<p>tk - NU has bunch of education, journalism, commnications, theater, music performance majors…do you really think it’s fair to compare their salaries to those in arts & sciences (what LACs are)? I am not saying some of them can’t make big bucks. But do you really Stephen Colbert or Julia Louis-Dreyfus would report their salaries on PayScale? LOL! I think NU should be praised for investing in low-paying yet important professions (a $90M music building is being built now), not bashed with bogus data.</p>
<p>I’m not bashing NU, I’m challenging RML’s unsupported claim (using practically the only evidence I can find for financial ROI, namely the problematic payscale data). Neither school is “without a doubt” the worthier investment.</p>
<p>FYI: UChicago ranks even worse at #104. I highly doubt it’s representative of how UChicago grads do. Student Review also has salary info. According to that site, mid-career NU grads (small sample of 46) make over 220k, which is very different from what’s on PayScale. One of them has to be wrong but my guess is neither is representaive of anything. This is how problematic with self-reported surveys is. </p>
<p>One’s chosen field is a huge factor of one’s salary potential. A pretty average accountant may make more than a good biology researcher. Within many non-technical fields, the drive, personality (extroverts seem to have the advantage), and social intelligence probably matter more than anything else. Neither has much to do with what school one went to.</p>
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<p>I agree. You need to make a decision about what type of university you want before you decide between these two.</p>
<p>For what it’s worth, I think Northwestern is more pre-professional and Middlebury is more academic; However, Northwestern probably has more lay prestige (especially among employers) while both are viewed similarly in graduate / professional schools.</p>
<p>Out of the two schools which would you say is more relaxed/less stressful? I know both have super rigorous academics which I’m prepared for, but are students always stressed or do they take breaks and relax? Also, I know that the two schools are completely different, but there are certain aspects of both that I really like which is why I am in between them. Even if I don’t end up applying ED, I am still trying to decide which would fit me better. What pros and cons would you add if you consider mine so admission brochure-like?</p>
<p>p.s. I have visited both campuses…</p>
<p>Northwestern has quarters so students will have to be concerned with finals and midterms more frequently than a school with semesters. The vacation schedule is different from most other schools with semesters. Transferring of credits is more difficult from a school with quarters to a school with semesters.
They are both great schools.</p>
<p>This. </p>
<p>[Middlebury</a> Fall Foliage on Vimeo](<a href=“http://vimeo.com/77071145]Middlebury”>Middlebury Fall Foliage on Vimeo)</p>
<p>Bottom line, none of us can answer this for you. You have to decide which you like better.</p>
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<p>Our S is a freshman in ISP (Integrated Science Program) at Northwestern, widely considered among the most rigorous undergrad curricula at NU. He came from a meh public HS and was missing some prerequisites. We just visited him, and he LOVES the school and program. He is working harder than he ever has, but is not stressed and is finding lots of time to make friends, see theatre and spends 6+ hours a week playing jazz. Even his Orgo class is small (60 kids versus the 600+ he would have had at Berkeley) so profs always have time to help during office hours. He also has TAs, peer tutors and study groups for support if he needs it. He says there are many opportunities for UG research, both during the school year and summer - paid or for credit. I can’t speak to Middlebury as it wasn’t on S’s list.</p>