MIT vs JHU vs Upenn vs Columbia vs Yale vs Caltech vs Rice

Colleges and Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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Having tough deciding between these (deadline this weekend!). Major is BME, or Course 2A (mechE)/Course 20 (Biological Engineering)/Course 10 (ChemE) for MIT. Current goal is to go for a PhD in area relating to nanotechnology, biosensors, or biomaterials. Finances not a primary concern.

Any thoughts appreciated!

MIT:
+: amazing at engineering, research opportunities, Cambridge, spirit of innovation, more marketable degree if stop with BS.
-: too hard to enjoy self or have time to do research? Also arguably less academically diverse (less humanities)
?: Is the workload manageable with planning?

JHU:
+: top BME program (amazing curriculum), good engineering administration, outreach opportunities
-: social life is primarily the library?, less strong in other majors if change, competitive environment?

UPenn:
+: overall academic strength, alumni network, strong BME research
-: more pre-professional focus in undergrad students

Columbia:
+: strong humanities, diverse and passionate students, favorite campus and city, alumni network
-: curriculum arguably less strong, administration has reputation for being difficult, most expensive option.

Yale
+: diverse and passionate students, music and art opportunities
-: curriculum arguably less strong, don’t like some of the requirements, less engineering research going on

Caltech:
+: high percent of people go to grad school, strong academics, great professor contact, weather
-: similar to MIT - workload so tough it is difficult to have time for ECs or research? Less academic diversity of students.

Rice:
+: solid overall, good bioengineering program, nice residential system
-: not too much to complain about, less name recognition than some

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^ It seems a bit odd to me that with the deadline approaching in a few days, you still have trouble deciding between 7 different schools. Narrowing the list to a final 2-3 I could understand, but I sense that there may be some underlying issues with making decisions here.

What are you looking for besides a strong bioengineering program?

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I’m sure you have visited these schools and gotten a general idea of the vibe.

No matter where accepted, my son ended up preferring the tech schools, Caltech and MIT. But that was him.

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@undecider It’s pretty manageable as long as you don’t take 6+ technical classes in a semester - for most majors you usually don’t need to take more than 48 units (~4 courses) per term if you plan well. Of course you can take other classes for fun…

However, with the deadline approaching you will need to decide quickly.

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For BME It has got to be between JHU and MIT. At that point it comes down to fit, have you visited both?

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Which are you learning towards?

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Columbia and Yale have much newer engineering programs and smaller programs. Go with any of the others, and you will get a solid technical education. It really does not matter much. Just roll the dice, since you are very indecisive, its very interesting you can get into so many good schools, but have no idea what you want in terms of a college. I kinda wonder why MIT lets in so many indecisive and well rounded types that can get into Ivies, very disappointing, if you did not just make this up!

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Thanks and I appreciate the responses.

@renaissancedad I posted a broader list to make sure I wasn’t missing something, since I believe each could be a viable option. Am really focused on the academic fit here.

@MITer94 thanks! Do you believe the workload gets in the way of doing research / Is it hard for freshman to have time to do research?

@lostaccount probably MIT or JHU

@tseliot yes visited both.

@Coloradomama thanks but your post is vaguely hostile

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@undecider My S is a freshman at MIT. He is a TA this semester and many of his freshman friends are doing UROPS. Most of them have ECs and they go out regularly and also participate in dorm and campus activities.

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@undecider:

  • If you want the best bioengineering in the country, go to Hopkins
  • If you want the best overall STEM/engineering in the country, go to MIT (or Caltech, but MIT engineering is probably stronger and you seem to prefer a city environment)
  • If you want to maximize your undergraduate experience and are willing to sacrifice the qualify of engineering opportunities, go to Yale (or Columbia, since you seem to like the city environment)
  • If you want to balance engineering with overall academic experience, go to Penn or Rice

But make up your mind what you want fast. This shouldn’t have taken so long.

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Thanks @renaissancedad that seems like a pretty good summary.

I have at least 2880 minutes left to decide, what’s the problem? :wink:

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No, and no. Each year, nearly 60 percent of MIT undergraduates participate in the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program, with 89 percent having done so by the time they graduate. MIT students definitely have time do do research. Doing research is considered an integral part of the education offered and the research is definitely seen as PART of “the workload” rather than as something you do on top of it.

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Thank you very much @Mikalye ! Do students typically start research 2nd semester Freshman year?

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There isn’t really a “typical”. Some students start first semester Freshman year (a couple of weeks into term, once they have found their feet). Others, prefer to wait until they have a major their sophomore year. It depends on what they know. For example, you may arrive at MIT knowing that you love chemistry, but do you want to major in Chemistry, in Chemical Engineering, or in Materials Science (which is basically inorganic chemistry). Do you even know when you walk in the door what the real, practical differences are? You can sign up for a (say) Chemical Engineering UROP, only to find that you loathe ChemE.

Some students do this freshman year, to help them choose a major, others wait until they have taken some classes in the department to really focus on what they want to research (since it is a serious time commitment). Your mileage may absolutely vary. But I can assure you that in a university where 89% of the students graduate having done real, often published, research, you do not need to worry that there will not be time for it.

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@Mikalye thank you so much for your detailed response. It is invaluable!

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@undecider, what was your decision?

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@sbjdorlo l I chose MIT, thanks for asking.

@mikalye @miter94 @bordertexan @renaissancedad thank you for your help!

I posted in several places - it was interesting that I got the most responses at the MIT forum.

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^ Congratulations! And good luck!

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^ Congrats!

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@undecider Congratulations, you make a great choice. Sign up for an FPOP, you’ll enjoy it.