<p>Can you please give me some suggestions of colleges in the eastern half of the US which have strong programs in Bio? S is a rising junior and will have excellent grades from a well known, very academic independent high school. I think he would prefer NOT to be in a setting of more than ~8,000 undergrads.</p>
<p>Hopkins, Vanderbilt, U of Rochester, Case Western, Bates, Amherst.</p>
<p>Cornell University, Tufts University, MIT, University of Pennsylvania. Biology is a very broad field, and many schools will have excellent departments.</p>
<p>Practically every good research university/LAC will have a great biology department, as it's an extremely popular field. Don't let this be the defining feature of your college search, as you'll definitely find a strong biology program wherever you go.</p>
<p>How are your son's grades and SAT scores? In which state do you live?</p>
<p>collegehelp, no SAT scores yet as he is a rising junior, but he has excellent grades in an academically demanding, well known independent school which annually sends 25-40% of it's graduates to Ivy League schools. This does NOT mean that we are looking "Ivy League." We are in the northeast.</p>
<p>tetrisfan, I am really wondering about your comment that we would find a strong biology program wherever we go. I appreciate the specific recommendations where to look.</p>
<p>As I think further, I believe he would prefer NOT to be in an urban environment.</p>
<p>Allegheny College, PA
College of Wooster, OH
Ohio Wesleyan University
Lehigh University, PA
Hood College, MD
U of New Hampshire
Michigan State University</p>
<p>There are many good biology programs, but they come in all types of flavors. Premed schools will have a very different student body in their bio programs than most LACs or universities.</p>
<p>when you say a "strong" program you're leaving yourself at the mercy of what the posters decide is important. A great school for someone else might not be a great school for your son. I'd suggest spending some time discussing with your son what is important; is it small class size, personal attention from faculty, opportunities for research, placement into good grad or MD programs, chance to study abroad, opportunity to take a variety of classes outside his major, chance to take advanced classes in a sub-field of biology as an undergrad, etc? You'll have a better chance of recognizing the right fit the better you can describe it.</p>
<p>As another poster said, virtually all colleges can do a good job of teaching undergrad science; the caveat I'd add is that if the fit isn't right then somewhere else would be better.</p>
<p>Princeton and others.</p>
<p>momof3, I'd have to agree that biology is fairly a well funded department in most all academically rigorous small and medium sized colleges throughout the Northeast. Since you're looking for names, however, take a look at Williams and Hamilton.</p>