Bryn Mawr College vs. Rutgers University

College Search & Selection
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<p>I've posted this in Rutgers already but I would love more opinions. I'm having a tough time deciding between these two colleges. At this point I tell people who ask that I'm planning to study computer science in college, but this might very easily change. I am very comfortable with the all-women aspect of Bryn Mawr. In fact, if I end up at Rutgers, I will be signing up for the Douglass Residential College.</p>

<p>Here are some of my pros and cons for Bryn Mawr:
PROS: small, close-knit community, cute traditions, honor system, beautiful campus/huge dorms/excellent food, strong math program, 20 minutes from philly by train, bi/tri-co/quaker consortiums with swarthmore, haverford, and upenn, rather diverse student population, a large percentage of students study abroad (which I want to do), administration and teachers look out for you and know your name</p>

<p>CONS: might become suffocatingly small (about 1,300 students and only 130 acres) after a few years, the town seems a bit boring when I visited, computer science program is rather weak</p>

<p>Here are some of my pros and cons for Rutgers:
PROS: cheap (in-state tuition), many university resources, research, strong computer science program, downtown New Brunswick, great food everywhere, free division 1 football tickets, it's more of a "party school" (which can also be considered a con), great nation-wide reputation, history (9th oldest university in the nation)</p>

<p>CONS: too many students- 32,000- which means you're on your own most of the time (administration wise) and huge lecture classes, "RU Screw", too much emphasis on greek life in social life, i don't like how spread out the campus is (1300 acres)/the fact that most rely on busing system, most people are from NJ so it's not very diverse</p>

<p>I'd love any opinions. Thanks!</p>

2

<p>I don’t know much about CompSci at Bryn Mawr, but all of our STEM programs receive a ton of funding for both the academic year and to provide stipends to students for summer research. There are plentiful research options and faculty really want to work with students one-on-one. My friend is pre-med at Temple, another large state university, and says it’s really difficult to receive that kind of attention and encouragement. Because our relationship with other colleges, you can always take courses there and even MAJOR at Haverford if you wanted. I’ve had the impression that CompSci was pretty good/all graduates of the department are lined up with jobs months before anyone else. </p>

<p>As you mentioned, environment is also really critical. This is a place you’re going to spend four years of your life so it’s important to make sure you feel like you could thrive there. Women’s colleges are very supportive spaces, especially for women working in male-dominated fields. I like the town of Bryn Mawr in that it has all the essentials - solid sushi and Indian restaurants, several drug stores, an indie movie theatre, and a couple shops. I love having a distinct campus, but also just a short train ride away from Philadelphia. There are a TON of colleges in Philly and outside of the consortium. I spend a couple nights a week in the city with non-BMC friends just to do something a little different. Unlike more rural campuses, you have plenty of opportunity to leave campus and explore other social environments.</p>

<p>A few stats on BMC women in STEM:
Bryn Mawr College is in the top 10 among liberal-arts colleges in terms of the percentage of female graduates pursuing doctorates in the STEM fields. Bryn Mawr students are five times more likely to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry than undergraduate college students nationwide and eight times more likely to do so in math. Bryn Mawr is third in the nation in the percentage of female students receiving bachelor’s degrees in math, beating out such STEM-oriented universities as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Carnegie Mellon University, and has 15 times the national average of female students graduating in physics. - See more at: <a href=“http://news.brynmawr.edu/2012/02/07/posse-announcement/#sthash.GePVJ7gv.dpuf”>http://news.brynmawr.edu/2012/02/07/posse-announcement/#sthash.GePVJ7gv.dpuf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

3

<p>D was looking at both these options this year. We are in NJ and with the scholarship, Rutgers was cheap (like we would have had cash leftover). D also liked Douglass. If money is not a problem, then consider the size. Rutgers will make you spend time on a bus. Like all your time. But it has the resources to do everything and anything.
If this helps, I have a coworker with a D at Bryn Mawr. She loves it beyond anything but was heard to comment near the end of Soph year that she wished she didn’t know everyone on campus.</p>

<p>My D came down to BMC and Simmons and I think she is choosing Simmons and I think Boston is what sold her.</p>

4

<p>One way to keep a small college from becoming suffocating after a few years is to study abroad your junior year.</p>

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<p>Thanks photo dad. Yes, we thought about that. Unfortunately, if BMC is the choice, we couldn’t afford the study abroad.</p>

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<p>I have a son at Rutgers and I can attest you will have to learn the bureaucracy, deal with the larger classes and how to work the scheduling system, and consider the on-campus vs off housing. I’d say if you are looking for more of the tighter knit college experience, choose the smaller school. But, the Douglas program does give you a bit of that, along with the alumna network and connections that may be useful in getting an internship or job (I took the tour with my D and it did seem to be a big value add at no or little additional cost). Plus if you are looking to drive your opportunities out of college, being near New York City can’t be beat for job opportunities and overall options. RU will also give you many more options in case you change your mind/major… I would also compare the number of different computer science courses at each school to see your options in that area, and calculate what it would take if you would like to minor in a field of interest as well.</p>

7

<p>@Evergreen1929 - Yes, I guess different schools handle study abroad financing differently. However, if your kid is interested it may still be worthwhile looking into after arriving at school, wherever she ends up. My daughter’s school has a variety of resources to help with study abroad that weren’t visible to her until she was on campus. </p>

<p>@Midnightscarlet - My company hires a lot of CS grads. While they’re primarily from major research universities, there’s a relatively high number from LACs. So if you feel that a LAC is a better environment for you, I wouldn’t be discouraged by the smaller size of the department, especially since you can supplement it with consortium classes. </p>

8

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<p>From Bryn Mawr, it’s a very short train ride to Philadelphia, which is a city that’s got all kinds of recreational opportunities. My D (recent BMC grad) went to Philadelphia all the time; the train station is a very short walk from campus.</p>