<p>Help me choose! I got rejected from all of my top choice schools, and I think that's making me indecisive about the ones that I did get into haha. I'd be majoring in BME at JHU, biochem at Duke, and I'm not sure what science at Caltech.
Duke's party scene is a little too prominent for my taste, while Caltech's party scene, and social scene in general, is a little too nerdy. For lack of a better word. It's not so much that I'm afraid people at Caltech will be the shy/non-social type of nerdy, I'm afraid they'll be the embarrassing-to-be-associated-with type of nerdy. I can't help it, I care what people think and I'm judgmental, don't flame me! I like JHU's social scene the best. Subtle, but present.
Also, I'm worried about being disheartened at Caltech, JHU and Duke seem easier academically, and less likely to make me end up bitter and depressed and feeling like an idiot 24/7 haha...
However, in the science world, Caltech has a bit more prestige than either JHU or Duke. And I'm thinking the difficulty of the courses means that I'd get a more thorough education at Caltech. So Caltech stands out to me academically. Plus my parents want me to go to Caltech.
Duke is so close to my town it feels like the neighborhood school, which is both good and bad. Good b/c I'll have some familiar faces and will be able to come home whenever I want, bad because I feel like it'll inhibit my independence a little.
All 3 schools would cost around the same for me, so cost is not a huge issue.
I don't know. What do you guys think?</p>
<p>just go to CalTech…</p>
<p>I’m a big fan of getting out of your comfort zone for college, so I would go for Hopkins or Caltech.</p>
<p>Personally, I very much like Caltech’s quirkiness and weather. BME is top-notch at JHU, though, so it’s a great option if you like it better. JHU also has more to offer in the way of athletics, if that interests you, and it’s larger than Caltech and has more to offer in the humanities for breadth. The social sciences at both are roughly on par.</p>
<p>I have a low tolerance for pre-meds, so that may be one reason why Caltech always appealed to me more than Hopkins.</p>
<p>Caltech is way better than JHU and slightly better than Duke</p>
<p>Caltech is for hardcore science and engineering students. It has less than 1000 undergrauate students, smaller than some high schools. If you are a committed science/engineering student, Caltech is a great option. However, academic rigor in Caltech is probably stronger than both Hopkins and Duke, meaning you have to work harder.</p>
<p>
If anything, JHU is more prestigous than Duke unless you care about USNEWS ranking and basketball.</p>
<p>Canary, if you are really into science, then it would be hard to turn down CalTech. Don’t worry about it being full of nerds…you will find plenty of well rounded kids to make friends with and socialize.</p>
<p>I am also a strong believer in going to a college that is not close to home - a little different environment and independence…</p>
<p>Besides, this will make your parents happier…</p>
<p>ha!</p>
<p>"If anything, JHU is more prestigous than Duke unless you care about USNEWS ranking and basketball. "</p>
<p>and JHU is only more prestigious than Duke if people care about your opinion.</p>
<p>Hmm given your area of study, I think mom and dad have it right. Some people turn down MIT for Cal Tech. Cal Tech is also in a nice part of Pasadena and really close to Downtown LA, a 40 minute drive to the beach (90 min with traffic haha). Location, prestige, its a great combo. And of course there’s this!</p>
<p>[The</a> Great Rose Bowl Hoax of 1961](<a href=“Caltech Today | www.caltech.edu”>Caltech Today | www.caltech.edu)</p>
<p>Please maintain a sense of proportion. Yes, choosing a college is important but, let’s face it, choosing between these three schools is not a life or death decision. All three are great. BME at Hopkins is the best program of its type in the world. If you feel most comfortable at Hopkins, then that’s probably your best choice.</p>
<p>If you feel happiest socially at Hopkins, go there. Caltech does have a great reputation, but the sheer insanity of the workload there means that you have to be rather committed to it. And you need to work with your classmates there, so not liking them would be really bad. Also, if there is any chance of you wanting med school, the lack of grade inflation would kill that. Essentially, if you want to go to Caltech, it’s great. Otherwise, run away! JHU and Duke both have good but not phenomenal reputations generally, but are excellent in the subjects you are looking at. Go for the place you’d be happiest spending the next four years. They are all great schools!</p>
<p>“JHU and Duke both have good but not phenomenal reputations generally, but are excellent in the subjects you are looking at.”</p>
<p>Uh oh.</p>
<p>It does seem that Johns Hopkins would seem to offer a good balance on the nerdy scale between Duke and Cal Tech. Plus (assuming you’re a guy) Loyola College of Maryland also helps the social scene at JHU.</p>
<p>For overall collegiate balance over four years, pick JHU.</p>
<p>Caltech IS nerdy. It IS small. It IS 60% guys (whether that is a good thing…). It IS extremely rigorous, with zero grade inflation.</p>
<p>JHU offers a good social life? That’s news to me and my cousins who graduated from there. You will NOT find well rounded people at Caltech to hang out with because of its academic bent and small student population. That being said, I think its reputation in the sciences/engineering far surpasses Duke and JHU.</p>
<p>Make sure to visit these colleges if you haven’t already to see if these stereotypes are actually true.</p>
<p>
See the information below:</p>
<pre><code> USNWR National University, USNWR World University, ARWU, Basketball:
</code></pre>
<p>Hopkins 14, 13, 19, 1000(estimate)
Duke 10, 14, 31, 1</p>
<p>ARWU is not a credible ranking. Neither is the Shanghai Jiatong or whatever it’s called. There are essentially no good international rankings out there that are on the same plane of credibility as USNews.</p>
<p>^^ARWU is by Shanghai Jiatong.</p>
<p>Dude, you REALLY need to either get out to Pasadena and find out if your preconceptions are true, or go to JHU. I can’t imagine going to a school that you think will make you feel like an idiot and social outcast (but you have not confirmed this), not matter what the academic reward. Life is not all 1s and 0s.</p>
<p>I suspect when you visit some of your preconceptions will pan out, some won’t, but you cannot decide without stepping onto the campus.</p>
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</p>
<p>Never said not inferred that. The OP said that Duke’s social scene was too “prominent.” Thus, between Caltech and JHU, the answer is really easy, JHU is better.</p>
<p>If you go to CalTech just make sure you are not one of the freshmen that the upper classmen pick to have the annual freshman prank pulled on - whereby your car is taken apart and rebuilt inside your dorm room.</p>