<p>I really like Dartmouth because of how undergrad-focused it is. I also like the size (large universities overwhelm me). Not to mention it's ranked 1 in undergrad teaching!</p>
<p>However, I've noticed that Dartmouth is consistently ranked high in business, etc. However, that is not my interest at all.
Right now, I'm seriously considering going to medical school. I want to major in something science/math related. Maybe compsci or math or even bio. However, Dartmouth's science rankings are very...mediocre (50+). Should I look elsewhere, at schools ranked higher in the sciences?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Among private institutions, Wellesley and Cornell!</p>
<p>@absentions</p>
<p>“However, Dartmouth’s science rankings are very…mediocre (50+).” Disagree!!!</p>
<p>CS Department at Dartmouth is one of the best in the World! There are very famous professors that really care about undergrads.</p>
<p>I am pretty sure that you have not been a member of USACO or Programming Competitions! Prof. Thomas Cormen - author of CLRS (Intro to Algorithms) - is chair and professor of CS Department. He teaches undergrads!</p>
<p>Also, CS Department offers many amazing computational and interdisciplinary courses by full professors.</p>
<p>And you probably never heard of Neukom Institute!</p>
<p>Many top schools like UC Berkeley and Stanford are very famous for engineering and CS in the world. You should consider that as an undergrad which school/s really care about you.</p>
<p>And… I am not trying to convince you to choose Dartmouth over other schools.</p>
<p>Thanks for your input! I didn’t apply to Berkeley (too expensive, too big) or Stanford (regrettably so) though.</p>
<p>Son’s premed buddies all were accepted into med schools. He is a double science major and was accepted at several top grad programs. D went to Wellesley for UG, Dartmouth for MPH and is now in med school. You will do fine at any of the 3 you mention. Think about where you want to be for the next 4 years, and look at the extracurricular activities that you enjoy. Visit and then decide. Congratulations, it sounds like you are on your way!</p>
<p>To answer your question about the grad program rankings: No, those do not reflect the quality of the sceince education that you would get as undergraduate. The graduate programs at Dartmouth are much smaller than the grad programs at large research universities, and that is likely the main reason for the “low” rankings. </p>
<p>To help you with your decision, have you looked through the course catalogs at Dartmouth and the other colleges you are considering? I encouraged my daughter (and now am doing the same with my son, a junior) to look through the courses offered at schools of interest. With some colleges that she initially liked very much, she discovered that the course offerings were lacking in her areas of interest.</p>
<p>By the way, it sounds like you are genuinely interested in math, comp sci and other sciences, and that kind of interest is in my mind the best basis for picking a major. Keep in mind, though, that you do not have to major in a science to go to medical school. Two of my good friends majored in the humanities (gasp!) and went on to med school and successful careers as doctors.</p>
<p>I just found some data for Dartmouth’s medical school admissions stats: <a href=“http://www.dartmouth.edu/~nss/nav/pages/school/Med%20School%20MSAR%20Summary/MSAR%20Summaries%202012-13/MedSchoolFactSummary12-13.html”>http://www.dartmouth.edu/~nss/nav/pages/school/Med%20School%20MSAR%20Summary/MSAR%20Summaries%202012-13/MedSchoolFactSummary12-13.html</a></p>
<p>For Texas medical schools, DC students seem to not do so well (I’m a TX resident)… But maybe this has to do with only a few people applying? What do you think about these stats; in general, are they good? </p>
<p>@absentions - Dartmouth is excellent in CompSci; they just do not market it above the rest of the school. Pretty sure Basic was invented by prof who was instrumental in developing that program. </p>
<p>You cannot go wrong with any of the sciences. I know no one who want there who did not get into med school. In fact, they all received multiple acceptances.</p>
<p>I do recommend not looking at those lists. Those lists include students who did not do well. Simple - maintain a 3.5 and above at Dartmouth and you will get into med school.</p>
<p>It is an awesome place; been there many times.</p>
<p>I don’t think it will be any harder to get into medical school from Dartmouth than from Cornell or Wellesley. When I asked whether it was easier to get into medical school from MIT than Dartmouth with the same GPA, the <em>MIT</em> premed advisor said there was no difference. </p>
<p>I wouldn’t worry about the science ranking. I think chem used to be in the 30’s, not sure what bio is, but these are very respectable for a liberal arts college. It’s going to be a lot better than at Wellesley. </p>
<p>The only thing is that it probably would be easier to publish at Cornell because the lab groups are bigger, but I don’t think that is a good criteria for making a decision.</p>