Hello All - I got admitted to Brown on Thursday and am interested in pursuing a career in data science/machine learning or working in management consulting at a company like McKinsey.
Some questions –
How does Brown fare in data science/machine learning job placement?
I got the vibe that Brown is better with regards to humanities. Are the STEM majors still great as well? I’ll probably major in Comp Sci or Applied Math.
I generally lean slightly conservative politically. Would I inevitably despise most of my classmates?
Does Brown have programs where you can simultaeneously get a masters while obtaining your undergrad (maybe spending a year longer is okay)? Specifically I’m thinking about majoring in Comp Sci, but also would like to get a Masters in CS as well or Masters in Applied Math.
I’m deciding between UChicago, Penn CAS, Brown, and UMich in-state (effectively a free ride almost). So maybe answer your questions knowing that if you know a little about the other univerisites?
Brown has good placements to Wall St and consulting.
However the school is known to be quite liberal and left leaning.
Brown is very different from Chicago( flexible vs core) and also different from Penn.
Did you visit any of these schools?
I know some friends of my kids who attend Brown, and they all love the school. The CS/Applied Math department is one of the better known departments at Brown. Indeed there are a ton of liberals at Brown. The open curriculum makes for a lot of happy students.
If you are more conservative minded, UChicago might be a better fit. There are many well known conservatives who graduated from UChicago, David Brooks comes to mind. My wife attended UChicago a long time back and found it grueling. However in recent years, it appears the administration is making a strong effort to make it more appealing. For example during my wife’s days, the core took up about half of the total # of classes. Now its down to 15 classes (about a third). They also have a new Business Economics major that you might be interested in. Hyde Park is also a much more pleasant place than it was a few decades ago.
I don’t know much about Michigan or Penn however. If your long term goal is wall street/consulting then perhaps find out which college has better placement? Each of the colleges will have a career center that you can reach out to. For Wall street/IB type jobs, the hiring managers are less concerned about your major but instead are VERY fixated on the prestige of the undergraduate college. Not sure why.