<p>hi guys! so i have this decision that i need to make by april 20, because my parents are going away for a while and want me to make a choice by then. </p>
<p>in college i want to study psych/neuroscience/sociology while being free to also pursue a more liberal artsy education and learn about other things not related to my concentration or major (tl;dr i wanna do everything haha) </p>
<p>however, i might also do pre-med or apply to graduate studies in psychology/become a clinical psychologist. </p>
<p>which of these schools should i be considering over the others? i’ve read so many facts but they’ve all become jumbled up in my head. the factors that are important to me include student happiness, collaboration not competition, professor friendliness and accessibility, and quality of advising. </p>
<p>thanks guys! i’d really appreciate it if you could give me some advice :S i’m so lost. </p>
<p>and btw i also got into berkeley and wustl, don’t know if i should think about those more seriously as well…</p>
<p>If I were you, I’d approach this scientifically, make up a spreadsheet with your priorities and then rate each school individually in each category, to see how they compare.</p>
<p>Frankly, I am always perplexed by students who like both Brown and UChicago. They are such completely different places, and have totally different education philosophies. Either you want someone to determine your curriculum for the first two years, or you want to craft your own. Which appeals more to you? How many classes outside your major and distribution requirements can you take at Chicago (and Rice)? </p>
<p>I went to Brown several decades ago, my daughter went there, and I have kept up with students over those years. Some things never change. Students are always happy, and there is NO competition/pressure except the pressure students put on themselves to excel. The advising is improving. Profs are definitely available and friendly, and Brown typically only hires professors who want to teach, and not just do research.</p>
<p>I can’t answer those questions about UChi and Rice, just Brown, so I don’t want to appear like I’m dismissing those places.</p>
<p>Sounds like Brown is a good fit for you as far as flexibility with the things you want. Also</p>
<p>student happiness: a hallmark at Brown</p>
<p>collaboration not competition: another Brown trait that runs from the department level down to the individual level. my daughter was suprised to find many grad schools weren’t so collaborative </p>
<p>professor friendliness and accessibility: exceptional</p>
<p>and quality of advising: improves when you get your department advisor, in my daughter’s experience</p>
<p>I know Chicago is a tremendous school and you will get a great deal of varied liberal arts in an intellectual environment, but you won’t have room for too many more electives outside the core and your major I don’t think. Know next to nothing about Rice.</p>
<p>At Brown, due to the open curriculum, you can definitely do a major in psych, sociology etc (called a concentration at Brown BTW) AND finish all your premed requirements, AND have still quite a bit of room for interesting courses in other areas (or even to explore other possible concentrations during year 1 and 2). I’m not sure you have that much room to explore your options at the other schools.</p>
<p>Under the University of Chicago logo it reads-- the place where fun goes to die. U of C is a seriously fine university, but it is serious, serious! Fabulous graduate programs.</p>
<p>You sound like a Brown kind of person. Honestly, you should post this also in the U.Chicago forum, but because of your multiple interests in the humanities and sciences, I would say Brown.</p>
<p>I forgot to tell you to check out the Brain Science Institute at Brown, neuro is very active but it is widely interdisciplinary and likely includes all your interests.
[Brown</a> University Brain Sciences](<a href=“http://brainsciences.brown.edu/]Brown”>http://brainsciences.brown.edu/)</p>
<p>Rice has traditionally won the title of happiest students. </p>
<p>Have you visited any of the schools? If not, please spend the time and visit. You have incredible choices. Personally, I agree with everyone else on Brown. I do think Rice is a close second. U of C is very different.</p>
<p>Good luck and congratulations on your acceptances.</p>