<p>Sorry, I wasn’t clear enough. What I meant to say is, he would have a decent chance if he would take challenging classes, maintain decent gpa (3.70+), and have some extra-curricular activities. Same goes to the other school on INDIANP’s lists.</p>
<p>Whitesnake-- Haha. That’s the first time someone asked me that question. Actually my username represents my favorite author’s name (international though) and country name both. S- Srilanka and RB-Robindranath Thagore. Year 2006 represents when I moved into this country.</p>
<p>By the way, do you think MIT admission officers look at the posts on this forum? That means I am screwed. I want to go there for my grad degree.</p>
<p>I really don’t think it makes a huge difference about what school you go to and I think that tech schools like WPI in general do a great job at what they do. I’m not sure whether I will positively attend WPI because I’m not sure that I want a very technical education… same applies to MIT, CMU, and other schools. </p>
<p>For me, a school like Tufts, Cornell, or Harvard would probably provide me the perfect experience. However, tech schools provide most of what I look for so I am open to a technical education. Yes, I am a nerd, but I am not the type who would enjoy the most working on technical project with others but rather want to come up with something cool and revolutionary, like Facebook or Gmail. I know that tech school grads do very innovative things, but they are not often the ones (my experience with them, feel free to disagree) who know what customers/society wants and often find themselves immersed within the technical aspects of what they are doing (kernel hacking, programming, building circuit boards etc). Not that there is anything wrong with that; it’s pretty fascinating stuffIMO.</p>
<p>I think that a non tech school like BC or Northeastern can also be very rewarding for a person who wants a technical education. There are REU’s everywhere and you can do projects and research anywhere, even at a state school like UMass. I think that the passion for working with technology is not acquired but rather develops on its own. </p>
<p>People need to understand basic CS or Engineering topics like programming, theory, circuits, but beyond that, anybody with a real interest can learn how things work on their own and can have a great tech school experience anywhere. </p>
<p>Now, WPI makes this experience a lot easier, but still, I think there are advantages for some people of not going to a tech school.</p>
<p>Wow i read through some of the prior posts and i’m completely shocked and offended by DHman06 comments. I did my masters and PhD at WPI and an undergrad at MIT. My experiences at both schools were comparable in terms of academic rigor and student body interactions. WPI is SEVERELY underrated. Academically i can say that WPI is better than BU in terms of engineering. Private message me if you need any additional info because a lot of this misinformation is annoying.</p>
<p>good to hear M<em>A</em>A
S and I were impressed with WPI. And we are pretty discerning.</p>
<p>Also IndianPD I think you can get a less technical education at WPI if you want one. S is not planning on engineering and wants to go the math CS route with music as a minor. Most of his work will be in the theoretical department and in performance.</p>
<p>He looked at a wide variety of school types to which he was accepted. Highly rated publics where he could get all the wowy zowy math he could get at MIT but that were too big for him, small LAC’s which he loved the feel of but were not strong enough in the math/cs departments. When it came right down to it, a tech school fit the bill, and WPI, after visiting several tech schools, felt the best.</p>
<p>Wow… You’re gone for a week and look what happens!! Yikes… </p>
<p>WPI is an awesome school. Scores really don’t mean a thing - which is why WPI doesn’t require them any more (and more schools are leaning this way). Some of these rankings DEFINITELY don’t mean a thing. Did anyone look at how they come up with the rankings? “Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics” comes to mind… I cannot believe the ignorant and hurtful things that DHman06 said. Amen to the fact that he WON’T be at WPI…</p>
<p>What it comes down to is this - all these schools are good. Some are better than others for particular people. My son will be attending WPI. RPI gave him a better financial package, but WPI just is a better fit for him. He never considered any non-tech school because he knew from the beginning that wasn’t what he wanted. There really are no bad choices here. We are all so lucky to have these choices!</p>
<p>And don’t be fooled into thinking that WPI is “just a tech school”… Just wait until theorymom’s son gets involved in the music department at WPI. There are some awesome things going on there. (And there used to be some awesome classes to cross enroll in at Clark too). </p>
<p>Good luck with everyone out there who has yet to make up their mind!</p>
<p>^ Yeah, I think WPI has a really good music program. I was looking at WPI curriculum for engineering major students and I think there are 2 (don’t remember exactly) music courses that students have to take in their sophomore year. So, I would say, music at WPI, if not the top caliber, still one of the best. I am pretty sure he will have fun there.</p>
<p>SRB2006 wrote: “… and I think there are 2 (don’t remember exactly) music courses that students have to take in their sophomore year.” …</p>
<p>But there are no classes that you “have to” take at WPI! (You probably saw a sample schedule?) Honestly, I think being able to choose your own course of study is one of the best things about WPI - you can really pave your own way and make your own options and path. “The Plan” is a wonderful thing - for those who can handle that much freedom and responsibility! Have you checked out the PLC option for freshmen? A very exciting opportunity! It’s not for everyone (the same reason as there are all these school choices - which is why I bring it up here), but a great way to get your feet wet on the entire project based learning curve.</p>
<p>the flexibility to choose one’s own path is exactly what appealed to S when looking at WPI. It is what made it “the one” among the schools to which he was accepted.</p>
<p>-Do an IQP/MQP
-Take 135 credits (most classes are 3 credits).<br>
-Complete the core requirements for your major.<br>
-6 Humanities/Arts Classes (including an inquiry seminar)
-2 Social Sciences</p>
<p>I actually think that there are a few required classes. For example an electrical engineering major would be hard pressed to graduate without taking Intro to Electrical Engineering. The mathematics requirements are: </p>
<p>That is probably more freedom than other schools, but it isn’t quite “Take whatever you want”. </p>
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<p>I have no context with that. However, we do have a class for freshman called Great Challenges Seminar (used to be called Great Problems Seminar, name changed due to obnoxious acronym), where students complete a relatively simple research project. While I did not do that class, I think that it is very nice that WPI helps freshman to get their feet wet with research early on.</p>
<p>Skithesteeps- yes I did look at a sample course catalog. I think it’s one of the core Arts classes, but it’s not, please accept my sincere apology. </p>
<p>And I am choosing WPI over BC, since I am not sure if I “really” want to do engineering at this very moment. But if I do, I will apply there after my freshmen year.</p>