<p>okay i got accepted as a Chemical Engineering major at both schools. Now I'm kind of leaning towards changing to some sort of biology/biochemistry major though. no financial aid at either school.</p>
<p>I havn't visited either school (parents said it was pointless and refused to pay for my trip), but i hear WashU's campus is really nice. dont know about northwestern though.</p>
<p>i read on one of these topics that washU's biology program is at or near the top in the rankings. is that true? how does northwestern compare in the biology rankings? </p>
<p>also, what is the process for switching majors either before or after arriving on campus? i heard its pretty easy to transfer from engineering to the sciences... is that true? can i just call the admissions office during the summer if/when i decide to switch majors?</p>
<p>how are the research opportunities at either school? can you get involved if you want to as a freshman/sophomore? </p>
<p>oh yea and does anyone know a current undergrad at Northwestern in biology or ChemE that i could email with questions? im also deciding between which school on my waiting list i should make my first choice: cornell or hopkins.</p>
<p>any suggestions/comments on why i should pick one school over the other would be great.</p>
<p>I don't know about Wash U but I loved NU's campus. Evanston is a great college town, Chicago is right nearby, Lake Michigan and the beach are beautiful, and it's very scenic. </p>
<p>As far as your waitlists, I didn't apply to either school but from reading around CC I have heard that aside from great academics, quality of life at Hopkins sucks and the area is a drag. Everyone I know who has visited Cornell has loved it, except for the coldness.</p>
<p>it all comes down to what you want in terms of enviroment....NW is in everyway a big 10 school with a big 10 atmosphere...if you are looking for something a bit less jock-oriented...washu is for you.</p>
<p>Except for the fact that... Wildcats aren't the most athletic bunch. I know everyone at NU is very supportive, but on my visit and during my research I didn't get the impression that it was a super sports school, so I wouldn't let that sway you.</p>
<p>yeah, its definitely not jock-oriented any more that stanford or UCLA are... of course, in comparison to University of Chicago it is, so maybe thats where it gets the rep...
I would definitely recommend NU. It is universally regarded as the better school by everybody except those asshats over at USNWR. Between Chicago and St. Lou... there is no comparison.. about all they have in common is baseball, and chicago has twice as much of that. St. Louis has nasty weather, even by Chicago standards. You'll get a fine education at either school, so you can just factor that out of the equation.</p>
<p>son you dont change majors. on your app you just put down a preferred major, but its not your major until you declare it after getting there. You are free to choose whatever major you want AFTER you get there. so there is no need to "change" majors before, because you dont even have one. HOwever, since you have been accepted to the eng. school at NU, if you want to do Biology, you will need to switch schools within NU. Mail the dean of weinberg college A&S and explain why you want to switch into that. You wont need to do anything if you want to switch to Biomed eng., because it is also in the engineering school.</p>
<p>you need to do it as soon as possible, because spots fill up. the sooner you do it, the more of a chance your request will be granted. and there is also a deadline: july 1st. oh yes...and when i said mail, i didnt mean email. snail mail. you need to send a somewhat formal letter to the Dean explaining your reasons, etc... but i think its pretty easy to transfer to AS school</p>
<p>ok thanks man. will it affect my housing placement or who my assigned roomate is? and how do you know the deadline is july 1st? where does it say that?</p>
<p>I have also heard that it is easy to transfer once school starts. I want to add a dual major in and have to transfer to SESP, and I was told I could either send a letter now or just do it once I get there (since a lot end up transferring to SESP) and start the dual major stuff 2nd quarter.</p>