<p>I know that it's a given that 1) everyone at HMC is the "once every 10 years kid" for his highschool instructors, and 2) the academics will rip you apart and rebuild you better, stronger, and faster. </p>
<p>But it seems that even the people who love it there love it only because it's teaching them so much. Are you "happy" or are you there only for the future opportunities? Is the school broccoli that you eat because it's good for you, or is it lasagna that's good for you but also fun? (Please don't sic the Broccoli Growers Association on me!) (Note: I'm also posting this at Caltech)</p>
<p>Just got a chance to talk with my son (who doesn’t visit CC) about this very thing over a recent break. He seems to be at a disadvantage compared to most of his peers in terms of high school preparation, so he’s definitely getting “ripped apart” and is looking forward to the putting back together. He is very, very happy to be at Mudd. Not because of future opportunities, although he looks forward to those, but because he feels like he belongs there now. He said, “People understand me here.”</p>
<p>It’s not all puppies and unicorns, for sure – he’s under a lot of stress over the academics and he’s encountered some outright jerkish behavior from a small number of students (not sure why this surprises me as much as it does). In just two months he’s had to do some serious toughening up. But he has lots of fun, takes pride in being a Mudder, and has mostly pleasant and genuinely supportive interactions with Mudders in all grades. He’s very happy to be there. When I asked him if he’d make the same choice now, knowing how hard he’d have to work to catch up, he sat bolt upright in his chair and said, “HECK, yes!!”</p>
<p>It’s been a rough couple of months. It’s getting better, but he’s expecting a rough year. As a mom, it aches a little (sometimes a lot) to see the stresses and disappointments. But there are triumphs too, and fun goofy antics in between. He absolutely believes it’s worth it – in the future, sure, but mostly in the here and now. For him, it’s a “fit” thing.</p>
<p>I’m happy because I’m surrounded by an awesome community in a school with an amazing sense of humour and play. Education I will probably appreciate more once I get to the break and am able to actually reflect on what I’ve learned.</p>
<p>It was a total pain in the ass and I was miserable through 90% of it. I didn’t really fit in with the “cool kids” or “super nerds”. My one saving grace was music. I played in the jazz class for 2 years and in my funk/jazz band for 1 year. That sorta made me a bit more “cool” in the eyes of people.</p>
<p>But yeah, there were really good times (like those moments of “eureka!”) and some bad times like being up til 5AM for a whole year (almost) straight.</p>
<p>Was it worth it? Hands-down YES. Half way through I realized I was at a very special place with a very special opportunity… and I wasn’t going to waste it.</p>
<p>…and straight out got my dream job and I’m now helping design engines for private manned spacecraft!</p>
<p>My son loves being at HMC. He definitely “found his people,” works very, very hard, and seems to also play hard. I get the feeling that a lot of his social life is studying in groups, something that was fostered during the first semester pass/no pass, and has continued since (although he does attend his share of parties too). He has thrived in an environment where math and science classes are front and center, where the professors know you personally because your class sizes are so small (he is taking one class with 3 other students, taught by someone he said is not a particularly good teacher, but who is a master in their field so he is working to get the maximum out of it). When he comes home for the month at the holidays he is so very ready to get back into it. He always says “book the latest flight out and the earliest one in.” He has gone to Chicago and NYC to meet up with Mudders, and been invited to someone’s family cabin for Thanksgiving dinner. I think for him it has been an extremely satisfying school experience. He does tell me, though, that there are kids who only come out of their rooms to go to classes and eat. And that seems like a shame to me.</p>
<p>A recent report from my kiddo. They had just started QM in frosh physics and were getting a lecture on wave mechanics. Every time the prof said “wave,” the entire class did the Wave. The prof paused and made a comment (something like “:rolleyes: I figured something like this would happen, did the sophs put you up to it?”), but wasn’t particularly surprised and made it through the entire lecture (with students Waving throughout) without a visible display of irritation or impatience.</p>
<p>I think that if your kid is the kind of person who chuckles at that and thinks the prof must be “awesome” for taking it so well, then he’ll probably fit in and have a lot of fun. Is that personality type a prerequisite – probably not, but I imagine it helps a lot.</p>
<p>Too funny ElphDriver, we say that our son has “found his tribe.” Yes, they work like dogs, but I think they are for the most part happy (even though tired) dogs. Our son has made good friends, they watch out for each other, and do have fun – as defined by Mudders (pyrotechnics are sometimes involved, but often it is figuing out the tough course material together). Even during summer math (which is optional – you can take the sophomore math core courses in a short/intense 6 week session), when he worked even harder than during the regular school year and looked like an exhausted zombie one evening when I took him out to dinner, I asked him if he regretted taking the summer classes or going to Mudd. He looked at me like I had two heads and said “of course not.” He was glad to get them done so he could take more engineering classes. Those are Mudders. They get used to not getting the grades they got in high school, work hard because they love the material, and for the most part, define and find fun on their own terms. (Mudd is known for having the best parties of the 5-C’s).</p>
<p>I can only compare it to a kid we know in the Peace Corps. She is in a really primitive location, living with a lot of bugs, working very hard, and probably in a certain amount of physical peril – but she is so happy that she is doing it. Her mom worries, but all moms worry.</p>
<p>Oh, and I forgot to add that they find silliness in their own quirky way. Check out the Victoria Secret’s Pink Collegiate Collection web site under Nominate your school. You can nominate your school to have the school logo on some Pink product. There was supposed to be a fool proof way to prevent anyone from voting more than once a day. Gee, Harvey Mudd now has a 1,909,618 votes. Not bad for a school of 800. Could it be a concentrated effort of a number of computer folks working on it? Could it be a whole group working together to use that system to get the votes in? Could be. And they have helped some other interesting schools to get a high number of votes. There is a sense of playfulness there that is very healthy. You need to be able to blow off steam when you are working that hard. Hence the Wave.</p>
Many hours of labor from a sizable percentage of the freshman class, from what I’ve heard… not just the frosh of course, but they’re in there in a big way… with incentives from alumni bursting with pride and prankitude.</p>
<p>At one point in the VS contest, they had HMC first and the first letters of the next six in the rankings spelled out WIBFTR (West is best f*** the rest). I guess they have moved on to other acronyms!
And my Mudder (female junior) is also happy. She works very hard, seems to manage to work herself into illness at least once a semester, but she tells me she is happy. Like the posters above, she feels she has found <em>her</em> people. She definitely has a social life (has not been boyfriend-less since she arrived). Even though she is pretty introverted, she seems to have gotten to know several professors. And the work is definitely – shall we say – challenging?</p>
<p>Blackroses, if you read down the first initial of each school, it spells out Harvey Mudd Rox Boo Cal Tech. I love some of the choices of schools for the initials, that is what I meant for “interesting.”</p>
Blackroses, wait for it to load. Then look at the Top 25 Schools box. Note that Harvey Mudd College is #1, with something over two million votes.</p>
<p>Then, look down the list, at the first letters of the colleges’ names.</p>
<h1>1 Harvey Mudd</h1>
<h1>2 A…</h1>
<h1>3 R…</h1>
<h1>4 V…</h1>
<p>Not content with taking over the top slot, they’ve taken over the entire board. I think they’re still discussing what to spell that will take up the full 25 slots. Having a B in the phrase is very important to some of them. When I say “discussing” … They have a listserv dedicated to the coordination of this prank.</p>
<p>Mudders play hard! :D</p>
<p>
My son didn’t find most of the girls very interesting at his high school, but now (judging from the Facebook photos) spends a lot of his time in the company of several smart, fun-loving, interesting young ladies. Mudd’s Women are different. ;)</p>
<p>^ Blackroses, you’re getting bounced to a URL for phones. Are you trying to see it on an iPhone or Crackberry? If so, try a PC. If not, try a PC with Flash installed as a browser plug-in. Evidence suggests that the VS folks aren’t exactly Web geniuses so maybe they’re handling a “no Flash” result in a less than graceful manner. ;)</p>
He is very, very happy to be at Mudd. Not because of future opportunities, although he looks forward to those, but because he feels like he belongs there now. He said, “People understand me here.”</p>
