<p>i know they are famous for their core/liberal arts, but what about the sciences and prepping for grad school (esp medicine)? </p>
<p>what about research opportunities?</p>
<p>i mean bio/chem etc, not engineering/applied sciences</p>
<p>Your post seems to imply that CU is a LAC, when it is a major scientific research institution. Columbia's just as famous, if not more famous, for the sciences. Hell, the Manhattan Project (the atomic bomb) was developed at CU. CU claims more Nobel prizes than any other institution but one. Also, CU is the #1 school in terms of making money by licensing the technology and patents invented/developed by its professors.</p>
<p>Research opportunities are fairly easy for undergrads to get. You have to make a little bit of an effort and be proactive about it, meaning that you can't just fill out a form and automatically get into a lab. But most profs are happy to have a motivated and energetic undergrad work for them.</p>
<p>sometimes it seemed like half the people i knew at columbia were pre-med.</p>
<p>a number of them ended up turning to biomedical engineering, chemistry, grad school, etc, but the point is they had options.</p>
<p>i second denzera's thing about a lot of ppl being pre-med....</p>
<p>i know a few sr's this year who are gonna go to Johns Hopkins and other peer institutions for med school....(u cant really go to columbia med school if u go there undergrad tho since they actively discourage it)</p>
<p>why do they discourage it?</p>
<p>its just the way most schools are. most places dont want you to go there for grad work if you were an undergrad.</p>
<p>i've heard a bunch of reasons for it (like it helps expand your horizons) but basically its what everyone does and columbia is no exception</p>
<p>
[quote]
its just the way most schools are. most places dont want you to go there for grad work if you were an undergrad.</p>
<p>i've heard a bunch of reasons for it (like it helps expand your horizons) but basically its what everyone does and columbia is no exception
[/quote]
</p>
<p>This is exactly right. Many graduate programs don't like to take their own university's undergrads. It looks bad for the graduate program if they show a preference for their undergrads because they won't be getting the absolute best people if they're playing favorites. Also, the university wants to increase its alumni base (=more donations) by bringing in someone new.</p>
<p>this is strange because it seems like everyone from uw madison med school is from uw madison and it seems like they have a preference for their own undergrads (it's easier for them to get in...)</p>
<p>hmm or maybe i am just imagining it</p>
<p>There are exceptions to every rule. Perhaps UW-Madison even plays favorites for in-state residents (I don't know)?</p>
<p>yeah it seems like they do</p>