<p>hey there! i've been considering both dartmouth and princeton, and i'm also looking into engineering (though i'm not completely set on that). i know that princeton has a stronger program in general, but i feel like dartmouth might be a better fit for me (i'll be visiting soon to confirm this). are the academics, research, and quality of teaching so good at the engineering departments of both universities that the difference in academics doesn't matter as much (and fitting in the school would be more important)? or is there a significant difference between the school's engineering programs? thanks!</p>
<p>There are better engineering programs out there like MIT, Cal Tech, Cornell, U of Michigan, Purdue, Geogia Tech, etc. Neither school is that prestigous in engineering–very good schools but known for their engineering programs. But, if you really are undecided, they have excellent other programs you can change into. I think Dartmouth’s engineering program is 5 years because you get the full liberal arts education plus all of the engineering and it is not really doable in 4 years. (this may be old info but this is what we were told when we visited.) I have a colleague whose daughter went to Dartmouth for engineering and loved it and it did take 5 years. But, I think the engineering department is pretty small relative to the other schools I mentioned.</p>
<p>^ It’s difficult to buy the claim that Princeton, whose engineering department ranks near the top in multiple engineering disciplines at the graduate level and which is known to be unusually focused on its undergraduates, is not “that prestigious in engineering” for undergraduate studies.</p>