<p>Finally narrowed down to the last 2 choices!!! </p>
<p>d wants to study economics/Intl Rel/Public Policy. D Loved the feel of a small LAC and the interaction of the people and admin. She would like to have the same feel in a little bigger campus.</p>
<p>Brown has many course offerings in all 3 of the above, Intellectual campus, Ivy. But we have heard that the professors and admin are a little standoffish and that you really have to make a huge effort to get what you want.</p>
<p>Wash U I don't believe offers PP(which you can take in grad school) has many offerings in econ and a great Intl Rel program. Professors and admin supposedly are more available. Same price as Brown and less recognized.</p>
<p>We have not visited either as of yet and time wise it is looking as we might not be able to.</p>
<p>So any thought or comments would be helpful.</p>
<p>Thank You!</p>
<p>Both fine schools–I’d give Brown the edge academically in the fields you mentioned.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t say Brown’s administration is standoffish. I would say it is pretty far left leaning. The same is true of the faculty. Brown is a very PC kind of place–one where conservatives are made to feel uncomfortable although they do exist (and often overreact to their situation by being obnoxious). Wash U is liberal (like most universities) but more politically balanced than Brown. This situation may not matter to a chemistry major but will be a factor in the fields you mentioned. </p>
<p>Students at both places generally seem happy.</p>
<p>Providence is a great small city, close to Boston and accessible to the whole east coast. St. Louis has some lovely parts and some awful parts. But its principal problem is that it is not near any other city of interest to college students (Springfield,Ill is good for one day trip—then what? Chicago is a hike).</p>
<p>And since you haven’t seen them–Wash U has much more of a spacious, traditional campus. The building there are mostly collegiate gothic–somewhat reminicent of Princeton’s campus (but not quite as nice). </p>
<p>Brown, being much older, has a very small central campus core and has grown outward into the city. The buildings are very eclectic–everything from Georgian and Greek revival to big, heavy stone buildings. Many of the departments are housed in converted large homes. Unfortunetly, most of the new buildings built between the 60’s and 2000 are downright ugly (the Science Library and the athletic complex vie for the ugliest buildings ever built). Overall, however, the campus is nice.</p>