Concerns about Tufts

Colleges and Universities A-Z Tufts University
1

<p>Hey, this is a little long, but I'd really appreciate it if you could read through it all and give me an honest response.....</p>

<p>I was deciding between Tufts and Duke ED and applied to Duke because I want to major in Biology. I was deferred, and I'm thinking about applying to Tufts ED2, because didn't really apply anywhere else (3 other schools that I'm not THAT crazy about attending), and Tufts seems like it would be a good time.</p>

<p>However, I have some questions for any current Tufts students/grads:</p>

<p>(1) I'm a little hesitant about the language requirement. How intense is it? For how long are you required to take a language? Are there a wide variety of courses one can take (like "Italian Cinema" or "Chinese Art", etc.) or are they all just courses designed to make a person proficient in a language? MOST importantly, do you feel like the language requirement saps away time that you would rather be taking different courses?</p>

<p>(2) Language aside, are there a lot of requirements at Tufts? What are they and are they a pain in the ass?</p>

<p>(3) I've heard people say that Tufts is big enough that you don't know everyone, but small enough that you see familiar faces. How true is that? I want to go to a place where I definitely don't have to know/ see everybody all the time, and can go to different parties and see different people every week. You see, my high school (a huge public school in NJ) sends 7-8 + students every year, and I don't necessarily want to see them that often.</p>

<p>(4) Tufts is renowned in Interternational relations and all that, right? But how are the sciences, especially Biology? The thing that drew me towards Duke away from tufts is that Duke is renowned in Bio and has the facilities to accomodate someone interested in science. Are any of the people who are reading this biology majors (or any other science...) at Tufts? How are the research facilities? Are there plenty of opportunities? How is the faculty? </p>

<p>(5) Lastly, I've heard a lot of concerns about Tufts' career services. Does anyone know about this?</p>

<p>Alright, if you've read all of that, thank you very much. I visited Tufts 3 times (I have a sibling who goes to school in Massachusetts), and it is an awesome school. But if I'm going to commit to another ED, I feel like scrutinizing the place just a little bit more...</p>

<p>----Thanks in advance for your help----</p>

2

<p>1) There are two ways to fulfill the language requirement at Tufts. The first way is to take 6 semesters, or the equivalent, of a single language. "Equivalent" means that if you test in to French 3, for example, then the French 1 & 2 you test out of count as 2 semesters; so you only have to take 4 at Tufts. The other way is to take 3 semesters of foreign language, or the equivalent (same deal as before), PLUS 3 semesters of foreign culture classes (yes, those include cinema, art, and literature type classes). I have a friend who sucks at foreign language and tested into Latin 4 with his high school experience, so he got to skip the 3 semesters of foreign language and then took 3 semesters of African culture. I think most people at Tufts don't feel that the language requirement takes away from other classes they want to take, especially since a good portion of the student body wants to go abroad for a semester or their full junior year. You can take five classes each semester -- one language class won't make that much of a difference.</p>

<p>2) There are core and distribution requirements at Tufts. They can cross-count for your major(s) & minor(s). You can find them if you search the Internet or Tufts website for the "Tufts Bulletin." They're not that much of a pain in the ass. They kind of force you to take classes you wouldn't otherwise. If you're applying to liberal arts school you have to accept the liberal arts curriculum.</p>

<p>3) The whole big enough you're always meeting someone, but small enough you don't feel lost totally applies to Tufts. 100%. And don't worry about running into your high school peers; there are several from my h.s. here as well and I never see them unless I make a point of seeing them. You know, you'll run into them on the library steps or on the quad every now and then, but chances are, if you don't really want to run into them, they're not looking for you either. ;-)</p>

<p>4) The pre-med program here is excellent; med school placement is great. The natural sciences are considered very strong. But I will have someone else answer this in greater detail as I am actually an IR & English major. You should know, though, that a lot of money goes into undergraduate research at Tufts. You can apply for grant money to do research with a biology professor, etc.</p>

<p>5) Tufts Career Services requires you to be proactive. You have to go in and ask for help when you need it. If you do, they're great. If you expect them to find you a job while you do nothing except give them a resume to pass around, they won't be able to do much for you.</p>

<p>And you're totally right in "scrutinizing" a place you are considering contractually obligating yourself to go to if accepted! Anything else, please ask. Good luck, JJRock!</p>

3

<p>Lolabelle, thank you so much for your detailed response. That was so prompt and awesome. Do you happen to know anyone on CC who is a major in Biology or something? I can just PM them, you don't have to ask around. You've done so much work already!</p>

4

<p>Snuffles, Bluirinka, Wrathofachilles are all current students on the natural sciences and/or pre-med track. Don't worry, though, people check the posts on CC regularly and pretty soon someone will be getting back to you. Having people answer your questions on the forums as opposed to personal messages is always communally better, I think, because then other people can read the answers.</p>

5

<p>There is a language placement test, and I think that most people place out of a couple semesters of language courses. In order to study abroad, you may have to pass language courses at a certain level.</p>

<p>I believe the biology department is pretty strong. I have a friend who has a PhD in biology from Tufts and he is on the faculty at Harvard Medical School and is head of their AIDS research lab. If you are interested in going to medical school, Tufts has a special program that admits you into their medical school at the end of sophomore year.</p>

<p>Tufts is a nice size for a college. It's big enough so that you have some privacy, but small enough to make friends easily.</p>

<p>I'd recommend applying to Tufts ED2. I think you'd like the school. :-)</p>

6

<ol>
<li><p>No language requirements for engineers ;) But like everyone else said, there are plenty of ways to fulfill your language requirement.</p></li>
<li><p>Not really.. As an engineer/pre-med, the only core engineering requirements that I don't have to do as a pre-med anyways are two extra math classes and a few half credit engineering courses.</p></li>
<li><p>
[quote]
You see, my high school (a huge public school in NJ) sends 7-8 + students every year, and I don't necessarily want to see them that often.

[/quote]

LoL..</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Tufts has over 1000 students per grade and almost 5,000 total, so it's completely up to you whom you want to hang out with.</p>

<ol>
<li>Tufts has a solid biology program. It obviously doesn't provide the research opportunities other science-oriented school might have, such MIT, but all of the natural sciences are relatively strong compared to similar schools.</li>
</ol>

<p>
[quote]
I'm thinking about applying to Tufts ED2, because didn't really apply anywhere else (3 other schools that I'm not THAT crazy about attending)

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Do not apply early DECISION unless you are 100% positive that you want to go to that school. If Duke is still your first choice, then you still have a chance to get in RD. However, if for some reason you don't want to go to Duke anymore, and there are no others places where you'd rather be, then applying ED to Tufts would be a great idea and a huge stress-relief come February.</p>

7

<p>I am a biology major, but I have a huge final and probably won't have time to compose a response right now. I have, however, written lenghty discourses on the Tufts biology/premed curriculum in my post history if you have time to burn and fish them out.</p>

8

<p>LOL i'm not a premed/natural sciences major! I'm doubling in IR and Econ!</p>

<p>my roommate's premed, though, and so are like half the other people I know here and they're all really pleased with the science programs. Bio and Chem are hard, and people know this and study up for them. I hear the research opportunities are great b/c you get to know the prof. you're working with really well.</p>

<p>About not running into people: okay, there are some people I don't want to see that lived only a dorm or so away from me and I NEVER saw them. The only other girl here from my high school is a junior who lives off campus and I have literally seen her twice in my entire time here, just like walking past her on the steps to the campus center. A couple of other kids I knew from home I see verrrrry rarely because of the uphill/downhill divide, hahaha.</p>

<p>Edit: I mean, you might get screwed over if you end up being put on a hall with all seven of them, but I suppose if that happens you can ask to live somewhere else ;-)</p>

9

<p>Thanks for all of the replies so far! Very helpful....</p>

10

<p>are the dorms coed by floor or room?</p>

11

<p>By room, unless you pick to live in Richardson Hall, which is an all-female dorm.</p>

12

<p>no, some dorms have single-sex wings - Lewis, Stratton, and the 2nd floor of South has one all-boys' hallway, one coed, and one all-girls. Suites in Haskell and Wren are for 9 people of one gender.</p>

13

<p>Hodgdon 2nd and 3rd floors are also all girls.</p>