<p>I asked the Caltech vs Harvey Mudd question over on the Mudd forum and I'm wondering if anyone here would like to address the contention over there that the quality of teaching is better at Mudd, and that students are happier. See <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=324551%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=324551</a> starting at post #8. We would appreciate the thoughts of anyone who would like to help with this comparison of D's options. Thanks.</p>
<p>Why not visit both schools and make your own (or I suppose have your daughter make her own) decision? In any case, it's certainly more important whether your daughter would be happy at x school than comparing numbers on other students' happiness. Of course, the latter has some bearing on the former, but if you can experience the former first hand, why settle for an estimate based on crude variables?</p>
<p>I honestly don't know much about Harvey Mudd, but my experience with the teaching here has been mostly positive and I certainly know many happy people. Of course, I also have had bad teachers and I know bitter people, but overall I would not say this is representative of Tech.</p>
<p>Lizzardfire: She is leaving on Saturday to go to accepted student weekends at both schools. Hopefully she will feel that one or the other is the "right" place for her. But I am also a nervous parent, trying to gather whatever information I can, as input into a decision that might send my oldest child across the country, where I truly hope she will be happy. I also know that colleges are not always what they seem to be at prefrosh weekend, so I am happy to have input from any knowledgable sources, in case D should ask my opinion!</p>
<p>My views on the teaching here are very similar to UndulyLlamarific's:
[quote]
From the perspective of an undergrad at Caltech: Most of the professors I've had so far in technical subjects have seemed to love teaching and interacting with undergraduates - and are friendly to students outside of class! Pretty much all are willing to answer questions in class, talk after class, set up a meeting with you, or take you out to lunch at the Ath to hear your input on the class (many actively encourage these things.) Most ask for constructive criticism of their teaching style, sometimes by giving out surveys throughout the term (clear enough? too fast? too slow?) or by asking you to pass through requests about the lecture-style through your TAs. Our humanities and social science classes are based around discussion and student-professor interaction, so they're like that even more so.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>As far as I can tell, many of the perceived problems here seem to stem from undergrads who are not willing to put in the effort to talk to professors or provide feedback. While there probably exist the rare professor that some students find unreasonable (see LabRatInc's posts in the other thread), by and large my experiences with the faculty have been very positive. </p>
<p>On a side note, there have been complaints by the undergrad population regarding the quality of teaching, specifically with regard to TAs. In response, we are currently expanding our TA training program. </p>
<p>In terms of happiness, I and most other undergrads I know are quite happy here. </p>
<p>A note: on any of these college boards, I find it likely that the group of students responding to posts will be largely supportive of their school since they are a self-selecting group. I encourage prospective students of any college to visit those schools, actively seek out students who dislike that school, and discuss the cons of the school.</p>
<p>Mother<em>Of</em>Perl: I would certainly do the same thing as you are if I were in your position. I just think it's really hard to get an idea of comparative happiness from talking to people on college confidential who a) may not be representative of the general population of a school and b) have little/inaccurate knowledge about the undergrad life at the place they are comparing to. That being said, I'd like to help you in your search for information, so I will tell you what I do know:</p>
<p>The house system at Caltech causes Tech to have a very unique social atmosphere. You can read about a few of the houses here in this thread (<a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=314867&page=2)%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=314867&page=2)</a>. One of them is even by me! </p>
<p>I could go on and on about happy students here, but I'd rather show you Tech's dark side: What makes people unhappy (in my opinion).</p>
<p>Tech is hard. If you are a person who freaks out when you get an A minus, you'll have a very hard time being happy here unless you manage to get over your perfectionism (which is probably a good thing, but I digress). In addition, if you like being the big fish, you might not like Tech. </p>
<p>Tech's dating scene is not great (although this is mostly for the guys). One reason is that Tech is so small and personal (although HMC is even smaller, right?) so dating becomes hard since you know everyone. Another reason is that many people who come here haven't had a lot of experience dating.</p>
<p>The most bitter people here are probably bitter because of the two above reasons. If you dislike hard work, Tech is not the place for you. </p>
<p>There's something else worth mentioning: It's a Tech tradition to complain about your workload. Even I participate in this tradition. It's not as bad as we like to make it sound when we joke around. </p>
<p>In my personal experience, I've been very satisfied with the social scene here. Yes, I wish dating was more available, but would I trade that aspect for the house system, the honor code, the small, tight-knit community? No. Having gone here for 2/3 of a year, have I ever regretted my decision? No. Do I love it here? Yes. </p>
<p>I hope this helps.</p>
<p>lizzardfire and omgninja: Thanks very much for your comments.</p>
<p>I did read the house thread and so did my D. She is looking forward to seeing it first hand next week. Meanwhile, I'll keep reading! Thanks for being understanding of an anxious parent!</p>
<p>I'm the mom of a current Caltech Freshman. While I can't speak to the teaching at Harvey Mudd, the one thing that surprised me when I went to the parent orientation at Caltech was to hear the physics professor talk about not teaching what was on exams or on homework assignments. I actually left very puzzled. And am still somewhat puzzled(I guess what is learned in problem sets is how to apply the info taught in class and that's why the prof doesn't teach what is on exams, etc). What does this mean for my son? He learns on his own. He attends class when he needs to and skips class if he feels like he's not learning from the professor. He asks and gets help when he doesn't understand something or isn't able to complete an assignment.(And yes, I had my own mom freakout the first term when I heard he wasn't attending a class..by the end of second term I finally understood and got the message that he is learning the material and attending some classes doesn't matter & he's assured me he attends when ever class attendance is required. Is he happy at Caltech? Yes. Very. I think the teaching style suits him. He can learn on his own, at his own pace, however crazy it is (staying up all night). Maybe for some students, the "learn on your own" style doesn't work. I think it might be something for your daughter to consider. The advantage for my son. He uses the time he doesn't go to class to catch up on sleep or to learn other things. For example, he hasn't been able to fit Japanese into his schedule, so he's teaching himself Japanese in his spare time. (granted, some of it is watching anime, but otherwise its actually trying to learn to write as while as read japanese.) And he works on math problems that interest him. I wonder if some people need a professor to help them learn the material and others do just as well learning on their own. Maybe some other Caltech students can talk about this aspect of it. Hope that is helpful information. I think even when it comes to teaching styles or institute philosophies, it all comes down to what fits an individual. I totally relate to being an anxious parent. Some students on this boards have actually told me to get a life and stop worrying about him. (When do those grades for 2nd term come out?). ;)</p>