Johns Hopkins vs. University of Chicago

College Search & Selection
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Hey everyone, I was lucky enough to be accepted to both Johns Hopkins and the University of Chicago. I am struggling in deciding between the two and have found aspects that are attracting me to and deterring me from both.

I am stuck between pursuing finance and pre-med. I have heard and read on CC that UChicago is one of the best for economics/applied math and will be helpful in acquiring top financial jobs; alternatively, JHU provides incomparable support and resources for pre-med students such as positions in bleeding-edge laboratory research and shadowing physicians.

First of all, does it really make sense for me to major in applied math/econ and still try to go on the pre-med track? If at the end of the day I decide medicine is what I want to do, how will medical schools feel if I do internships at consulting and investment banking firms? And if I decide I want to pursue finance as a career, will these firms look down upon any scientific research or shadowing that I do?

I have a list of pros and cons for both schools but am truly stuck in my decision. I would be grateful for any help I can receive!!

Why UChicago for me:

Significantly better econ and applied math program than JHU and a better university all-around. It is also ranked higher and has a lower teacher:student ratio. Supposedly, they place pretty well for medical schools. I also really liked the campus and architecture. I have heard that the Careers in Health Professions committee will write a letter of endorsement for all pre-med students which I imagine will help my chances at med school.

Why not UChicago:

I am not a fan of the core curriculum and the emphasis on humanities that UChicago places. I have heard it is very difficult to get a high GPA and sometimes this can kill students when they apply to graduate school. Also, the workload is supposedly insane and can be sometimes unmanageable. There are also rumors of weeding out pre-med students and the university as a whole does not produce too many pre-med students. (roughly 6% of all graduates?) Also I consider myself to be very social and I hear the social life is lacking and while there are occasional parties, student life is entirely focused on academics and completing the next assignment.

Why JHU:

A significantly larger percentage of students are pre-med, so I won’t be alone in what I want to study. Many of the university’s resources are allocated towards medicine. JHU also has amazing placement for medical schools. While the workload is intense, it is at least manageable. People seem happy at this university.

Why not JHU:

I want to major in applied math/econ so this wouldn’t be the best place to do that. I liked the campus but not as much as U of C. JHU is also ranked lower and many would consider this a less prestigious university.

Bottomline:

I am leaning towards majoring in math/econ but pursuing pre-med. First of all, is this even possible and what types of internships and extracurricular activities should I pursue to remain competitive for both financial jobs and medical schools when I finally decide what to pursue? Also, I do not want to go to a campus that lacks socially. If I want to go to medical school and major in math/econ, does pre-med at JHU outweigh the math/econ program at UChicago?

Where should i go to college?

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Excellent summary of the issue. Either way you are going to be academically brutalized. So be a machsochist and say It hurts so good!

These are two of the most demanding colleges that you could have to choose from. Chicago may be where fun goes to die, but Johns Hopkins is where fun suffers through agonizing treatment on life support before eventually heading down to Chicago to die.

Econ at UChicago is as competitive and brutal as is pre-med at Johns Hopkins. These particular emphases are heavily oversubscribed at each school, and you will have to scratch and claw to do well. Those that are successful are amply rewarded.

LOL, if you’re a little sqeemish about your GPA, since the core is 1/3 of your academic experience at Chicago, though there is some overlap with your major, you might fare best as an econ major at Johns Hopkins while still completing the pre-med requirements.

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Although UChicago’s rigorous curriculum can be though on your GPA, almost all Grad programs are surely aware of that and that is why Chicago has amazing MBA placements. I’ve heard that the scene in Baltimore is not very pleasant either and just overall I would surely go to Chicago and study finance/math and with the doors that opens up for you you can surely do anything you please. A UChicago finance degree is incomparable to any undergraduate degree in the US in matters of prestige.

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@usvsuk A UChicago finance degree is incomparable to any undergraduate degree in the US in matters of prestige. This is not true on many levels.

Firstly, Chicago doesn’t really offer an undergraduate finance degree, it offers an economics degree. Secondly, both for economics and for finance there are schools that have more prestigious degrees. Some examples for undergrad economics are Harvard and MIT and an example for finance is Penn Wharton (which actually offers an undergrad finance degree).

@lakasombo I would go with Hopkins. Both schools are very rigorous and you will have to work extremely hard to get med-school worthy GPAs. At least at Hopkins you will have access to better biomedical research opportunities and some of the top biomedical faculty in the world, which can bolster your med school application.

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UChicago is a top feeder undergraduate school for the top medical schools, just like Johns Hopkins. Unlike Johns Hopkins, UChicago is also a top feeder school for the top MBA programs and the top law schools.

https://www.â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– /blog/category/infographics/

Placement into PhD programs from UChicago also is the highest among national universities. CalTech, MIT and UChicago are the only national universities that rival the top LACs for this.

http://www.thecollegesolution.com/the-colleges-where-phds-get-their-start/

So, to the extent there is grade deflation, clearly the grading at at UChicago is not stopping people from accessing the next level of education. UChicago also is a world leader in both econ and math, and is a target school for investment banking firms (just in case you decide Med school isn’t your thing).

Yes, the core will be a lot of work - but this is work that is worth doing. Strong reading, writing, debate and analytical skills are valuable to everyone, including doctors. Almost half the core is math and science, and after your core classes are over, you don’t have to take a single other class outside of math and science if you don’t want to.

My understanding of the social scene/happiness factor at the two schools is that they really aren’t very different, but Chicago is a far more interesting city than Baltimore for when you want to get off campus with your friends.

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Prestige is in the eye of the beholder. I would hold them in similar regard. You probably think Chicago is more prestigious due to the US News ranking, which they recently started gaming. With regards to IB placement, JHU does well also should you choose to go that route - although Chicago econ is definitely a cut above.

Hopkins has had their share of Harvard 2+2 admits and placements into goldman, morgan stanley, etc etc. I would check out this club (most members get into Finance firms of their choosing)

http://pages.jh.edu/~salant/

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You can see some of the major IB banks recruit on campus at JHU as well:

http://hub.jhu.edu/2014/11/04/alumni-stock-pickers/

As stated in the above, Hopkins is not a target for all the major banks since it only sends 14% of grads to finance, but it is starting to gain traction as you can see from some of the major players recruiting on campus from the article.

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I don’t feel this is a difficult decision. Econ at Chicago is way ahead of Hopkins, and pre-med is about neck and neck, although Hopkins may have a slight edge. And in terms of overall prestige, Chicago has a clear albeit small advantage over Hopkins. So the choice is pretty clear unless you consider other factors such as weather, school culture, financial aid, etc.

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@hzhao2004

I think the prestige is more pronounced in the midwest just as Hopkins would be more well received on the east coast. Both aren’t true national schools such as Stanford or MIT.

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@stevensPR As Californian, I respectfully disagree. Both are true national schools.

Anyhow, UChicago’s prestige doesn’t come from “gaming” the rankings (whatever that means). It comes from high academic achievement in all fields in which it participates, as reflected by 90 Nobel prizes and multiple schools of thought named after the place.

I have nothing but respect for Johns Hopkins. Just keeping it real about UChicago.

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Both Amazing schools. More serious academics there than in most ivies.

To make a long story short: ONLY If you are clearly a pre med student,-- JHU.
All the rest – UChicago.

As an aside, Chicago is ten times the city that Baltimore is. There is (some) life outside campus …

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I don’t see how you can major in Math/econ and pursue pre med.? How can you do both ? Pre med is very rigorous and structured with lots of requirements.

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@Chrchill Or JHU you know, if he’s interested in STEM. Especially since Chicago doesn’t even have engineering.

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@ThankYouforHelp

I have nothing but respect for Chicago as well. But it has no doubt gamed the rankings since they finally began accepting the common application, began talking to US News (which they previously refused), and have done absolute mass marketing (which several other peer schools such as Hopkins or Stanford have not). This has resulted in a mega increase in applications and a ridiculous yield rate increase from low 30s from 2007 to 66% currently:

http://www.personalcollegeadmissions.com/getting-in/the-great-success-of-the-university-of-chicago

https://www.chicagomaroon.com/2016/05/31/university-admits-record-low-7-9-percent-to-class-of-2020/

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Sending out mailings to become better known among the applicant pool is not gaming the ratings and most top schools do it. UChicago had bad name recognition among high schoolers because it lacks big time sports, a connection to the Ivy league, or a cool and memorable name like Johns Hopkins. It’s also not gaming the rankings to accept the common application or cooperate with US News - Johns Hopkins does both of those things. Also, yield is not even part of the US News ranking formula.

Anyhow, the reason Chicago has become more popular is because they finally stopped being a monastery. They built nice new dorms and dining halls, turbocharged the internships and career services, and just generally started treating undergrads far better than they used to. Over time, that caused interest in the school to catch up with the academic quality that was always there.

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@Chrchill Premed = 2 semesters of Bio, 4 semesters of Chem (1-2 of which is Organic, or 1 biochem), 2 semesters of Physics, Calculus, English and maybe some Psychology (at some med schools). At most undergrads, this is a total of 6-8 extra courses at most since many of these are core curriculum courses.

A student can major in Econ and still do their pre-med reqs.

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Hopkins is a fantastic school for premeds. The advisers know a lot and the students especially the upperclassmen help you out a lot. However, consider what you are sacrificing for it. Living in Baltimore means losing 4 of the best years of your life. The student life is just terrible. There are just SO MANY premeds here. UChicago is in the same caliber. Pick the one that awards the best financial aid. Believe me. Where you go for undergrad won’t matter as long as you are advised well.

Literally anything the pre-professional advising office has is found on their website. They do not tell you anything special when you talk to them in person. btwn Uchicago and Hopkins, I’d pick Hopkins if 100% certain about premed. If you have a school you could graduate from tuition free, go there.

I have full aid at JHU and I regret not going to my state’s public school. Baltimore is just a horrible city.

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JHU is a world leader in medicine and Bioscience and has the top masters program in IR. In economics and pre business opportunities , UChicago is unrivaled. You also cannot compare the global name recognition Chicago enjoys which is below only Harvard, MIT, and Stanford amongst American universities . Based on first hand reports and as @Shhsvri suggests, you will be a happier person at UChicago,