Johns Hopkins vs Rice vs Case Western Reserve

College Search & Selection
1

hey! I’m a current senior in high school and college decision season is over! Schools I’ve been admitted to were: Hopkins, Rice, Case Western, Vanderbilt, UCSD, UCLA, UC Berkeley, and some in state schools. I’ve also been waitlisted at Duke and Brown, but I’m not considering them as part of my decision.

I’ve narrowed my decision down to Hopkins, Rice, and Case (with a scholarship - they gave me 30k per year).

I’m a neuroscience major on a pre-med track, and so things like close-by hospitals, undergrad research, good GPA are very important factors in my decision.

However, they’re all amazing schools for pre-med, Hopkins being Hopkins, rice having the Texas medical center, and case having the Cleveland Clinic.

SO im looking for current students’ opinion on student life there! I will say that I am an introvert but not so introverted that I want to spend my whole time studying and not going out. I really would like to socialize and make a great group of friends as well as explore activities outside of campus.

I was wondering which of these three schools would provide that the best as WELL as the city its in have great night life and activities for college students to attend? School pride is also a big factor for me, and a lot of the threads I’ve seen say that these schools don’t have a lot of school pride (?) but they were a bit outdated.

Campus safety is also important, these schools are in an urban area and I want to make sure that safety won’t be a concern! I’ve heard a lot of bad things about Baltimore in terms of crime and I dont know about houston or Cleveland, but I want to make sure that if I ever want to go out with friends into the city and have fun, it won’t be dangerous.

Thank you!

2

I need to make my decision soon so pls respond :frowning:

3

hopkins has severe GPA deflation. My son says only 3% of their MDs came from their undergrad course. Dont decide your BS program based on their MD program. all three schools are good. Take the least cost option for BS and am sure you will easily earn it for your MD.

4

All good options so go by the environment you would like to be in for next 4-5 years. Rice’s residential college system would give you an instant family.

5

All wonderful options!

I’d go with lowest cost coupled with best quality of life. Cleveland, Baltimore and Houston are very different. Have you visited?

6

Rice parent here. Case would be the least expensive. You could save $ for medical school by going there. My daughter turned down a scholarship at another selective school to go to Rice. She thought it was the best fit for her. Can you fit in a visit to any or all of the schools before you decide?

Rice is located in the museum district of Houston which is a very nice part of the city. The Rice Village is just west of the campus and has lots of shops and restaurants you can walk to. There is a light rail line just off campus that you can take downtown or to Reliant Stadium where the Texans play and the Houston Rodeo is held. Houston is the most diverse city in the country with lots of entertainment and cultural events. We have professional sports teams like Baltimore and Cleveland do.

Rice is a very safe campus. The Rice PD does a good job of patrolling. There is some petty theft but few, if any, serious crimes.

Rice is right next to the Houston medical center which offers many opportunities for internships, etc. Many students at Rice are premed. Rice has a very good medical school acceptance rate. The atmosphere is more collaborative than cut throat. Rice has a lot of school pride, however many of the students do not attend the sporting events like football games.

There is no Greek life at Rice, but the students live in residential colleges instead. I would describe Rice students as happy nerds. My daughter is fairly introverted and loves it there. .

The weather in Houston is warm for most of the year. Hopkins and Case will be a lot colder in the winter.

7

What are the net costs of each?

Pre-Health Advising at Case. Western.

** Case has a dedicated Pre-med Advisor, Wesley Schaub.**

The pre-health advisor also maintains a Pre-Health Professions Canvas page for current and past CWRU undergraduate students interested in the health science professions. The Canvas page provides additional resources for students and is used to communicate information about group advising sessions, application preparation and workshops, clinical and research opportunities, and guest speakers on campus. Students may request access to the Pre-Health Professions Canvas page by sending an email to Wesley Schaub.

https://case.edu/ugstudies/students/pre-professional-programs/pre-health

You will need to take the pre-med pre-req courses.
Info can be found here:
https://case.edu/ugstudies/students/general-new-student-information/recommendations-for-first-year-students-interested-in-pre-health

**You may want to get involved in research. **Info is here:
https://case.edu/source/

You may want to volunteer at a hospital:
Case is literally surrounded by hospitals. For example:
https://www.uhhospitals.org/locations/uh-cleveland-medical-center/volunteer-services/volunteer-opportunities

You may want to get more info about applying to med school:
You could attend activities such as:
https://case.edu/studentsuccess/node/346

You might want to join a medically related student organization:
https://case.edu/ugstudies/students/pre-professional-programs/pre-health/health-related-student-organizations

** What’s unique about CWRU?**

I am not sure any college has just one thing that makes it unique:

CWRU was created from the merger of a ** LAC + STEM **school in 1969. So you get people majoring in the liberal arts, nursing, business, as well as engineering. Unlike some engineering schools, you get more of a male female balance.

Case also has a ** Single Door admissions** policy…once you are admitted you can major in whatever you want…no applying to the engineering or business school or whatever…so you can also easily change majors (obviously you need to meet the requirements)

Case is in the University Circle, Home to world-renowned museums, prestigious universities, nationally recognized hospitals, Cleveland Orchestra, eclectic restaurants, beautiful parks, and cozy spaces.
https://www.universitycircle.org/

Case is minutes from downtown Cleveland and you get a free RTA pass
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/case-western-reserve-university/2080977-cleveland.html

Case is known for ** Merit Scholarships**

http://money.com/money/5636111/best-colleges-for-merit-aid-2019

Case is affiliated with the ** Cleveland Institute of Music and the Cleveland Institute of Art.**
All art programs are considerably enhanced by close cooperation with and access to the facilities of cultural institutions located in University Circle, in particular The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Cleveland Institute of Art and the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland.
The Department of Music at CWRU offers undergraduate students a wide range of opportunities for musical study and participation, many of which take advantage of our Joint Music Program with the Cleveland Institute of Music. https://music.case.edu/prospective-undergraduate-students/general-information/

There is no issue getting ** housing ** on campus, or off.
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/case-western-reserve-university/2081572-cwru-frequently-asked-questions.html#1

Case has the ** think[box] Maker Space **
ThinkBox at Case is 50,000 square feet of space for engineers, business majors and patent attorneys
to come together to innovate. I think this is unique, even MIT does not offer this cross section of
resources in one place, the maker space, the business partners and the attorneys all for you to invent, prototype
patent and launch a start up while an undergrad or grad student or MBA student at Case Western.
Watch the students talk about it on this video:
http://thinkbox.case.edu

Case will support you if you are more into the practical Co-op or more theoretical** research.**
Co-op: http://engineering.case.edu/coop/
SOURCE Research: https://case.edu/source/

If you are looking for a ** health profession **, Case has a nursing, medical, and dental school and all the advising and next door hospitals for volunteering/clinicals.
https://expo.cleveland.com/news/g66l-2019/03/049eb2e43f234/5-ways-cleveland-clinic-case-western-reserve-universitys-new-campus-will-change-medical-education-.html

If you are interested in being an ** Entrepreneur** , there is LaunchNet to help you launch your business.
https://students.case.edu/career/entre/launchnet/

If you happen to be ** LGBT: **
Case Western Reserve is among the Top 25 LGBT-Friendly Colleges and Universities, according to Campus Pride, a national organization that aims to make universities safer and more inclusive for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals. The recognition follows Case Western Reserve’s first five-star ranking on the Campus Pride Index, a detailed survey of universities’ policies, services and institutional support for LGBT individuals.

** Safety:**

University Circle is well lit and busy, and safer than other Cleveland neighborhoods.
I walked in early evening, before 10 pm, from a B&B on Cornell and Murray Hill, to Little Italy and then
back up to 115th St, where the Case upperclass suites are located and felt pretty good
in all those areas. The areas to avoid are East 55th Street, which is well west of campus,
and parts of East Cleveland, which is a tad closer to campus.
but students don’t have reasons to go to either of those locations. . The Healthline Bus, which
goes up and down Euclid Avenue, to the downtown/Lake Front area is fine, and the train from
the airport is fine too. I road both of those with my son, to be sure.

Case students, like all college students on urban campuses,
get reports from campus police, on any muggings, and there are some each year, as I remember, but
students can use Greenie Buses at night to get around, and the police are responsive, both
the city police and the campus police patrol the campus and surrounding areas near Cleveland
Clinic, and University Hospital, right near campus.
(Thanks @Coloradomama )

** Cleveland:**
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/case-western-reserve-university/2080977-cleveland.html

8

I’ve visited Cleveland, and Houston! I’ll be visiting Baltimore soon though! I liked what I saw so far, but I’m not sure if there will be much to do at Cleveland, city-wise, but it is quite nice

9

Thank you so much! I’ve visited Rice and Case, and I’ll be going to Hopkins soon! School wise they all seem great, which is why I cant really choose haha, but to put it in perspective I come from a rather small school and my social circle as a result is quite confined! So for college, I do want that circle to expand and find things to do in the city! Thank you for the advice :slight_smile:

10

@sealotus

@bopper is the CWRU expert here on CC so I don’t have much to add. I was in the area last month and I can confirm that the area around the university is pleasant and felt safe. The museums and cultural attractions are right at your doorstep and public transport can get you downtown easily. The school is large enough that you should find plenty of like-minded people there, whatever your personality. My kid looked at it seriously a couple of years ago (also got awarded generous merit) but decided on a LAC in the end. If you are thinking pre-med, Cleveland Clinic was ranked near the top (just below Mayo?) in a recent national survey

I went to Hopkins and in my opinion, it seemed like there was more to do in Cleveland than Baltimore. However DC is not far away if you wanted a change of pace from Charm City.

Can’t speak to Rice, but have heard good things.

If you’re serious about pre-med, I say go with Case for the reasons @bopper enumerated and to keep your undergrad costs down.

1 Like
11

I would go to Hopkins, Charles Village has changed a lot. And if you decide to not do pre-med, Hopkins will give you better versatility from a careers perspective (this coming from an engineer that went into management consulting and then tech).

@mamaedefamilia I would caveat your comment with the fact that you went to Hopkins a long time ago

1 Like
12

@happy9bird If anything, Hopkins has severe grade inflation now. https://www.wsj.com/articles/you-graduated-cum-laude-so-did-everyone-else-1530523801

The above article states clearly more than half of Hopkins grads had higher than a 3.5 GPA. The average GPA is a 3.54 across the university (likely higher now).

You can see this clearly below

https://studentaffairs.jhu.edu/fsl/wp-content/uploads/sites/39/2019/01/Fall-2018-Grades-Summary.pdf

Not sure where you’re getting the deflation bit.

1 Like
13

for grad school it won’t matter much so go with the cheapest option

14

You are fortunate to have 3 terrific options. All are in urban areas with great medical centers close by, and all are great for pre med and other disciplines if you decide to change majors. My husband and I spent a weekend in Baltimore earlier this year and attended a Baltimore Orioles/Astros game. Camden Yards was great. We were very impressed with the Inner Harbor area with all of the museums, shops, restaurants, etc. My husband spent some of his childhood in Baltimore and was very pleased the area had really changed for the better. Let us know what you decide.

1 Like
15

@Riversider
Residential colleges at Rice are great, but they neglect to tell you that you are guaranteed only three years of housing. It was a huge turnoff when our son came to his decision.

16

OP - lots to do in Cleveland on a student budget

17

Case with the money looks good to me!

If finances weren’t an issue, I’d pick between Hopkins and Rice based on “fit”.

18

@cjpski

They did tell us when we went to tour their campus last year. It’s not guaranteed but yet majority gets it all four years. I won’t mind one year off campus, it’s a learning experience in itself. If you really don’t want him off campus at all then there is always an option to take a room in a different residential college wherever spots are open, you can still hang out at your own college and stay involved there. I’m heading there tomorrow, will confirm but not a big deal for us.

We haven’t decided on Rice yet but it’s one of his top two choices.

19

I know a little of all three cities. Houston is by far the best. A very prosperous and rising city but very automobile oriented. Plus palm trees! Baltimore’s biggest advantage is access to other east coast cities but from Houston, Auston and San Antonio are very accessible and also world class cities, for instance you could attend SXSW .

20

My D is a college Freshman, and she has a HS classmate at Rice and a classmate at Hopkins. Both the classmates are pre-med, are hard workers and smart kids. The kid at Hopkins said it is unbelievably rigorous, works all the time, and was disappointed in getting a few Bs - first ones ever. The kid at Rice is loving the experience there and can’t say better things about it. Based on my D’s classmate’s experiences, and personally knowing both kids abilities and willingness to work hard, I’d definitely say Rice over Hopkins.