Can I be happy without humanities?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I am a high school junior starting to look at colleges. I have competitive stats for the best schools as well as very good ECs. I dot want to give too much info. </p>

<p>My main reason for coming here is to see if anyone else has shared in my experience. I love Biology and chemistry, and I am 100% set on majoring in Biology in college. I want to get a very in depth biology background in order to recieve a Phd or an MD-Phd. So far my favorite biology program has been MIT; I am interested in evolutionary genetics as well as neuroscience and behavior. My one problem is that I am more of a humanities based students. I love history and English, and definitely would plan to double major/minor. </p>

<p>I am starting to get the feeling that an LAC might be a better fit for me. I have read a lot about Pomona and I know that they are strong in the sciences. However, will attending a LAC put me at a disadvantage when applying to grad school (Harvard Biology grad school is kind of a dream of mine)? I know that Pomona has research opportunities but I have not found a university with research opportunities as wide spread as MIT. I also don't know if the environment if MIT is for me. I like to be able to ask my professors lots of questions, and if I had to choose, I like the idea of a nurturing, artsy environment. I am also a dancer so that effects my decision a lot. </p>

<p>Any help or suggestions would be great. I have also visited Barnard/Columbia and Harvard, as well as BU (really didn't like it).</p>

2

<p>What about Tufts or Brandeis? Both have good bio and chem programs, as well as extensive research opportunities in other fields. They both have a distinctive campus quite close to Boston, and both have a more well rounded student body than MIT. If you have the stats to get into MIT, they’re both matches/safeties.</p>

<p>What’s your home state? How much can you afford? If you don’t know the exact dollar amount, ask your parents.</p>

3

<p>MIT has a decent selection of humanities departments (foreign language and literature, history, linguistics and philosophy, (English) literature, music and theater arts), as well as a humanities, arts, and social studies requirement covering a minimum of about a fourth of your course work for a bachelor’s degree.</p>

<p>[MIT</a> - Education](<a href=“http://web.mit.edu/education/]MIT”>Education | MIT - Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
[About</a> the HASS Requirement](<a href=“HASS Requirement | MIT Registrar”>HASS Requirement | MIT Registrar)</p>

<p>For history in particular, here are the offerings for 2012-2013:</p>

<p>[Subject</a> Listings | MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences](<a href=“http://history.mit.edu/subjects]Subject”>Subjects – MIT History)</p>

<p>For theater arts, here are the offerings:</p>

<p>[MIT</a> Theater Arts](<a href=“Massachusetts Institute of Technology |”>Massachusetts Institute of Technology |)</p>

<p>There is also cross registration with a few other nearby colleges if you exhaust the humanities offerings at MIT:</p>

<p>[Cross-registration:</a> MIT Office of the Registrar](<a href=“Registration & Academics | MIT Registrar”>Registration & Academics | MIT Registrar)</p>

<p>However, MIT is a reach for everyone, so you should have some safety schools that you like, will certainly get into, and can certainly afford. Your in-state flagship may be a candidate, since it is likely large enough to have plenty of course and research offerings in biology, chemistry, and humanities. Be aware that biology and chemistry courses are very commonly taken and are often among the largest courses at any school.</p>

<p>Be aware that biology, chemistry, and humanities do not have very good major-specific job prospects, so you may need to be aggressive about finding internships and jobs.</p>

4

<p>Apply first, then decide if the problem arises. You ever know with admissions. Just give yourself good options.</p>

5

<p>I live in NYC and I don’t qualify for any type of financial aid.
I would like to get away from NY state if possible.</p>

6

<p>Consider University of Rochester. Lots of undergraduate research opportunities, lots of opportunities to interact with and ask questions of professors, limited requirements in the humanities (freshman writing, 3 linked humanities classes). It now also has a dance minor and several excellent student-run dance troupes.</p>

<p>ETA: I posted before you said you wanted to leave NY state. But consider it anyway; it sounds like it might be a good fit for you.</p>

7

<p>Cutiedida - will you be able to afford up to $60k a year for college? If not, you’re going to have to look at schools which either give extremely generous financial aid (and are reaches for everyone) or schools which give merit aid</p>

8

<p>Money is not an issue in my college selection. Talk of money makes me feel bad haha</p>

9

<p>

When you look at MIT, make sure that you’re looking at undergraduate research opportunities. MIT has a lot of grad students who may have first crack at the interesting research.</p>

<p>I also mis-read your post - that you like humanities. There are a lot of small universities and colleges that could fit your bill.</p>

10

<p>I guess one of my biggest problems is getting over the social hurdle of NOT feeling the need to major in engineering or go to Harvard or MIT. I like the small college feel and loved the laid back yet intellectual feel of Pomona. The idea of a small LAC is really something I am looking for. I also liked Princeton, but I still feel like that is severely a sink or swim environment. I don’t need someone that holds my hand, but I would like professors who want me to do well.</p>

<p>The idea of a “liberal arts” curriculum is right up my alley.</p>

11

<p>MIT’s General Institute Requirements actually enforce a well rounded liberal arts curriculum on every student:</p>

<p>[MIT</a> Course Catalog: Undergraduate General Institute Requirements](<a href=“Welcome! < MIT”>Welcome! < MIT)</p>

<p>At schools like Brown or Amherst, you may have to specifically choose courses to get a well rounded liberal arts curriculum.</p>

12

<p>UCB, from what I understood from OP’s first post was that she wanted a student body that was more diverse in interest (not all looking at STEM fields). OP, correct me if I’m wrong.</p>

13

<p>I find that kind if a hard question to answer. I just love beig surrounded by a diverse community, including the so-called “artsy” crowd.
I guess I would say that I don’t want to be surrounded by only STEM majors. I love being surrounded by Biology majors, Art History majors, and English majors, maybe even a Com Sci major.</p>

14

<p>MIT’s students are about 80% STEM majors, so that might not be what you are looking for.</p>

<p>At a more general flagship-level university, the large majors tend to include biology, psychology, English, political science, and (where offered) business. Engineering (where offered) may be large if one adds up all of the engineering specialties together. Smaller schools may have more skewed major distributions based on their attractiveness (academically and otherwise) to particular types of students.</p>

<p>Here is Stony Brook’s distribution of bachelor’s degree majors:
<a href=“http://www.stonybrook.edu/offires/departments/BaccalaureateDegrees.pdf[/url]”>http://www.stonybrook.edu/offires/departments/BaccalaureateDegrees.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

15

<p>If you are really competitive for top schools be sure to look at;</p>

<p>Swarthmore (lots of top school PhD’s do undergrad there)
Williams
Amherst</p>

16

<p>I’d look at Stanford. Research opportunities in the sciences in your areas of interest are equally as good as those at MIT. You can also enroll in SLE (Structured Liberal Education) as a freshman for the LAC experience. And even if you are committed to the sciences, you will be sharing your next four years with students who are as committed to their areas of interest in the social sciences and the humanities are you to yours in the sciences. That exposure is especially valuable if you plan to spend the rest of your life in the sciences. (Much better weather too!)</p>

<p>D seriously considered MIT but ended up at Stanford for the reasons above and others.</p>

17

<p>I am a little worried that a school like Stanford wouldn’t give me enough research opportunities since there is no UROP sort program in place, so I would be competeting directly with grad students. I also worry that I will be mostly taught by T.A.s
Please let me know if I am incorrect.</p>

18

<p>Basically I love the undergraduate emphasis and nurturing environment of an LAC, but I still want really strong science programs with research opportunities that would allow me to go to top Biology grad programs</p>

19

<p>

</p>

<p>If anything, the PhD productivity data suggests the opposite may be true.
([COLLEGE</a> PHD PRODUCTIVITY](<a href=“http://www.reed.edu/ir/phd.html]COLLEGE”>Doctoral Degree Productivity - Institutional Research - Reed College))</p>

<p>I don’t know about admission specifically to Harvard’s biology department, though.</p>

20

<p>Wow Reed looks like a really cool school!
Does anyone else find it hard to surpass traditional, high prestige schools, for a school like Reed that none of my family from Europe or friends on the East Coast know about?
I don’t really mind but I do think about it.</p>