<p>For Humanities, which of these schools is CMU on par with? Which is it better than?</p>
<p>Wesleyan
Amherst
Swarthmore
Middlebury
Bowdoin
Tufts
Pomona
Claremont McKenna
Vassar
Haverford</p>
<p>I think that <em>really</em> depends on the major. For example, philosophy at CMU is fantastic. Foreign languages, on the other hand, are rather week (although you can take some classes at Pitt…)</p>
<p>Alright, let me clarify. I’m interested in English Lit and History.</p>
<p>*I meant rather weak… 
not “week”
You can take a look at these for “rankings”
<a href=“http://www.cmu.edu/news/rankings/historical-rankings-august-2009-update.pdf[/url]”>http://www.cmu.edu/news/rankings/historical-rankings-august-2009-update.pdf</a>
<a href=“http://www.cmu.edu/news/rankings/rankingsroundup.indd.pdf[/url]”>http://www.cmu.edu/news/rankings/rankingsroundup.indd.pdf</a></p>
<p>That being said, it’s very hard to objectively rank History and Literature majors because they have relatively little job prospects (no offense…) It’s really a matter of what you want to study. Check out the classes at each school, and decide by what piques your interest. Bonus points for checking each instructor’s curriculum vitae.</p>
<p>Yo, English major here with a creative writing focus. </p>
<p>Our dramaturgy and writing programs are well known and tend to produce grads who find jobs pretty easily. History is not as strong, but then again, what are you realistically going to do with a pure History degree? </p>
<p>When looking at undergrad schools for humanities (at that point I wanted to be the next Hemingway or something - I don’t know what the hell I was thinking) I selected CMU largely based on the size of the program, the intensity, and the lack of pretentiousness. </p>
<p>The writing program is about 80 kids, give or take. For Lit, it’s probably even smaller. All your professors know you, and you know them. They’re all cool with wildly different personalities. They are interested in your writing and encourage you to send them outside work for them to discuss it with you. They will help you find a publisher if that’s what you want, or hook you up with press/lit internships if that’s more your deal. They’re flexible and support what you want in your career - for example, I want to go into video game writing, so they’re freely giving me credit for taking game writing workshops at the ETC rather than, say, “Advanced Poetry” or “Chaucer Through the Ages.”</p>
<p>The English program is also intense. You miss more than two classes in most English courses, you drop a letter grade. If your writing is poor or your development is incredibly slow, you are advised not to continue in the major. This generally ensures that English majors as a whole are of a very high level of caliber and are able to keep small class sizes. My last discussion on Arthurian Romances was 8 people, 2 of whom were PhD candidates. </p>
<p>Lastly, the reason I chose CMU over schools like Swarthmore and Wesleyan was that when I visited humanities/lit/history/etc courses at those schools, the students were continually trying to one-up each other in discussion. Everyone seemed to be trying to forcefully prove that they were the most intelligent kid there. At CMU, most people are a little more down to earth - we just relax, eat lunch/drink coffee and analyze good books. That, to me, is the best thing I could ask for. </p>
<p>What do you plan to do with your degrees? That might help in terms of allowing me to provide you with better information.</p>
<p>Hooray! CK is back 
Edit: nvmind you were back on Halloween but hooray anyway xD</p>
<p>Haha, not really – just felt like this was a thread that others on the board probably wouldn’t know much about. A few weeks away from CC has been fun and I don’t think I’ll be posting as regularly :p</p>
<p>Hi Kate. Can I ask what your major is, andhow good is the Economics major in HSS with Tepper?</p>
<p>One might ask if someone were a “STEM” major would they want to major in Math/CS/Engineering etc. at a LAC or any of those on your list? It’s possible and of course it’s possible to major in History at CMU. That said-- most people would agree, you would get a different emphasis or education at CMU in Humanities than you will at a school emphasizing Humanities or a more comprehensive university.</p>
<p>Bottom line-- You can major in anything anywhere at the the undergraduate level-- the real issue is about “fit” with the student body and the extracurricular/research opportunities you might find at any given institution.</p>
<p>Visit-- if you see yourself at CMU for four years, then you’ll be fine.</p>
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<p>Tepper is more respected and much more selective, but the courseload is similar for both majors and they compete for jobs. Tepper requires a business GE core and Econ has a humanities set of general ed requirements.</p>