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

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
1

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

2

When you posted this at 5:40pm, how many were for show only? Which have you already eliminated?

3

These are all great schools.

What is your COA at each one? That is one factor.

You seem to have an idea of academic fit, though you might be selling Columbia and Yale’s curricular strength short. Also, JHU is very strong in some non-STEM fields too, most notably IR and English. MIT has great Econ. The most one-dimensional school in terms of focus is Caltech… of course, they are amazing at what they do.

Relative Weather:
Houston – Mild/balmy winters, very hot and humid extended summer.
Baltimore – Variable winters, humid summer.
Los Angeles: California climate (sunny, generally low humidity, almost never freezing)
Philly: Similar to Baltimore. Maybe slightly chillier winters overall.
Columbia & Yale: Colder than Philly, warm summers.
Boston: Coldest winter, mildest summer

Look hard at the dorm/living situations of each school. Yale and Rice really stick out to me among the schools on your list in terms of great housing and happy students, but you have to decide based on what you want.

Penn is the social Ivy. If you want a lively social life, you give it a hard look. (you can have fun at all of them, but Penn is known for it)

If by the deadline you still cannot decide on your preferences for fit, go with your gut and/or your checkbook (cost). If you do base it on cost, do not forget to include travel cost.

4

@Prezbucky many thanks!

@T26E4 I posted a broader list to make sure I wasn’t missing something, since I believe each could be a viable option.

5

I would eliminate Rice first unless you have much bigger financial aid there.

6

MIT: “too hard to enjoy self or have time to do research? Also arguably less academically diverse (less humanities)”
Wrong - MIT students work hard, play hard. It’s the place that has the highest number of students doing research. You can do research there during the first semester but not recommended. About humanities: your reason seems cliche. How much can you swallow humanities and want to do research and the same time? Furthermore MIT has plenty of humanities classes. And you have to take 1 humanities/social sciences class every semester in order to graduate. And if it does not have enough for you, you can cross register at Harvard.

“Is the workload manageable with planning?” Yes. Otherwise MIT students would not graduate.
MIT does not publish the first semester (or the first year?) grades to let you gauge yourself. MIT allows to drop classes near the end of the semester in case you don’t do well in some classes.

7

First of all, congratulations on all of your acceptances.

You will receive an amazing education in every area at any of these schools. At this point, it is more about personal fit and what sort of environment you would like most. You will be living there for 4 years of your life. You need to make sure you love it. The schools you have listed have much different environments and personalities from one another. You need to visit each school to determine whether or not you like the surroundings and would be able to picture yourself living there. Even if you visited before applying, please try and go again. It is a much different feeling after you have been accepted.

That said, here would be my pick if I were in your shoes.

I think you can eliminate Rice right off the bat. It’s an excellent school, but you have better options. Caltech if you want the weather, Yale if you want the dorms…

A concern you have is not being able to keep up with the workload at MIT and Caltech. If you have been admitted at both (and indeed also admitted to all of these top schools), the adcoms are confident you will be able to do well academically there. This is nothing to worry about, I think.

If you are confident about going into BME, I’d say MIT, Caltech, or JHU would be your best options. But lots of people change their minds about their major/career plans throughout college, so I would not recommend picking your college based on your potential major.

Columbia’s curriculum is not ‘less strong.’ SEAS is amazing. If you are interested in a liberal arts curriculum, SEAS might be your best bet, since engineers have a Core that allows them to take classes in literature, arts, philosophy, etc, outside of their engineering courses. You write that Columbia is also your favorite campus – could you picture yourself living there? Did it seem friendly and welcoming to you? (I’m '20, so biased, aha.)

There is definitely no wrong choice here. Go where your gut tells you, if you got that ‘feeling’ visiting any schools.

8

@coolweather wrote:

^^^^^^
You seem a bit salty. There is a wide gap between feasible (with multiple allnighters a week) and manageable. Are you a current student, or have a son or daughter there?

I realize everyone’s mileage will vary.

9

I saw a survey that showed on average Columbia students go to bed later than any other college supposedly. Would any current/past students/parents care to comment on the environment? Is it easy to get distracted by the campus activities and the city?

Any BME students willing to comment on the program??

10

My son graduated from MIT 3 years ago. He participated a lot in EC, played a lot of video games, and graduated with a double majors, was admitted to graduate school but decided to go to work. It seems your are easy to be irritated with people who try to help you (from reading your other thread). This is my last post for you.

11

@coolweather congrats for your son, that is great. And I appreciate your thoughts.

Someone said it was “disappointing” that MIT let me in - wouldn’t you have been irritated if they were talking to you? :slight_smile:

12

@undecider. What did u end up choosing?