<p>I heard that Northwestern University is especially strong at journalism and other language related majors. Is their science program such as electrical engineering good too?</p>
<p>Wouldn't call language related fields "especially" strong. I think what you heard were communication studies (film/theatre/speech..etc). Pretty much every engineering field is strong with few of them (civil, Industrial, Biomed, and mat sci) in the top 10 (you can find those info in the engineering school site). EE is not the strongest but it's not bad (it's probably ranked 20-30th in the nation). But keep in mind most engineering curriculum are pretty standardized at the undergrad level so the real difference is really not as much as the difference in reputation may suggest. In physcial science, chemistry is very strong (top 10). If you really like science and math, there are also special programs like Integrated Science Program (ISP) and Mathematical Method for Social Science (MMSS).</p>
<p>i have a friend who went to NU for engineering but ended up hating the program and transferred to stanford</p>
<p>Alex, I don't see what you posted is helpful to anybody. Stanford/Harvard also have people transferring out to other schools. You can always find someone not happy with his/her school for some reasons and I would never put "my friend hated/loved/said blah blah" on CC board when there are collective data/rankings out there to say otherwise. This board is about helping others make one of the biggest decisions in their lives and so it's important to differentiate what's more likely to be the representative and what's not.</p>
<p>just making a comment sam, because i have heard from a lot of people that NU isnt a terribly good engineering school. rankings arent everything either. frankly i dont care what you would put on a board.. i made a comment, so shoot me. and would you care to enlighten me as to how your post is helpful?</p>
<p>huangt, I am currently a freshman in the engineering school. Originally, I had just about as much trouble as you picking out an engineering school to attend. Back in my senior year of high school, reputation meant a lot to me so I initially went about looking at the "top 10" ranked engineering schools. Once I was accepted to Cornell (which has a top 10 ranking in computer engineering - my field) and UMich (also ranked highly in computer engineering), I realized that as Sam Lee said: "most engineering curriculum are pretty standardized at the undergraduate level." So although a school may have a reputation for a particular field (like NU is known primarily for material science due to its strength in nanotech), keep in mind that the rankings are reputation-based, meaning that they're more reflective of the strength of graduate-level research. Personally, several factors led me to turn down some of the "top 10" engineering schools in the nation for Northwestern.</p>
<p>First was location. Having lived in the Northeast region all my life, I desperately needed a change of scenery. I wanted all the advantages of being in the big city without actually having any of its drawbacks (crime, noise, etc). Northwestern, being about 40 minutes away from downtown Chicago was perfect. It was an airplane ride away from my house (so my parents couldn't bother me) and just a few minutes from some of the best culture America has to offer. (Cornell and Michigan couldn't provide what I wanted.)</p>
<p>Second was size. A 8000 member undergraduate class is just about perfect for a private research university. It offered a chance for students to mingle without feeling lost amongst the crowd.</p>
<p>The last reason was something I discovered only after spending a quarter here...yet it is by far the most important. In choosing a school, be sure to look beyond your field of concentration to the quality and depth of other majors. Even if you're set on electrical engineering, be sure to look at the liberal arts college. College is much more than a time to delve into your pre-professional interests, its a time to find how you fit into the greater world. Northwestern's humanities department really is top-notch. Taking a East Asian Diaspora class here, I've become that much more conscious of my identity and the true nature of diversity in the United States. Northwestern is awesome in that there are so many fields that may not have reputations but excel nonetheless. There is an awesome theater and music program, fantastic faculty in chemistry and biology, great foreign language teachers, and a well-respected pre-business program. So if depth of knowledge is important to you, I would highly recommend Northwestern.</p>
<p>I sure hope this has been useful to you. What my point really comes down to is: fudge the statistics... go visit the schools yourself, look at the WHOLE school and not just your major or concentration... you'll make a much better decision that way. Good luck!</p>
<p>I did my undergrad/grad at NU/Stanford (chemE/envE). I actually took classes in those two schools while you haven't. NU prepared me to compete quite well at Stanford. I also know 3 former NU's classmates doing phD at CalTech/Wisconsin/Stanford (all of them passed qualifying exams at those schools). I didn't know anyone "hating the program and transferred to other schools" in my 4 years there but interestingly you already known at least one without being there and know "a lot saying it's not terribly good". Can you be more specific about what they didn't like about it??? Ranking doesn't mean everything but if they have such a bad rep like you claimed, they shouldn't be ranked that high. I am quite impressed how you got to know many people in the engineering field while still in HS. I hope you are telling the truth and treat this board seriously.</p>
<p>i wouldnt lie because, like u said, these are important decisions in people's lives. first off, my friend was number one in his class, with a 35 ACT. he was accepted into NU ED, and wanted out after the first quarter. he said the profs treated you as if they wanted you to fail. that would be news enough for me to transfer. and for the record, i know plenty of people in the engineering field seeing as how my dad IS an engineer, as are most of the males in my extended family. i dont appreciate being called a liar. perhaps NU was a great school for you. i was even going to apply there until i took a campus visit and i realized it was not the school for me. not everyone is going to like NU, so quit being a damn jerk about it and let me voice my opinion</p>
<p>It's not your opinion that your "friend" went to one school and transfered to another. But you could have added something worth reading to the thread by saying why he did not like Northwestern initially.</p>
<p>"he said the profs treated you as if they wanted you to fail. "</p>
<p>read the post.</p>
<p>"he said the profs treated you as if they wanted you to fail. "</p>
<p>That's the first time I've ever heard of that about NU. I encountered boring profs or profs giving low grades (but not failing--"C/C+") but none that "wanted people to fail". NU is never known for having arrogant/condescending profs. That's a few years ago though maybe NU is changing in a drastic way which I don't know about. :)</p>
<p>I've heard NU is great in Robotics?? How true is that??</p>
<p>Off topic: Which school do you attend in dubai, hello?</p>
<p>And I heared that the top-notch robotics programs were at MIT, no idea about NWU.</p>
<p>hello,</p>
<p>You may want to check out CMU..as good as MIT in robotics but not as hard to get in.</p>
<p>Hmm. If i'm not sure which Engineering I want to major in, what should I do?
I want to major in either biomed or environmental engr..I'm not sure about putting down undecided engineering, cuz I know that I'm nost intrested in EE or ME. Which one's easier to get into?</p>