<p>hrt are u kidding me? the main reason people at my school found out about WASHU was because they scored a 200 or over on the PSAT and were sent information by wustl</p>
<p>Wow. Comparing WashU to Harvard is like comparing a Toyota to a Ferrari. Then again, some might prefer a Toyota over a Ferrari, and some just plain can't afford a Ferrari.</p>
<p>WashU has done and should do everything it possibly can to sollicit applicants so THEY can choose who they feel would best contribute to a graduation class of 2009. Yes, WashU is the "hot school," but they aren't doing these things so as to boost their ratings, but rather to give themselves a greater, more diverse, and more qualified pool to choose from. We have to choose the school first, you know.</p>
<p>BTW, the only reason Harvard gets so much flack is because it is the best. There are things in WashU which aren't too hot (ie, business) and then there are things which are absolutely amazing (biology/pre-med). That is one area where Harvard lacks diversity, it excells at everything.</p>
<p>"Toyota to a Ferrari"</p>
<p>That's really pushing it I would say. People see those rankings where Harvard is ranked 100 in one department and Wash U 70 and think Wash U is 70% of the school Harvard is. Not true. I think the two most important factors for undergraduate sucess is quality teachers who care about teaching, not just research (although both schools have top researchers) and the effort the students puts in. Both schools excel at both. Many would say Wash U even has a greater focus on undergrads. I would say a top Wash U student and average/above avg Harvard student are pretty much equalls. Also, Just look at the average salary report for students coming out of wash U's or H's various grad schools, they are within 10%. Although the Wall Street J report on graduate feeder schools has Wash U way below H, i think that study is questionable.</p>
<p>You cannot even begin to compare the faculty of the two schools. Look at it this way, WashU was ranked something like 28 four years ago in US News and World Report. Now it is 11. Do you think that the school really jumped from UMich range to Columbia range by flushing out all the good professors and adding tens of Nobel Prize winning teachers? Of course not. Just because the quality of students has obviously risen in the school, doesn't necessarily mean the quality of the teaching has.</p>
<p>On Grad schools, Harvard would never get caught having a department ranked 39. That's what Olin is ranked. 39. And if the same teachers teach grad and undergrad (which they do,) and if the same recruiters recruit the grad and undergrad kids (which they do,) then how can you even think about comparing the two. WashU is amazing at pre-med/bio. Law they are alright, business they are a joke. Harvard would never get caught in such a position.</p>
<p>they are kick butt in the language department also!</p>
<p>Harvard is like a fine pate or caviar</p>
<p>WAshu is like the 6 dollar burger, trying to be restaurant quality but ultimately relegated to fast food</p>
<p>Wow, </p>
<p>"business they are a joke"
"WAshu is like the 6 dollar burger"</p>
<p>I'd hate to hear your comments on the education that 90% of all students are receiving from colleges NOT on the Top 50!</p>
<p>Of course Harvard has a better faculty reputation and a better recruiter outlook, but what I'm getting at is that it is most of all what you make of it. I know idiots that came outta Harvard, and I'm sure there are idiots out of WashU, but in my opinion a top WashU student, especially a double major (which is easier to pursue at WashU) is not at a serious disadvantage to the average Havard grad, even in biz.</p>
<p>BTW, Forbes ranked Olin 12, Harvard 1 in 2003
BuisnessWeek: Harvard 5, Olin 23
WSJ: Harvard: 13 national, Olin: 18 regional
USnews: Harvard:1 Olin: 29</p>
<p>Harvard wins, but Wash is no slouch, especially considering all the biz schools out there. Also, read the Atlantic march 2005 article on harvard, tell me what you think.</p>
<p>"I'd hate to hear your comments on the education that 90% of all students are receiving from colleges NOT on the Top 50!"</p>
<p>everything is relative, I just think that one cannot really compare harvard to washu, harvard is better</p>
<p>When D was narrowing the list of schools to apply to, I spoke with an aquaintance in the Harvard Doctoral program for advice. (The person is a faculty member and I won't describe them any further.) I was hoping for general information on advantages/disadvantages of a Harvard (and other institutions) undergrad. educations. The advice concerning Harvard was much more specific and "honest" than I expected.
As this conversation was nearly a year ago, I will try to be as acurate as possible with the response.</p>
<p>"NO ONE in the US tops Harvard for a Graduate degree program. However, while you will recieve an excellent undergraduate education it is not the best place to be for it. Many schools can prepare you for the grad program here and the student won't have to fight so hard to get it. The undergrad program here is seen by a great many of the faculty here as a necessary evil. (Those two words really stayed with me.) They would rather be researching and working with their grad students then "dealing with" undergrads." </p>
<p>We went on to discuss other programs and schools. Obviously, since this is posted here, Washington University was one of the recommendations which we responded to. I think what D came away from with her visit at Wash U, was the real feeling that when 3 different professors (at three different times) joined her tour groups while they were walking around campus and started asking students questions and promoting their particular class, they really meant they WANTED the students to be there with them. When graduate school time comes around, I'll be asking questions again. I guess that's the point. Ask questions from people in the position to know the real answers and listen to what they are saying. Don't hear only what you want to hear.</p>
<p>CopterMom -- Wow... that is really helpful, thanks. I mom are friends with 3 or 4 Harvard graduates mom, and that's one of the reason that she wanted me to go there. I don't think she has a clue on how the professors are treating undergrads though. I think Wash. U is my top choice now.</p>
<p>ps, if you like undergrad business, they're 14th currently</p>
<p>Harvard: just an old name and lots of grade inflation</p>
<p>i guess living so close to it has disillusioned me, ya know... like when tourists come from across the country to see plymouth rock. its just a rock.</p>
<p>hah - way to be taffyluchia!
sidewinder77, grow up</p>
<p>Wash U is great, and as you can see all the time- it appears to be much more worth the $$ in terms of undergrad, which is what we're all looking at right now. That's one thing I would give it over the Big H any day.</p>
<p>Also, I dont know why everyone has such a fetish for the ivies. They are known for being the best Grad education money can buy, but always slighting their undergrads. Cornell is an Ivy - it also has the highest suicide rate of any college in the US, I dont know about you - but that doesnt sound too fun to me....</p>
<p>oh yes, i forgot, you people don't understand sarcasm.</p>
<p>sorry if your egos were bruised.</p>
<p>There are many factors to deciding what school is better, but I agree with the ideas of deciding which is the better undergrad school. The easy answer is Harvard from my perspective, but I was accepted to both Harvard and Wash U. and I will probably go to Wash U. The first reason I am proably going to Wash U. is because I am an Ervin Scholar (I received a full tuition scholarship). It was so ironic that the I received two letters from Georgetown on the same day. The first congradulated me on being accepted, and the second letter said that I would not be receiving any financial aid. Similar letters from the Ivies followed. I am planning on getting my masters and J.D., and probaly a PhD later in life. I consider my undergraduate degree as a stepping stone. If I were only to get my Bachelor's degree, I would go to the best "name" school that I could get into. Instead, I am looking at the total package including affordability and my love for the school. My father works for the New York Times in a relatively prominant position, and when he hires interns and young employees in the journalism field, he looks either for a great undergrad education or a good undergrad and a great grad school. I guess I'm going for that second and seemingly more affordable option.</p>