<p>I got in both as a transfer student. I am a rising junior majoring in electrical engineering. Which school will be better for this major? I feel in Chicago there might be more job opportunities, while it's kinda too cold, and Duke might have a more beautiful campus? Any opinions on academics, culture and engineering atmosphere between these two schools? Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>“I feel in Chicago there might be more job opportunities, while it’s kinda too cold,” </p>
<p>Do you really want to work in Schaumburg Illinois for Motorola?</p>
<p>Pick the place you’ll like being at which sounds like Duke.</p>
<p>^ You do know where Duke is right…</p>
<p>Yeah I know academics wise Duke sounds better. It’s just for electrical engineering Duke is not that strong I guess as well as Pratt isn’t a traditional engineering school. So I am not sure about the atmosphere there…</p>
<p>Anybody has any other thoughts? Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>Pratt’s national rankings are consistently hurt due to its small size in terms of number of students and majors offered. This is NOT a reflection of the quality of students or faculty or research opportunities.</p>
<p>Research Triangle would likely offer as many opportunities for STEM graduates as Chicago despite being a smaller population base.</p>
<p>Make your decision based on which school fits your criteria best - and only you know what these are. Don’t make it based on what other “experts” consider important.</p>
<p>@rmldad: thanks for your note. I think you are right about Pratt. Though its ranking is low Pratt actually offers students many opportunities in research or internships. But to be specific, as my major is Electrical Engineering, it seems NU’s program is superior to that at Pratt. I personally like Duke more as a whole, but it’s just the EE major there isn’t as strong as NU.</p>
<p>[NRC</a> Rankings Overview: Electrical and Computer Engineering - Faculty - The Chronicle of Higher Education](<a href=“NRC Rankings Overview: Electrical and Computer Engineering”>NRC Rankings Overview: Electrical and Computer Engineering)</p>
<p>Duke and NU looked to be ranked similarily in EE. Where are you getting your information from? Duke ECE grads routinely get jobs at some of the best tech companies including Google, Apple, Cisco, Intel, etc. The same is probably true with Northwestern though.</p>
<p>I looked at U.S. News’ Electrical Engineering undergraduate ranking and Duke was ranked 34th, which is way below NU. Probably rankings are not that significant because there is no way to figure out what factors they take into account the most…</p>
<p>You are going to be employed for many decades after graduation. At some point – and probably quite early in your career progression, due to the competitiveness and the warranted prestige of both universities – senior management will begin to evaluate your upward potential based on MUCH more than your entry-level BSEE. Most critically, they will assess your leadership, teamwork, tenacity, dedication, analytical abilities, managerial potential, and so forth. Therefore, I would respectfully suggest you also consider which university is most likely to hone those crucial skills. In essence, graduates of schools like Duke and Northwestern are normally not destined to entry- or journeyman-level engineering duties for very long, and differences between the PERCEIVED leadership and management skills associated with your two alternatives may well be more important than the strict engineering stature of Northwestern and Duke.</p>
<p>Incidentally, both are outstanding universities . . . you simply cannot make a poor choice with these two options.</p>
<p>@TopTier: Thanks a lot for your note. I definitely agree with you that I would need to work on a lot of things beyond engineering to really succeed in my later career. As of now, I have chosen Duke. But, incidentally I am still worried about transfer because there is a great chance that I may spend more than two years at Duke, (I am a rising junior), and would have a very heavy workload there anyways. Currently I am a USC student and some of my friends said there are way more engineering opportunities in California. Do you think it’s still a good choice to transfer for me?</p>
<p>Transferring seems a bit silly IMHO…</p>
<p>USC engineering is arguably stronger than both of the aforementioned universities. I also do believe that engineering opportunities are more plentiful in California.</p>
<p>Pratt students work hard, but they have a strong sense of community and have access to several exclusive social events. The differences in the engineering programs are probably insignificant; go for the better fit overall.</p>
<p>And yes, Duke has a more beautiful campus :)</p>
<p>yeah, I would like to go to Duke because it’s definitely a better school overall, but I am just concerned if job opportunities at Duke are the same as California</p>
<p>Have you really cost benefited moving versus staying? Is an undergrad engineering degree from Duke really any better than one from USC?</p>
<p>If you want to study engineering but go into business, then Duke is the better option.</p>
<p>Personally, I would stay at USC; I don’t think either Duke or Northwestern’s engineering is going to be noticeably better, they are all good schools. However, all three have very different locations, so perhaps that is your deciding factor. Duke might be good for research opportunities but probably not so much for jobs nearby. I would say USC and Northwestern are probably your best bets, but if you feel like Duke is your fit, then definitely go there. Your education will be quality regardless.</p>
<p>Thank you guys for the replies.
@KCTaxguy: I know USC’ engineering school is solid too, but Duke as a whole is better. So do you think it’s still worth it?
@goldenboy8784: actually I may still stay in the engineering field, do you think that works for Duke too?
@Merovingian: Overall I like Duke better than USC, but still care about my major, EE, because I want to find a job after graduation.
@alicejohnson: Thanks for the info, I didn’t know IBM has the largest campus there. Do you know if IBM recruits many Duke students due to the location?</p>
<p>Duke EE grads still place well in the engineering industry - the recruiting is top notch. While IBM has an enormously large campus nearby, I personally hear of a lot more Duke grads going to Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, and the like. I know of Duke students going into IBM for consulting - not traditional engineering jobs - but perhaps I just don’t know of them.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Duke’s location doesn’t negatively impact recruiting. NYC, DC, San Fran, LA, and Boston are really popular destinations among grads. I don’t think you can go wrong with your decision and it probably won’t make a huge difference in your prospects where you go. I would just go where you think you’d be happiest. Good luck.</p>