work.</p>
<p>When I was applying (many years ago), Brown and Hopkins were my top two choices. I applied ED to Brown and was deferred--then got in RD. I also got into JHU, decided to go there, and never regretted it (in fact, I very much loved it). But my situation was the opposite of yours--I lived 15 minutes from Brown and wanted a change of scenery--plus a number of my high school classmates were going to Brown and I didn't want my college experience to feel like a repeat of high school.</p>
<p>While there are many similarities between the two schools (e.g., similar size, similar fine academic reputations, similar sized endowments, both urban, similar student demographics), I've learned over the years that there are also significant differences (which I would never have been aware of as a high school student). Although both are classified as research universities--Brown is much more like a large college (there are both pluses and minuses associated with that). There certainly is research going on at Brown--but it pales in comparison with JHU (e.g.,compare their respective research expenditures---it is not even close) Hopkins has many more top ranked departments than does Brown, and while their undergraduate programs are ranked similarly, few would argue with the proposition that Hopkins generally has much more highly regarded graduate programs. This includes the English Department--which is very highly ranked at Hopkins although Brown's is certainly fine for an undergraduate. Brown has no writing department comparable to Hopkins' Writing Seminars Department, which is commonly regarded as one of the top in the country. </p>
<p>Hopkins is famous for its challeging academics; Brown is famous for its flexible curriclum. Both of these stereotypes are overblown, in that there are plenty of hard courses at Brown and the Hopkins curriculum is also very flexible (although the pass/fail option is more limited than Brown's). </p>
<p>Also, the campus cultures are quite different. Brown is a liberal bastion(some would say far left) and known (or infamous) for its political correctness; Hopkins, while predominately liberal, is much more politically balanced and tolerant of different viewpoints. Both students and faculty at JHU tend more to be skeptical and curmudgeon like--definitely not PC. Baltimore's famous sage--H.L. Menkin--would have been right at home at Hopkins and very uncomfortable at Brown. But of course, this is a very personal thing and, without a doubt, many people (particularly eastern liberal elites) would feel more comfortable at Brown. </p>
<p>My point is simply that both are very good places--just very different.</p>
<p>They're both among America's finest schools. I myself wouldn't want to be at either, but if I were you, I'd go for broke and ED to Brown. Better that than to spend years wondering "what if..."</p>
<p>There is also the strategic option of applying, not getting in, and deciding to take a gap year rather than "settle" for a college that you may not like as much.</p>
<p>You can take this gap year to do some really interesting things that would boost your chances the second time around too ;)</p>