<p>What schools have the most and best opportunities for undergraduate research, specifically in Mathematics, Physics, Computer Science (mainly Artificial Intelligence), Astrophysics, Chemistry, or something else along those lines? Also, which schools can best set me up to do research in these areas after graduation?</p>
<p>Get into the honors college of a public research university</p>
<p>Check out integrated sciences program (ISP) at Northwestern
[Integrated</a> Science Department](<a href=“http://www.isp.northwestern.edu/]Integrated”>http://www.isp.northwestern.edu/)</p>
<p>Obviously, Caltech and MIT are amazing in this regard, but good luck getting in! I know Cornell and Michigan have strong undergraduate research programs.</p>
<p>You can find excellent opportunities in just about any research university. Look for schools which also have Ph.D. programs. That is not to minimize the opportunities that are available at undergraduate only institutions where research opportunities are specifically designed for undergraduates. The difference is that where there is a Ph.D. program you can get a clearer idea of what it will be like going to graduate school.</p>
<p>Look into some of the schools that are high on the following list:
[National</a> University Rankings 2012 (sorted by “Research” strengths)](<a href=“http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/college_guide/rankings_2012/national_university_research.php]National”>http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/college_guide/rankings_2012/national_university_research.php)</p>
<p>However, I suggest you consider not only how high schools rank on this list, but also their level of undergraduate focus. Average class size is one quick-and-dirty proxy for that. The following list contains the top 35 universities for “research” (according to Washington Monthly), but re-sorted according to the average of their WM “research” ranks and their class size ranks *:</p>
<p>Harvard University (MA)
Stanford University (CA)
California Institute of Technology (CA)
Princeton University (NJ)
Columbia Univ. in the City of NY (NY)
Yale University (CT)
Duke University (NC)
University of Pennsylvania ¶
Johns Hopkins University (MD)
University of Chicago (IL)
Northwestern University (IL)
University of California-Berkeley (CA)*
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MA)
Brandeis University (MA)
Washington University-St. Louis (MO)
Brown University (RI)
Cornell University (NY)
University of California-Los Angeles (CA)*
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor (MI)*
Carnegie Mellon University ¶
University of Wisconsin-Madison (WI)*
Dartmouth College (NH)
University of California-San Diego (CA)*
Georgia Institute of Technology-Main (GA)*
University of Washington-Seattle (WA)*
Case Western Reserve University (OH)
Univ. of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign (IL)*
University of California-Santa Barbara (CA)*
Univ. of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (NC)*
University of Texas at Austin (TX)*
University of Florida (FL)*
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities (MN)*
University of California-Davis (CA)*
Pennsylvania State University-Main ¶*
Ohio State University-Main (OH)*</p>
<ul>
<li>For average class sizes I used poster Hawkette’s 4 year old ranking of national universities by average class size: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/708190-avg-class-size-4.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/708190-avg-class-size-4.html</a>
The class size numbers probably haven’t changed much, but you can get updated class size distributions in each school’s Common Data Set file or on the US News site.</li>
</ul>
<p>You might also want to consider small liberal arts colleges with strong WM “research” numbers:
[Liberal</a> Arts College Rankings 2012 (sorted by “Research” strengths)](<a href=“http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/college_guide/rankings_2012/liberal_arts_research.php]Liberal”>http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/college_guide/rankings_2012/liberal_arts_research.php)</p>
<p>Thanks! All of the above, but especially the last post, are really helpful.</p>
<p>Undergrad research is big at the University of Rochester. Greater than 75% of the undergrad student population participates in some sort of research. Here’s their list of majors:</p>
<p>[Schools</a>, Colleges, Majors :: University of Rochester](<a href=“http://www.rochester.edu/academics/schools.html]Schools”>Academics - University of Rochester)</p>
<p>From there, you can see if they are researching things that interest you.</p>
<p>Here’s a quick cute admissions video for the school so you can see if it appeals or not:</p>
<p>[Rap</a> Video Introduces Prospective Students to Rochester : Rochester News](<a href=“http://www.rochester.edu/news/show.php?id=4016]Rap”>Rap Video Introduces Prospective Students to Rochester : Rochester News)</p>