<p>I know that there have been numerous threads comparing the engineering between Cornell and Brown, however I just want more opinions.</p>
<p>I’m fully aware that Cornell Engineering is ranked higher than Brown Engineering. However, it just seems like I would fit in better with the people at Brown. I haven’t visited either one for an overnight stay or anything (that would be in two weeks), but just from the environment on the Facebook group alone, the people at Brown just seem to have more energy and sociability (?) about them. </p>
<p>Again, though, I’m kind of at a stopping point because Cornell just has the better Engineering program.</p>
<p>In terms of job prospect and getting into grad school, is there a really significant difference between the two? It’d be great if some current engineering students from Brown and/or Cornell could answer :O</p>
<p>Edit: maybe this might be important, but if I decided I did not want to major in engineering, and went for Comp Sci (my other interest), how do the schools match up?</p>
<p>If you are hard-care engineering, then Cornell. If you want a superior undergraduate experience that encompasses an engineering concentration then it’s really no comparison-Brown is the choice.</p>
<p>There are some great things about Brown’s engineering program. It has a more entrepreneurial approach, and opportunities for research. It’s a small program, so you’ll get to know your professors, and you won’t just be interacting with TAs. I can’t comment on Cornell engineering, but one of the things I like best at Brown is that your first year, you take classes that introduce you to several engineering disciplines (electrical, mechanical, materials, etc.), so you can make an educated decision on what to specialize in.</p>
<p>The engineers I know who went to Brown are doing really interesting work. Many of them have moved away from pure engineering into managerial and policy and leadership positions.</p>
<p>There was a wonderful thread on CC a few years back that I wished I’d bookmarked, where someone with a Cornell engineering degree explained why Brown engineering was better for her son. I wish I remembered more of what that person said. </p>
<p>Computer science at Brown is held in very high regard. CS students end up making a lot of money working for the top firms – Google, MS, FB, Pixar, etc. </p>
<p>I think the biggest problem with Brown engineering is the facilities (like labs) need updating. Money is coming in to start fixing that issue, which the school is aware of.</p>
<p>At this point in time, Cornell is the best engineering school in the Ivy League, and one of the best in the country. No problems with facilities here! Plus, the people there are amazing - approachable and helpful. The professors, TA’s, office people. I would highly recommend it. We’ve been really happy with the experience so far.</p>
<p>Other academic opportunities? Cornell has 4,000 classes available each semester and they cover every subject you can imagine. “Any person, any study” isn’t just a slogan, it’s how it’s done at Cornell.</p>
<p>I’m really leaning more towards Brown at the moment. I honestly don’t know if I’ll even end up in Engineering, and I feel that Brown would be better in that case, especially if I end up doing CS which I really wouldn’t mind going into having taken several courses now in High School.</p>
<p>Do you guys know any job or internship statistics for Engineering from Brown?</p>
<p>–In the end, I’ll really have to visit first.</p>
<p>This was just posted in the Parents Forum, by a parent whose son is at Cornell for engineering:</p>
<p>“At Cornell, he has had very few opportunities to get to know his professors because of class size and the extensive use of TAs to lead discussion sections, etc. He was fortunate to have landed a position in a research lab yet does not have any real connection with academic professors who know him well enough to write a recommendation for grad school. He would not classify his experience there as ‘wonderful’ although he is quite assertive and reached out enough socially and academically so that he has few regrets…just not that spark of ‘amazing’ that he was hoping to find.”</p>
<p>For job prospects and graduate programs there is no comparison – Cornell all the way. I am sure you will find a few Cornell students with energy and sociability as well.</p>
<p>Brown’s School of Engineering and Computer Science are seperate. In fact, Brown has “The Department of Computer Science” all dedicated to Computer Science (Computer engineering is in School of Engineering). </p>
<p>That just shows that Brown’s CS is definitely “more up there”.</p>
<p>re: muckdogs comment: Give me a break. You make it sound like Brown engineers work for minimum wage at obscure companies. Not true. Plenty of companies recruit and employ Brown engineers and computer scientists.</p>
<p>I can’t speak at all on the Brown side of things, but I went to Cornell and just want to dispel some of these myths. I had many small classes and personal relationships with various professors. We’d even sometimes go out as a group after classes to eat and drink together. Intro classes tend to be larger in many fields, but that’s true at much smaller schools as well.</p>
<p>I don’t really know why a previous poster would say the undergraduate experience is significantly better at Brown. Maybe it is; I can’t compare, but having 7 colleges within Cornell at my fingertips allowed me to explore vastly different disciplines in a way I never could have at a smaller liberal arts school. I had a lot of flexibility in terms of how to structure my major and explore what I really wanted to study (hard to do as a high school grad). That served me, personally, well. Might not matter to others more singularly focused.</p>
<p>Socially, you can find any group you want at Cornell. Don’t worry about what vibe some subset gives off. Your people are there - just have to find them.</p>
<p>Also - Cornell’s Computer Science program is regarded even more highly than its engineering. I think it’s ranked 5th by US News, for whatever that is or isn’t worth. I don’t know how it compares to Brown’s, though.</p>
<p>I can’t compare with Cornell since I don’t know the program but Brown has a great CS dept that is intimate and will give you good opportunities for research early and often. about 3/4 of my D’s graduating class went to MS or Google and the rest to research/grad school, virtually. She went on to top 10 grad school and is a 3rd year phD student. Had great rec’s and great research. </p>
<p>Profs teach the classes, but they do have a TA system where the TA runs the lab hours and grades work, but it is considered a benefit because they have additional office hours to the prof that you can access. Also you have an opportunity to be a TA (it is an honor but you also get paid) and that is a small but nice plus on your grad school application. </p>
<p>I know nothing about Brown engineering and Cornell is famous. But don’t be concerned that you won’t get opportunities at Brown. There are ample opportunities to work closely with profs. And it’s just a great school. You can experiment, try things out, even fail and have a safety net, go on and try again. This is a luxury not to be overlooked.</p>
<p>Am a parent who has been accepted to above and is trying to iron out a decision with him.
Son is considering Chemical or Biomedical Engineering. We are not eligible for Financial Aid.
He is not sure of post-grad studying or immediate job search after undergraduate.
Recommendations on which school for the intended major and any insights on post undergraduate desirability by post graduate schools or industry would be greatly appreciated.
Though financial issues are considered we are really looking for future stability, occupationally and educationally.</p>
<p>I would choose either Brown or Cornell (Definitely leaning towards Brown though!). It depends on what s/he believes is a better fit. Brown will undoubtedly allow more flexibility and a greater undergraduate experience where one can delve into a lot more fields of studies.</p>
<p>j7thletter: It would probably be better to start a new thread. This one is a year old. Older threads are good to read for information, but you will get more/better responses in a new thread. (Also, not sure how you were accepted to these schools as a parent. LOL, only kidding.)</p>