Can anyone help me decide between these two schools. I am a physics major but I’m probably going to change my major or transfer to engineering so the quality/rigor of the physics curriculum is not too important in my decision. Price is also very similar across both schools.
In general, I prefer the type of schools Swarthmore is and the community there, however, I think I can get a better STEM education and research opportunities at JHU. Please see below for my current pros/cons:
JHU:
PROS:
-Strong STEM curriculum and great engineering department (something I am thinking of transferring into). Excellent research opportunities, even for undergrads.
-Baltimore is not the safest city but I’d rather have a city near me than no city.
CONS:
-The school seems (from what I’ve heard/read) really academically challenging and competitive. Though I think I could handle it, I don’t want to drown in school/workload every day. This is probably my biggest con but the accounts I’ve gotten from people are pretty contradictory.
-The school is large and I come from a very small school so this might be a shock and it could be hard to make friends.
Swarthmore:
PROS:
-Small school with great individual attention. I’ve visited and I really like the atmosphere/feel of the school and it’s community. Pretty laid-back
CONS:
-The school is also academically challenging but sounds better than what I could expect at JHU.
-The school is not well known outside the US; I know this should not be a huge issue but I’m from Europe where JHU is far more well known to future schools/employers. I’m planning on doing graduate school but in the case I’m not this wouldhurt me.
-The engineering department is pretty weak (as someone who is considering transferring to engineering)
This is such a difficult decision for me to make and I’m going to try and visit both schools in the coming month. Any help is greatly appreciated.
This is one of the more interesting X or Y threads that I have seen this year. Swat & JHU students both tend to be very intense and highly self-motivated.
Can you say more about why you are planning to transfer to engineering, but did not apply to engineering, and what you plan to do with your engineering degree?
Fwiw, Swarthmore is not ‘very weak’ in engineering- it just isn’t ranked with with the national universities because it doesn’t offer a doctorate (& therefore isn’t technically a ‘university’). It is ABET accredited, which is the national standard, and for classes not offered there is the consortium with UPenn. IIRC there is also an exchange program with Harvey Mudd in CA. Students are introduced to research opportunities in the first semester.
You are correct that S v JHU won’t matter for grad school, and also correct that applying for jobs in Europe JHU is better known. That will make more of a difference for some kinds of jobs than others- and ime, what will make more of a difference is the experience you gain over through research and summer jobs.
Thanks for the reply, I applied as a physics major because I knew I wanted to do something STEM-related and I have taken several physics classes and done research in a physics lab which I really enjoyed. I like physics but I’m not super passionate about it and I’m still looking for something else
I have never done anything really engineering-related and didn’t really consider it as an option but I feel like, I would enjoy it and would like to have the option to transfer.
TL;DR: I don’t really know what to major in yet…
If you had these two options, what would you pick/lean towards?
Engineering seems to suit people or it doesn’t, and engineering programs are typically challenging to complete within the 4 year cycle.
We pegged one of our collegekids for engineering by the time she was 7, but she resolutely resisted the idea. She went on to be a physics major (at a small college) and through summer research jobs found that she really enjoyed the R&D at the Applied end. She is now doing a PhD in Materials Science and Applied Physics- which is based in the Engineering school (that’s mom for the win btw). But even so, she was in San Francisco last week looking at places she might work for the summer, and ruled one out as being ‘too engineering’ for her (the one she liked turned out to be more about the creating of the material, than how the material fit into the structure). Anecdotal, but I hope helpful.
If you aren’t sure what you want to do, and are looking to taste-test engineering, I think Swat would give you more flexibility.
Thank you for the description! My main interests in Physics are actually Particle Physics and Material Physics.
I’ve visited only Swarthmore so far and am planning my visit to JHU now.
I just talked to my parents and I’m pretty sure now that I can and will get a master/PhD after undergraduate years so that will probably affect my decision. Do you (or anyone else for that matter) think that it would be more challenging to get admitted to a good Physics/Engineering graduate school from Swarthmore vs from JHU?
I can tell you that my collegekid got into all 6 of the top 10 PhD programs she applied to- from a small college that is lower ranked than either JHU or Swarthmore, and is not known for physics. What matters is research experience (and she had no trouble getting plenty of that) and of course academics.
You know that PhDs in physics/engineering come with good stipends, and tuition and health insurance are covered, right? my collegekid is comfortably self-supporting
I think you are going to drown in schoolwork at either school. I have a sense that there is more of a competitive edge at JHU, though. I think you’d find sufficient research experience at Swat, too. Either school can get you into a good funded PhD program if you do well as an undergrad.
@Yunomi I am currently facing the same situation. And I also intend to be a physics/applied science major. Where did you end up going? May I ask for some suggestions? Thank you!
