<p>hello guys,
I need some advice regarding my undergraduate education. I'm currently at the University of Rochester, my dream school. I would stay for grad school, but I like moving around. Caltech, because of its history and research, would be an ideal place for me to attend for grad school. My problem, though, is what I should couple with my Brain and Cognitive science degree. I would like a liberal arts undergraduate education, so i'd like to study philosophy and political science. However, I would rather go to a school like Caltech for grad school and be on the cutting edge of research than study non-sciences. My other option is to double major in Comp Sci and Brain and Cognitive science. Is it a significant advantage to double in CS and BCS, or will I be fine if I diversify, and do BCS research? (I would obviously do research either way, I just wanted to point out that BCS would still be the focus if I went more liberal artsy)</p>
<p>If you want to go to grad school at Caltech, research trumps any double major combination.</p>
<p>Do what you love–the rest will take care of itself. If you want to go to grad school here (or anywhere), you need to do research. If research is a burden, grad school is probably not for you (and that’s not necessarily a bad thing!). I’m not a BCS person, but one of my friends is. Based on her experiences, knowing how to program is an advantage and, depending on what you study, a requirement for BCS research. That doesn’t mean you need a CS major, but you should take a few classes and be proficient in relevant programming languages. Beyond that, take classes you enjoy. You are only an undergrad once, and you likely won’t have an opportunity to take many pure liberal arts classes as a graduate student. :)</p>