<p>Hello all. I've lurked this website for some time now but only just found something I think you may be able to help out with.</p>
<p>I am a senior who is extremely interested in the fields of nanotechnology and materials science and have completed my own research in the field. Naturally, I would like to focus on these fields in my college studies and have had my mind set on some top schools, e.g., MIT. However, I recently discovered that The College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, often cited as having the most advanced nanotechnology labs at any university, is offering Undergraduate Admissions starting this year. I have my reservations about attending a first year program, but their facilities are quite tempting. What are your takes on the situation?
Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>Cornell has a well-established nanotech program and is excellent in materials science.
They have a new building devoted to nanotech, Duffield Hall.</p>
<p>Cornell University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Northwestern University
Pennsylvania State University-University Park
Stanford University
University of California-Berkeley
University of California-Santa Barbara
University of Florida
University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor</p>
<p>The above is actually very similar to my list of schools to which I am applying. I suppose my reason for posting this was to see if the CollegeConfidential community had any feelings about the pros and cons of attending a program in its first year when compared to other top notch schools with impressive reputations.</p>
<p>I am applying to UAlbany’s College of Nanoscale Science of Engineering. It is the best of its kind in the country (the world, actually)-I have visited it and it is very impressive. The interesting thing about it is that all of your classes except for calc and gen ed will be in the nano buildings. You won’t have physics or chemistry class, it will all be integrated with nanotechnology. Another interesting thing about it is that there are lots of companies using the labs there. IBM, Texas Instruments, AMD, and lots of other companies that I can’t remember have flocked to Albany. So yeah, SUNY Albany is #1 for nano. With that said, MIT is MIT, Stanford is Stanford…UAlbany is my top choice because my next best options will likely be SUNY Binghamton or UMaryland. But comparing UAlbany CNSE with MIT and Berkeley…I dunno.</p>
<p>I’m surprised no one has mentioned Rice University. Buckministerfullerene (“buckey balls”), the basis of carbon nanotubes, was invented RIGHT HERE. We were also one of the FIRST universities to have a nanotechnology research lab. Rice was one of the first universities, in 2004, to offer an introductory nanotechnology class to undergraduates.</p>
<p>Although we do not have a materials science or nanotechnology major, chemical engineering and chemistry are very strong at Rice.</p>
<p>I know you seem pretty set on attending the university that focuses mainly on nanotechnology, but I also think its important in the college admissions process to keep in open mind to the other amazing schools out there. Rice is a top 20 school, so you will receive an excellent, well-rounded education here, something you may not receive at the university that mainly offers nanotech classes. Of course, universities like Cornell and Stanford, will also offer a well-rounded education too. However, I wanted to mention Rice because Rice is very well-known in the nanotech community and played a crucial role in making it a booming industry.</p>