<p>So I’ve sent my enrollment deposit to Brandeis. But, I’m still wondering what to major here…
From another topic, I saw that double-majors are common, so that’s a good thing. But, I was wondering what fields Brandeis is strong at.
I’m interested in Chem, Econ or Business.
From what I’ve heard, the business program is sort of…new and not developed?
Please fill me in. Thanks.</p>
<p>Econ is one of the most popular majors. I know one professor in particular- Prof. Coiner- is extremely popular. Plus you can't go wrong when Thomas Friedman comes to lecture.</p>
<p>Take your time deciding on maor(s) and minor(s). Take some courses, get exposed to all sorts of new subjects, then decide. Business, by the way, is rapidly becoming more established at Brandeis.</p>
<p>How about Bio? I really really really want to do med...and I hear they have an 85% acceptance rate into top med schools. (that's encouraging..)</p>
<p>Who told you that? It's more like 65%, and thats acceptance to ALL med schools, not the "top" ones. The acceptance rate to the "top" schools is maybe 10-20% maximum if top means places like Harvard and Yale. I have documentation on this.</p>
<p>According the Hiatt career center, the pre-med acceptance rate in 2004 was 70-80% (for whatever reason, there wasn't an exact number). I hear econ is good and the chem major is pretty awesome, though difficult. But don't necessarily come in assuming you'll major in x or y. I came in thinking I'd concentrate in Judaic Studies and Physics, and here I am majoring in chem and minoring in creative writing. Go figure.</p>
<p>That's because Hiatt doesn't know anything. The Pre-Health office has a nice small packet full of data. 2004 was a pretty good year, 40/53 accepted = 75%.
I don't know if it has anything to do with it, but it seems like the years which have fewer applicants have higher acceptance rates. Perhaps due to more intense weeding out. </p>
<p>2000: 57/91 accepted = 63%
2001: 52/71 = 71%
2002: 44/60 = 73%
2003: 51/76 = 67%
2004: 39/52 = 75% ??? different numbers from above, must have been a calculation error. But pretty much the same.</p>
<p>Also, the national rates vary slightly from year to year. The year Brandeis did worst also was a year when only 47% of applicants nationwide got in.</p>
<p>2000-2004: 47, 50, 52, 50, 49% respectively nationwide. So we do about 20% better than the national average.</p>
<p>Are there stats similar to those for chem or econ?
and how well do people do after graduating? do they go onto top grad schools/work for top firms? thanks</p>
<p>I don't know econ or chem stats, or even what kind of stats they keep. Are you referring to Ph.D or MBA programs? I think these days, to get into business school (MBA) you generally need to have a job for a little while out of college. And for grad school in the sciences you may need a low-level research job first to be competitive unless you have a lot of research as an undergrad. From what I've seen, most science grad students here went to less prestigious undergrad schools than Brandeis, and it seems like people who graduate from here go on to more prestigious grad schools.</p>
<p>Some people do well, some don't. If you do really well here you have a much, much better chance of landing a good job or grad school spot. I think companies recognize econ here as strong and starting jobs in the field often pay above 50K, which is really good for a 22-year-old right out of college. As for chem, if you only have a bachelor's degree you'll probably only be hired as a lab tech with hourly pay, not a salary. </p>
<p>Altogether it's really a mixed bag. For jobs in the Boston area you'll have to compete with Harvard and MIT grads and probably be at a distinct disadvantage compared to them. As I said though, some people get really awesome jobs right away, and others either get dead-end jobs or stay unemployed for a while.</p>