<p>I'm pretty sure Princeton Engineering is perceived to be stronger than Columbia's, though it only has five majors and no AM.</p>
<p>I'd like to point out that according to the one Brown engineer alumni I've met, the open core doesn't really help for engineering majors because of the huge list of required courses.</p>
<p>Hey,</p>
<p>I actually modified this from a previous post I wrote. Here's my subjective opinion.</p>
<p>I personally transferred out of Columbia primarily because of overall feel of the school. Columbia is a terrific place in some regards, and at times can be beautiful (particularly in the summer/ early fall). Yet New York is a seriously intense city and with it Columbia is an intense school. Warmth and comfort is not on the agenda, it’s a sink or swim environment. Particuarly in the sciences, it is full of large lecture classes with harsh curves. Similarly, go stand in line at Kent Hall to meet the registrar and it feels like communist Russia.</p>
<p>Columbia students are relatively intense and it’s a less social school than its Ivy peers. The New York nights are figuratively dark and on the weekends the school sometimes feels like a ghost town. The dorms, similarly, have more rules and regulations than you'll find at other schools. I've been to dorm parties at Brown with 50 people, at Columbia you'll rarely find that happening. Even the library is relatively quiet as opposed to many schools where there are vibrant 24-hr social areas in the library. Many Columbia students like going out in the city and find the campus lively enough with the plus of having NYC. For an urban school it does have community, much more so than a place like NYU. Yet, compared to most schools the campus social life is relatively weak. </p>
<p>Columbia does do somethings very well. There are lots of classes available (i.e. Sanskrit) and some unique majors that come with attending a large university. Also, people wanting to go into media or fashion can intern part-time. Columbia tends to be cliquey which is actually comforting to some, particularly internationals. </p>
<p>I can see how more independent, intense, students might love Columbia. I think a more fun-loving more carefree community-oriented type of person would prefer Brown or Dartmouth.</p>
<p>For the record, Princeton engineering is ranked significantly ahead of Columbia, very close behind Cornell.</p>
<p>For engineering. Columbia wins hand down. Brown is very good though for (applied) math. </p>
<p>Overall, however, Columbia is far more prestigious, especially internationally.</p>
<p>Double majoring is easy at Brown, as the open curriculum means you only have to worry about fulfilling requirements for the major(s). </p>
<p>I'm pretty sure that a dual degree means your two majors would earn you two different degrees, a BA and a ScB, whereas a double major would be one degree that fulfilled two majors, like a BA in history and french.</p>
<p>Just for the record:</p>
<p>USNEWS 2008 Engineering Ranking</p>
<p>Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (highest degree is a doctorate)</p>
<ol>
<li>Massachusetts Inst. of Technology 4.9</li>
<li>Stanford University (CA) 4.7</li>
<li>University of California–Berkeley * 4.7</li>
<li>California Institute of Technology 4.6</li>
<li>Georgia Institute of Technology * 4.5</li>
<li>U. of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign * 4.5</li>
<li>Cornell University (NY) 4.4</li>
<li>University of Michigan–Ann Arbor * 4.4</li>
<li>Carnegie Mellon University (PA) 4.2</li>
<li>Purdue Univ.–West Lafayette (IN)* 4.2</li>
<li>University of Texas–Austin * 4.2</li>
<li>Princeton University (NJ) 4.1</li>
<li>Univ. of Wisconsin–Madison * 4.0</li>
<li>Johns Hopkins University (MD) 3.9</li>
<li>Northwestern University (IL) 3.9</li>
<li>Virginia Tech * 3.9</li>
<li>Pennsylvania State U.–University Park * 3.8</li>
<li>Rice University (TX) 3.8</li>
<li>Texas A&M Univ.–College Station * 3.8</li>
<li>Columbia University (NY) 3.7</li>
<li>Rensselaer Polytechnic Inst. (NY) 3.7</li>
<li>Univ. of California–Los Angeles * 3.7</li>
<li>Univ. of Minnesota–Twin Cities * 3.7</li>
<li>University of Washington * 3.7</li>
<li>Duke University (NC) 3.6</li>
<li>Ohio State University–Columbus * 3.6</li>
<li>Univ. of California–San Diego * 3.6</li>
</ol>
<p>I think these PA numbers are heavily affected by the size of the program (and maybe number of specialties).
I'd rather have my rocket scientist come from Columbia or Princeton than Georgia Tech.</p>
<p>This might be a common perception, but employers know where the top programs are located. Even though name does help out a lottt, its a mistake to rely solely on name, particularly for certain majors/field. Doing so, and you're liable to find yourself receiving the short-end of the stick.</p>
<p>Few Ivy engineers end up working in actual engineering, most take more lucrative jobs in finance, consulting, or venture capital. I would hesitate to compare engineering undergrad ranks when comparing Ivy engineering schools.</p>
<p>As far as I can recall the majority of engineers I went to school with at Cornell took jobs in engineering after college.</p>
<p>I think likelihood of actually becoming an engineer, and preparation for same, is a basis to compare "engineering" schools. If that's what you want to do.</p>
<p>For those who don't, I hope they don't feel years later that they essentially wasted their undergraduate education learning technical arcana that they find to be virtually valueless later on down the road.</p>
<p>I sort of feel that way, myself.</p>
<p>The ability to process information by segmenting a problem is a tremendously valuable skill. Engineers and math majors excel at this, this is why they are so coveted by top banks and consulting firms.</p>
<p>the rankings are of course favoring traditional engineering programs. Columbia has an unusually strong liberal arts focus in its SEAS which, combined with a very small graduate program, causes it to fall short in the rankings.</p>
<p>I'm not too familiar with Brown but presumably a similar effect is happening with them as well. Cornell ranks highly because it sticks very closely to "pure" engineering.</p>
<p>bump.......</p>
<p>I think it would be fair to say that Columbia has a more accomplished engineering school.</p>
<p>Unless there was a "Providence Project" I was simply unaware of....</p>
<p>Holy Moly! These are the two most different schools you could ever pick! One is sooo liberal, laid back, community-oriented, let's all be happy, and the other is cut-throat, competitive, sink-or-swim, intense school!
I'm a current Columbia student, and I am filling out transfer applications to go elsewhere, because I personally don't like the environment.
It's a very intense atmosphere. Everyone here is out for themselves, not necessarily like they'd sabotage the other person, but definitely... I wanna be the best.
There are a lot of over-acheiving students, hence how they got in, which is cool, but it's not for me.
I prefer a laid back atmosphere, so if I could go back and reapply, I'd probably have applied to Brown. Columbia was the only ivy league school I picked.
Anyhow, if you are an independent, over-acheiving, I don't want or need anyone to hold my hand studious student, and you love the challenge, then go to Columbia.
I say if you want a good balance, if you want a happier community type atmosphere, go to Brown.
Oh, and I go to the engineering school. We have core requirements which are a *****! Hence the inflexibility people talk about as oppossed to Brown. The professors tho are approachable.
However, most of the students I know graduating do end up in finance, consulting, etc.
Engineers are pretty wanted for their analytical skills. If I were you, I'd consider very hard if that's what I wanted to do, esp. if you go to Columbia, because it's extremely hard to transfer from Columbia Engineering to Columbia College. They're 2 different schools.
Good luck!</p>
<p>Also, Columbia may have a big name, but I've gone to Engineering conferences, and if you actually do want to get into the profession, Columbia and Brown are in the same ranks. They're not necessarily known for their engineering programs. And they are actually more theoretical than practical unlike other schools.</p>
<p>are you serious? columbia is hardly a cut-throat school. and the engineering core is nothing.</p>
<p>neither school is technical engineering - it's the thinking ability. if you actually want to be an engineer it's all about grad school anyways.</p>
<p>i have no idea why you have such an impression of columbia, because it's nothing like what i see every day.</p>