<p>I'd like to have everybody convince me some reasons for me to go to Columbia... I've been accepted to all three schools and am having a hard time deciding between the three. I'd like to major in EE, don't know if/how that will change halfway through school. I'm kinda nerdy but I have other interest, too (took Japanese language proficiency tests, among other things -- Japanese is one of my interests) and my friends aren't like me at all. </p>
<p>Does anyone have any input?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>(crossposted to Caltech and Berkeley)</p>
<p>Columbia is the best overall. It has more academic prestige/opportunities than Berkeley and a hell of a lot more social life than Caltech.</p>
<p>I’d go to Columbia hands down.</p>
<p>fireshark, I am in a similar situation too. I’ve been accepted to Columbia but people are telling me to attend Carnegie Mellon instead because it offers a better EE education. I would also like to go to Columbia but I need someone to convince me. :D</p>
<p>How are the research opportunities at Columbia, how is the academic staff and the undergrad experience in general?</p>
<p>if you’re doing engineering - you should know about URIP, which says that every lab on campus has to be open to ugrad research participants. you can start researching as soon as you get on campus.</p>
<p>the academic staff is top notch, most come from top graduate programs, and if the few profs that i know in eng they seem personable, engaged and interested especially in helping ugrads (in fact a recent study by columbia affirmed this was the case at the expense of grad students in engineering). the university as a whole has millions of dollars being pumped into it for research, and it is actually one of the best technology transfer universities out there (where research turns into patents and monies for the university).</p>
<p>but the reason to choose columbia over carnegie, berkeley, caltech is the superior ugrad experience overall. i didn’t put up upenn on here because it is rather distinct compared to columbia and i understand students might prefer that experience (i don’t). but central to columbia is the fact that it is probably the most intellectual/nerdy ivy, and it is okay with it because it is simultaneously in new york, which brings out other layers to your personality - it hardens you (riding the subway alone will do that), it makes you more adventurous (unafraid to ask for something you want), and overall just enriches your academic experience. the uni also that doesn’t have a weakness academically - you could do a minor in EALAC fireshark, and specialize in chinese, or you could just take courses that interest you with full confidence you re learning from an expert in whatever field. columbia is also trying to pioneer study abroad experiences for engineering students through strong specific engineering connections. it is also a good sized school, a bit larger than caltech at 1400 students, so it wont feel intimidatingly small, and yet it is part of the larger ugrad community with columbia college, and the larger university that has a top rate biz, med, law and international affairs programs.</p>
<p>last thing - this is a great time to be at SEAS, i’d say. it has a unique personality (trying to help students see engineering and understand how it an be applied in multiple situations - as they say building the socially conscious engineer). the new dean along with the current fundraising campaign means that new initiatives are starting and there is a lot of positive energy, which can be seen further by the fact that at 13.6%, columbia seas is probably the second most selective engineering school in the country. it has some of the smartest ugrads in the country.</p>
<p>and since you guys are both EE, you should know that EE as a dep’t takes pride in the fact that the majority of the past few valedictorians of the class have come from the dep’t. many can go on to phd programs if they so desire, others choose different routes (the law, biz/finance and most recently columbia has been pushing students toward startups).</p>
<p>Thank you admissionsgeek that contained a lot of answers to what I’ve been asked around for some time! </p>
<p>I would also like to know a little bit more about the startups and kinds of research being done in mechatronics. If you, or anyone, have/has any knowledge could you please respond or point me towards a source that might have an answer.</p>
<p>I was checking here to see what advice people were giving. I really like admissionsgeek’s detailed post. Let me try to single out, from a Berkeley student’s perspective, how some of the points compare:</p>
<p>-how the college “hardens you” – in some ways, Berkeley’s atmosphere is really “do whatever you feel like” and this can have that effect. Further, living in the city makes you see quite a lot of characters, and it’s definitely an experience. When I was up in New York for vacation, I identified with the atmosphere for a lot of the same reasons. The subway experience included. </p>
<p>-undergraduate focus: if Columbia’s professors are on average happiest to help undergraduates, let me tell you Berkeley’s are not necessarily so. You have to seek the ones who are out, but certainly they exist.</p>
<p>-EE: honestly, I feel there is probably more of an EECS culture at Berkeley. It’s one of the biggest hotspots in the country for scholars in that area, so if one is really seriously considering the field, I feel I would be seriously considering the more engineering-centric school. But keep in mind the culture at Berkeley in EECS is pretty obsessive. When I talk to the people in the major and visit the popular hangouts, they definitely are immersed in that culture. Those with outside interests do exist, certainly, but one should be aware of the situation.</p>
<p>-broadly strong departments: they are incredibly strong at both schools. I think the student body in most non-engineering subjects is stronger at Columbia. But in engineering, there are plenty of stars here.</p>