<p>Preferably in CA, but anywhere that gets me the ---- out of GA is good. I've got the scores/reqs to have a shot basically anywhere methinks, but I don't really know where to apply. Are there lists of the bests undergrad schools by major, etc?
Gracias</p>
<p>IMO for undergrad, the best research university for science in CA is CalTech and the best LAC (like) school is Harvey Mudd. They're close to each other too.</p>
<p>Agreed that Caltech/Harvey Mudd would be the two best schools in Cali for such purposes. Stanford doesn't lag far behind.</p>
<p>Can you tell us more about your personality? What sort of environment would appeal most to you?</p>
<p>Like Alexandre said, what sort of environment do you like the most?</p>
<p>Both Caltech and Harvey Mudd are pretty much what you're looking for, majors-wise, but both are very small--Caltech with ~900 undergrads and Harvey Mudd even smaller with ~700 undergrads. Would you like a small, tightknit undergrad body or would you prefer a bigger student body?</p>
<p>One distinction about Harvey Mudd is that it's part of the Claremont Consortium/Colleges, so you can take classes at Pitzer, Claremont McKenna, Scripps, or Pomona. So despite the LAC-like feel of Harvey Mudd, you can reap the benefits of having other good schools nearby and their resources as well.</p>
<p>In comparison to the relatively small student bodies of Caltech and HMC, Stanford has about 6500 undergrads.</p>
<p>What's most important to you besides majors? Caltech, HMC, and Stanford all are superb for the majors you are looking for (Caltech and HMC arguably better in physics/chem over Stanford simply because they're pretty specialized schools with emphasis in those areas). </p>
<p>What are your preferences in size and environment?</p>
<p>Berkeley, Stanford, CalTech, Harvey Mudd</p>
<p>California Institute of Technology
Harvey Mudd College
Pomona College
Stanford University
University of California-Berkeley
University of California-Los Angeles
University of California-San Diego
University of California-Santa Barbara</p>
<p>Other great schools in other parts of the country:</p>
<p>Brown University
Carleton College
Columbia University
Cornell University
Dartmouth College
Grinnell College
Harvard University
Haverford College
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Northwestern University
Pennsylvania State University-University Park
Princeton University
Reed College
Rice University
University of Chicago
University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
University of Texas-Austin
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Williams College
Yale University</p>
<p>I'm very into physical sciences. I think they're beautiful, and the kind of people I like are the ones who understand how physics can be beautiful.
That said, I'm also quite a bit the hippie...I just got back from an hour walking around outside/laying by the local lake. Hence the wanting to live in Cali. My friends tend to be the smartest people I know, and I feel a good bit of frustration at not having enough people around I can relate to. So, that scares me a bit about small schools and pushes me more towards Stanford. However, there's probably only a handful of people at my school as smart as the people at Caltech (my current #1 pick), so there could well be more people at even Mudd than my high school of 2400 that I'd relate to. Caltech and Mudd being so good at what they do would be wonderful; I've often compared getting the top score on a high school physics test as beating third graders at the times tables; neither the assessment nor the competition is difficult or interesting. I'd love to be at an enviroment like Caltech/Mudd where the exact opposite is true.
I love problem solving and can do it on my own for hours. Keircy pegs me for an ISTJ/INTJ, which is introverted. My friends don't really get that because I'm a very outgoing person, but it really is accurate; group interactions can be tiring, and I'm much happier with a small number of close friends.</p>