<p>I'm having a hard time selecting what college to go to. Anyone have any idea which would be best for pre-med? I plan to major in bio and/or international relations</p>
<p>brandeis’ pre-med program has a very good reputation among top medical schools. there’s an early assurance program where you can get in to tufts medical school in as early as your sophomore year. brandeis also has a strong international global studies program so i truly think Brandeis is the best fit for you.</p>
<p>*17, naturally, you need to choose the school that is the right fit for you as Sulsk points out. However, if you view these three schools as relatively equal, the choice should be easy. Boston is far superior to Rochester or Pittsburgh. It’s the world’s greatest college town, and Brandeis is right nearby but on its own suburban campus. </p>
<p>Of course, I don’t think they’re equal. While all three are fine schools, and in fact share the same athletic conference, the UAA, here’s why I prefer Brandeis. Brandeis is an exciting intellectual environment with superb science programs and excellent medical school placement. Its IR/Global Studies program is very strong. One case in point is Politics Professor Robert Art (who also teaches at Harvard and MIT, but spends most of his time at Brandeis). He has trained many accomplished Brandeis alumni in that field including Robert Galluci, longtime Dean of the Georgetown School of Foreign service who recently became President of the MacArthur Foundation. </p>
<p>Brandeis is a special combination of small liberal arts college and world-class research university-with the smallest student body I believe (less than 800 in a class) of any top tier national research university matched with high-powered professors who actually teach in small classes. So, the research opportunities are tremendous. </p>
<p>I would compare the intellectual atmosphere of Brandeis with its UAA sister school, U of Chicago (FYI its President is a Brandeis alum) only Brandeis is more relaxed and more undergraduate-oriented. Despite their intellectual bent, Brandeis students are down-to-earth, friendly and non-competitive with one another. </p>
<p>As you may know, in a recent Forbes national college rankings survey, Brandeis was ranked 15th among research universities and 30th overall among all private univerities and LAC’s–a testament to its focus on undergraduate education. Larger schools, including some Ivies, were ranked much lower. </p>
<p>Despite its small size and relative youth, Brandeis alumni are very distinguished–to name just a few: Nobel Prize winner for chemistry Rod Mackinnon, Fields Medal winning physicist Edward Witten (often called “Einstein’s successor”), 3-time Pulitzer Prize winner Tom Friedman of the NY Times, The Earth is Flat etc; Mitch Albom of Tuesday’s with Morrie (about his Brandeis professor), the Creators/Producers of Friends; actress Debra Messing; Robert FX Sillerman (billionaire businessman–currently owner of American Idol and Graceland) and Christy Hefner, former CEO of Playboy). Also, if you’re into social justice, Brandeis is a very exciting place to be (Angela Davis, Abbie Hoffman, I could go on, are alums as well).</p>
<p>Forgive my enthusiasm, but as an alum, I think Brandeis is great.</p>
<p>Good luck to you. You’ve got some great choices.</p>
<p>Have you visited Brandeis? Its campus has been described as an “office park,” which may or may not appeal to you.</p>
<p>Brandeis is set in the natural beauty of rolling wooded hills with some beautiful vistas. The architecture by a well-known, award-winning architects is largely modern in a variety of styles. Plus there’s a cool medieval castle in the middle of campus. It’s not the old, neo-gothic campus nor everyone’s cup of tea, but an office park it definitely is not. What makes Brandeis Brandeis is not the physical plant but the amazing professors, staff, and students.</p>