<p>What does CMU have to offer beside Engineering, Business and Fine Arts? My S has no idea what area he wants to go into, but has ruled out Engineering and Fine Arts and the Tepper School is too hard for him to get in. Under these circumstances, CMU is probably not a good fit for him. But for CMU's reputation, I want to make sure we're not missing out on this opportunity.</p>
<p>Since CMU offers acceptance to a particular school within the university, I don't think it is the best place for students who wish to sample a variety of areas. I'm sure you will hear from those who say that you can transfer to a different school within CMU and that it is possible to take classes in a different school, but it is not the easiest and most flexible option IMO. Students already in a particular school have registration priority and transfer is gpa- and space- dependent. If my kid really had no idea what to do, I'd recommend a university (not LAC or tech school) that offered exposure to many subjects, professions and types of people.</p>
<p>Happy hunting! :)</p>
<p>While the one of the best aspects about CMU is the broad range of areas of study available (in contrast to a school like Caltech), it is not very easy to transfer between schools and the curriculum in a specific school is specified, not liberal arts (for instance in CIT, we only have one humanities course a semester). So while there are many options for students at CMU, one really kinda needs to have chosen an area he knows he wants to study before freshman year. For instance if someone in CIT decided he wanted to switch to CS or to Tepper his sophomore year, even if the school let him, he would be way behind in the graduation requirements for that school. It's probably possible with course overload and summer classes, but not something that I'd recommend. To sum it up, I feel that a student who's not sure what he wants to go into is better off at a liberal arts than one with a specified curriculum.</p>
<p>True, true. One reason I recommended a university rather than LAC was that a university (with a more flexible system than CMU) will provide exposure to professional schools that a student may not really know about or consider (ex: law, medicine, business, health related professions, etc). For example, I would have never thought of pharmacy study, but I met a student who was in pharmacy school and that was my first exposure to the idea, which ultimately ended up to be my major. It's one thing to plan on law school or medical school, but it is a whole other thing to know people who are doing it.</p>
<p>LK: I don't know what you mean or are talking about. Carnegie Mellon is perhaps one of the best colleges aside from Rice U. that encourages diversity and double majoring and minoring in different subjects. The school curriculum for all majors require some kind of dabbling in other majors (even the drama kids) and none of my friends are just taking classes in their own major. I dont' see how you can even say what you are saying unless you are taking classes here because you'll see how ridiculous a statement like "CMU's not good for those that want to sample a variety of areas". Just because there are six different schools does not mean you are stuck. It is actually quite the opposite if you ask around the campus and look at the courseloads. For example look at Tepper's course requirements at business.tepper.cmu.edu. Look at all the non-business courses such as english, statistics, economics, programming, science, cultural courses, language, electives, etc. This is NOT including the "track' which may include tech systems or finance/management/accounting and it also does NOT include minors or double majors. To top things off, Carnegie Mellon is basically good at everything it offers (the op already mentioned engineering, business, arts). Add to that creative writing, cognitive psychology, computer science, info systems, architecture, and of course the prestigious Economics major with already six nobel laureates in its short life. </p>
<p>To the op: Have you looked at Economics? It is half in the Tepper business school and is not only reputable but a bit easier to get in than actual Tepper. Also you can apply to MULTIPLE schools with just one application by a simple checkmark so you can check many schools and see which you get into. It is hard to get into colleges these days but why not take a chance? It is only an extra check mark and if accepted it may be the happiest and most PROFITABLE four years of the student's life.</p>
<p>I suggest that the OP actually get information from the school about how easy it is to take a class in computer science if a student is accepted into H&SS, or whether fine arts classes and ensembles are accessable to physics majors, or investigate whatever versatility might be desired. He might also verify what is involved transferring to another school within the university once he decides where he wants to be, particularly if it is a competitive major. For example, I notice quite a few students thinking they are going to get in now and later transfer to CS or Tepper, but I think this is far from assured.</p>
<p>Sure, CMU is great at lots of things. But it is one of the few schools I have encountered that forces incoming freshman to make a major decision during the application process. Although my son was fairly sure of what he wanted to do, this aspect worried me a little. It would be wise for the OP to ask pointed questions if movement within the university is a priority. After all, there is not such thing as "undecided" major at CMU.</p>
<p>Another thought: AcceptedAlready may have a little different perspective as a business school major. Overall, business tends to be a little more multidisciplinary in nature than some majors, such as engineering, math, english literature, acting or music performance (etc). It is one major that really does require good verbal, math and social skills, and rightly requires their students to take courses in a wide variety of areas.</p>
<p>As a computer science major, I can take classes in many areas, since I have a bunch of free electives (partially because of APs) and a required minor. I'm probably going to complete a double major in psychology, for that matter. But actually switching majors (as opposed to doing a double major) is different. If I switched majors to psychology, most of the math classes I've taken for CS requirements would be useless, and I would need to fill the distribution requirements for H&SS, which are quite a bit different.</p>
<p>CMU is good for students with one main interest (major) and an interest in several other topics. It isn't a good place for students who are unsure of their major, because of the difficulty of transferring between schools. Rice has an interdisciplinary focus, too, and encourages double majors, which most of CMU encourages. But at Rice to change majors (except to music), all you have to do is fill out some paperwork and talk to people, not actually go through an application process for limited spots.</p>
<p>LK: HSS students are allowed to take CS courses quite liberally too. My friend is doing a double in creative writing and comp sci and as long as you maintain the 3.0 you are allowed to do so. Transferring ITSELF to CS may require you to get A's in a few CS courses but double majoring requires ONLY 3.0 and taking courses in CS alone are very open and encouraged.</p>
<p>Sorry if I came off a bit harsh as I do respect your opinion. I gave business as an example as that's obviously the field I have the most experience with but I can assure you that CFA/HSS have as much if not more freedom. CFA kids are even REQUIRED to take courses outside of their school and HSS kids are given so many electives (comparatively) that many do doubles or intense concentrations such as Quant Econ.</p>
<p>KrazyKow is correct and Rice is definitely the #1 school in the top 25 for doubles, but CMU is arguably on the next tier. The transferring of majors is not exactly what is encouraged here but double majoring/minoring and electives in other courses are.</p>
<p>Besides engineering, CS, fine arts, and business, CMU also has excellent undergraduate programs in architecture, psychology, economics, and statistics. The science majors (physics, chemistry, biology) are not exactly top, but are pretty decent too. The Department of Biological Sciences in particular seems to be undergoing a major expansion hiring new faculty and establishing partnerships with the University of Pittsburgh Medical School . Another major your son might want to consider is mathematics (pure math is rather weak at CMU, but applied math is actually pretty strong).</p>