<p>My last two choices are between Dartmouth and Chicago for an Econ major.</p>
<p>I know Chicago has an awesome reputation for Economics, but it has also got a reputation for not being very fun (in the traditional and basic sense). I enjoy intellectual conversations and have my own set of aspirations, but I also enjoy having a good time when it comes to play. Im afraid that Chicago will not offer a good balance. </p>
<p>Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated...: )
Thank you,</p>
<p>L</p>
<p>It sounds like Dartmouth is the place for you, provided you think “fun” should encompass partying and not scavenger hunts.</p>
<p>Dartmouth for sure. You’ll get as good an education, a better reputation in business, and much more fun. I think its not even close (IMO)</p>
<p>I think that the U of C is indisputably a more intellectual school.</p>
<p>I’ve been very unimpressed with what I hear about many of the classes my kid has taken so far. I’m particularly amazed at literature classes that feature tests in which the major focus seems to be checking whether you remember the names of minor characters so as to “prove” that you did the reading. I can’t recall ever taking an “exam” in such a class in college or grad school. The norm was papers. If there WAS an exam in a humanities class, such as history, it consisted of a couple of essay questions which one was expected to be able to answer in depth. Dartmouth seems to favor courses in which you read a whole lot, discuss little, and are judged largely on these quizzes that are at about the intellectual level I’d expect of a high school non-honors 10th grade English class. The freshman Humanities “writing” seminar was so bad that a number of kids apparently dropped it after the first term even though it meant they would have to take another “writing” seminar. I’m hoping things improve.</p>
<p>As to having fun, it depends what you consider to be fun. People in Chicago have plenty of fun. Chicago and Hanover aren’t exactly on an equal footing when it comes to potential entertainment…</p>
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<p>I was a history major at D. In my history classes that had exams, they all followed this format. I’m sorry to hear about the lack of intellectual stimulation in some of your son’s classes, but based on my experiences at Dartmouth as well as those of my friends, I suspect he may have had the bad luck to get bad professors (and, admittedly, my freshman seminar also left a bit to be desired, although for somewhat different reasons). Bad professors tend not to last very long at Dartmouth. I am confident that your son’s academic experience will improve. Does he have any idea what majors he is interested in yet (I am assuming your son is a freshman)?</p>
<p>Wha? I’ve taken two English classes as well as a freshman seminar in the history department, and both were entirely paper-focused; not a single quiz or exam was given. You seem pretty eager to generalize the quality of the humanities at Dartmouth based on a single datapoint. I’ve actually only heard of one or two English classes which have exams or quizzes at all.</p>
<p>I’ve heard bad things about the humanities seminar too, but again, it’s only one data point. I’m planning on a history minor (most of my other classes are in the social sciences) and I’ve only had two classes which required some sort of rote memorization (primarily the names of places on maps), and in both cases this was a tiny component of the final grade. All the history classes I’ve taken demanded multiple, well-written papers. (The history department in particular is full of sticklers for good writing, actually; I think I learned more about the art of writing in History 5 than I’ve probably learned in any writing class in my entire life.)</p>
<p>Having said all that, there’s no question that UChicago is more intellectually demanding on its typical student than Dartmouth is on its typical student. But if you want to challenge yourself, there’s generally no reason you can’t at Dartmouth. It’s also important to bear in mind UChicago’s core curriculum; some people love it, some people hate it. Dartmouth has distributive requirements, but they’re less strict and can usually be fulfilled by a lot of different classes.</p>
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<p>Ditto. My writing improved tremendously in college.</p>
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<p>Well, firstly I’m citing three data points, not one. Three different classes and professors. (The Humanities sections reshuffled second term. The second term was apparently much better, but the format of the class was the same.)</p>
<p>Secondly, other than my first statement–which was intended only to describe general intellectual focus–I wasn’t generalizing at all. I gave specifics about specific classes. Edit: okay, I did generalize when I said that D “seems to favor” classes of a certain type. But since 3 of my kids 6 classes have so far featured this “quiz” stuff, it begins to look like a pattern. I’m happy to hear that it will not be the norm. </p>
<p>And lastly, I’m not “eager” to criticize D at all. I was somewhat stunned to hear of a professor giving “quizzes” in a college English class. That is not what I expected of D. I’m happy to hear that it is not the norm. (The course did culminate in a paper, btw.)</p>