I’m from Southern California but have always wanted to go to college on the east coast. I was admitted to these 4 amazing schools (along with making the waiting lists at a couple others) even though I wasn’t expecting to get into all of them.
I am planning on studying neuroscience and chemistry but am also considering going the pre-med route, but I’m lost at the moment. I’m leaning towards Duke and Georgetown just because I have visited them, but I’ve heard that Colby and CMU have a lot to offer too. Anyone willing to share their opinion?
Duke is a better school for those subjects
If Neuroscience, Duke hands down. Duke med school >> Georgetown med school, so more opportunities for volunteering and research there. I didn’t even know Georgetown had a Neuroscience department.
While I would think we are all biased to some degree, Duke sciences certainly are better than those other schools in terms of prestige as are many other areas of Duke’s academics incase you decide to switch your major or pick up another one. What were your thoughts on Duke when you visited? Do you have any specific questions?
@patriotsfan1 I absolutely loved the school when I visited, the campus itself was amazing. But I’m concerned that there won’t be many internship opportunities given that the city it’s in isn’t very large like DC or Pittsburgh.
Also, I just recently found out that Carnegie Mellon is only going to make me pay about 5% of the overall cost, whereas Duke and Georgetown haven’t given me a financial aid offer. CMC is tempting me a lot with that.
Colby is simply out of the picture at this point.
@ariana4 There are a TON of internship opportunities that Duke students have- I’d argue more than Georgetown or CMU, but definitely not less. With the Duke Hospital and all of the research departments, there are plenty of possible internships on campus during the school year. The Duke Hospital is huge and is incredibly prestigious, as is Duke med. Almost every science-y major I know has some sort of lab research internship (usually paid) that they are part of and that they say wasn’t too hard to get (as there are more than enough opportunities).
If finances are coming into play then definitely take advantage of a great deal if you get one, but I wouldn’t think Duke, CMU, and G-town would have that different need based aid packages, so definitely wait it out.
You’re worried about a lack of science research opportunities in the Research Triangle??? Haha about that you can rest assured.
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CMU is more technical, and the most prestigious of the list. Never heard of Colby and personally think Georgetown is overrated.
If you want to pick between Duke and CMU, go to their department websites and figure out which one seems the most exciting, the closest to what you want to do.
Departments can matter quite a lot, as can major courses. Are the courses really theoretical? Are they applications-based? Are they project-based? You have some good choices to work on, and the Internet provides you with the resources to see which department you would be happiest in.
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@rhandco: CMU would be the “most prestigious” on the list if we’re talking about computer science. Duke has a greater all-around reputation, and I’ve never heard CMU being particularly known for pre-med/neuroscience.
Agree with MBV, CMU is not more prestigious than Duke. Nevertheless, believe me, there are tons of research internships at Duke (and the surrounding area) that students participate in during the year.
@rhandco What makes you say Georgetown is overrated? I’m not offended, and I’m not even sure if I want to go there.I’m just curious as to why you believe that.
@patriotsfan1 So if Duke were to offer me less than CMU, do you think the higher price tag would be worth it?
And as far as the humanities go, do you know if CMU/Georgetown/Duke is stronger in that area?
@ariana4 It depends on your financial situation and how much Duke offers. If its pretty close, I’d say Duke is the better choice (granted its a choice I made, but I would say that a majority would agree with me). If there is a sizable gap and you don’t have money laying around, then yeah CMU is probably a better choice, but you could give your CMU FA package to Duke to see if they could potentially match it (they rarely do, but its certainly worth a try).
CMU is not even close to being the most prestigious school on that list (outside of a few specialized tech fields). Duke wins that contest handily with Georgetown following behind at some distance.
Ha! CMU more prestigious than Duke? Your kidding! Funny. CMU not even on the same list. CMU is one of the schools that you have to remind yourself that its prestigious. The name doesn’t ooze it like Duke.
Let’s not go to far overboard here. All these schools are excellent and all will offer many, significant lifelong advantages. I believe Duke tops the list, but denigrating Georgetown, Carnegie Mellon or Colby (obviously, a LAC not at National Research University . . . with all – both good and bad – that implies) is slightly silly.
I do want to offer @ariana4 a caution, however. Northing is more common than for a rising-undergraduate to be CERTAIN he’ll concertante in X, Y or Z and eventually become an A or B. There’s nothing at all wrong with this, but well over 50 percent of the time, it does not happen (in fact, multiple major changes as quite common). Therefore, it might be wise to place at least as much emphasis on the INSTITUTION as on the “currently applicable” DEPARTMENT. Moreover, a great many senior public- or private-enterprise officials/leaders could not possibly rank-order ten great chemistry or neuroscience departments (of note, even if they lead enterprises that are focused on these fields), but every one of them would have a strong opinion regarding ten top universities. This is important because these are the individuals who – after your first job or two – will determine if you’re the one employee in a several hundred whose PhD or MBA will be fully corporate funded or the one in fifty who is selected for Vice President several years before your peers are. This is an arena where Duke shines, although other top-ten or perhaps -twenty universities do as well.