Hi, I am a junior who is considering applying early to Princeton for engineering, with a strong interest in bioengineering and biomedical engineering. I have heard that Princeton does not have a singular BME major but a combined degree with Chemical Engineering. Can anyone shed any light regarding this major and its merits. I am also considering applying to UPenn early for Biological engineering. If you were in my situation, which would you elect to situate as your first choice. I realize that both programs are rigorous and highly selective but I simply want to do all that I can to matriculate. I am an Asian male(Indian) with high sat scores (2370 , 800s on USH, Chem, and Math) and with a few extracurricular activities that I remain committed to. I would appreciate any advice.
@MALABARCOAST2014 Overall, Princeton is harder to get into than Penn. Penn has a very highly ranked bionengineering program and i think it is the second most popular engineering major after comp sci. Also having the medical school and the Penn hospital right on campus gives the opportunity to undergrads to do amazing research. Princeton does not have a separate bionengineering department, but of course their CBE department is also fantastic.
In terms of engineering quality both schools are pretty much equivalent. In terms of overall undergraduate prestige princeton has the edge. Also Penn and princeton will offer you diametrically different undergraduate experiences, so you have to research and find out in what kind of environment you would be happy in. Lastly, Penn has ED, i.e if you apply early it is binding ( also if you apply for financial aid and they give you less than u have indicated -never really happens- then the contract is no longer binding). Princeton has SCEA, which means applying really is not binding and u can apply to other schools RD.
You cannot go wrong with either choice tho.
@Penn95 Thank you so much for your response! I hope to attend medical school after studying BME. Is this a common practice at Penn. Also, even though Princeton does not have a singular bioengineering major, is it still respected for its bioengineering offerings?
@MALABARCOAST2014 If you don’t get the answer you are looking for, try CC’s Engineering Major sub-forum (http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/engineering-majors/) it is pretty active.
@MALABARCOAST2014 I cannot speak very much for Princeton but I am sure that it’s bio engineering offerings are very well respected even though there is no separate department. And obviously the undergraduate academic quality at Princeton is top notch.
Also yeah at Penn it is very common for bioengineering majors to go on to medical school. As I said one of the pros at Penn is that the medical school is right on campus and there are many research opportunities readily open to undergrads. So getting involved in research at a research powerhouse like HUP/Penn Med will help u in Med school admissions. a letter of recommendation from a Penn Med professor/researcher means a lot. Also Penn Med does show some preference for Penn undergrads ( this is true for most top schools, like Harvard medical school does admit a disproportionate number of Harvard undergrads).