NU vs. Case vs. WashU

<p>I got into Case, Northwestern, and WashU, but I'm having trouble deciding which school fits me the best. I really want to go into medicine, so I would appreciate any advice concerning each school's research programs and biology departments. Although cost isn't really a problem, I did receive the Trustee's scholarship from Case (~27,000 a year). Any thoughts on where I should go?</p>

<p>The $$ would decide for us!
It's hard to tell about "fit" without more details. Case is noted for having a smart, interesting & geeky student body, but so is Northwestern.
My freshman son is extremely happy at Case. His GF is a biology major there & also loves it. (She's a "real" biology major, not pre-med) ;)</p>

<p>Wash U is a much friendlier place than Case, with much higher student satisfaction (Case has been on PR's unhappiest students list). Also, the quality of the teaching is probably not as good. When we visited a class recently, the professor (of a small class) was boring and not one student spoke. If money is not an issue, I would see no contest between these two.
Wash U has better food than Northwestern, and nicer facilities, but otherwise I can't say.</p>

<p>greenblue--on what do you base your statement that WashU is "friendlier" than Case? Seems like a pretty subjective judgement. My son has found Case to be extremely friendly, but maybe it's just him.</p>

<p>It's true that Case students have a reputation for complaining, but my son can't figure out the basis for that either. Maybe it's a Cleveland thing.</p>

<p>I visited both. Aside from the friendly fellow in dreadlocks at the Case admissions office, no students even looked at us unless we spoke first, and students we asked for directions were uncomfortable answering. We did not see the Case students speaking to each other, either. Subjective, maybe, but it decided matters for us.</p>

<p>if ure going to do medicine, wash u should top the list. unless ure in the PPSP med prog at case or the 7 yr prog at NU, or money is a factor in ure decision. campus, it really shouldnt matter, they r all smart peop school so...</p>

<p>greenblue - I have a son at Case already & another one starting this coming fall. I just thought I would mention that Case is on the unhappiest student list (I think 18th); however, you have to remember that not every student has answered this survey. I think that it is just the unhappy ones. </p>

<p>I do agree with mommusic - the students do complain, but then they also say they would never go anywhere else:)</p>

<p>I am sorry that you had a bad visit. It would tend to give you a first bad impression, but I am there all the time and the kids my son hangs around with are fun, smart, and seem to have a good time. Are there some nerds? You betcha! </p>

<p>Overall, I think that Case is a great school & there are plenty of opportunities there (University Hosp/Cleveland Clinic) for you. The profs are great and very happy to work with you. Also another thing to consider is competition. From what I know there is almost no competition - all the students seem to really care for one another.</p>

<p>sccr12 - Admission to medical schools depend on several factors. The most important factors are GPA, MCAT score, and your research/clinical experience. All three schools are excellent and well resepcted. No medical schools will treat the graduates of the three schools differently. You need to pick the one that you will be most comfortable and most likely to do well.</p>

<p>Good luck and congratulations!</p>

<p>what do you mean greennblue, that "quality of the teaching is probably not as good"??? are u referring to case or WashU??? thanks.</p>

<p>Just returned from Case where my son was admitted. I think one has to trust those who go there or their parents imprssions rather than guidebooks. First, I thought the Case campus was attractive not ugly as another poster has mentioned. It happened to be a beautiful spring day which certainly presented the buldings in the best possible light. There really is a wide range or architecture from Victorian, neoclassical, to Frank Gehry's business school building. It is eclectic and not co-ordinated like some campus-Univ of Chicago, Stanford, Duke, Emory area few schols where the latter come to mind. Second, I found students to be extremely friendly. Several times students approached us to offer directoins or talk about their school. Third, the variety and extent of research opportunities for undergrads is excellent. I attended a senior poster exhibition that is part of the SAGE program. I would very impressed at the high level and sophistication of the undergraduate research, particularly in my area of expertise. The students seemed bright, articulate, and VERY ENTHUSIASTIC about their work. Also, since all students need to to a senior project, it seems that faculty provide a lot of opportunities for them. While Case is a a mjor research university, it seems like it provides a lot of opportunities for undergrads. Fourth, based on a sample of a dozen or so students we talked with, they all seemed happy and very satisfied with their education and campus life. Just looking around campus, it seemed like students were doing all the typical fun things one might expect on a sunny spring day-beach volleyball, frisbee throwing, biking, sunbathing. Didn't see many unhappy faces. One student told us her younger sister will be coming next year-sounds like a strong endorsement. My son is still trying to decide between Case and Emory and so far it is a hard choice.</p>

<p>pmyen--It may come down to weather...does he prefer long winters or long summers? :D</p>

<p>pmyen- I'm glad you had such a great time visiting. Just a tiny point of clarification, if the poster session you saw was in Thwing (the student center) it wasn't just for SAGES senior projects although I'm sure that a number of posters were related to senior projects, the SOURCE poster session is open to all undergrads and a significant portion of the students presenting (including myself and a bunch of my friends) were sophomores and juniors. The poster session isn't run by SAGES but the SOURCE office - Source = student opportunities in undergraduate research and creative endeavors. If you saw a different symposium than the one in Thwing then it's posisble it was just SAGES senior projects.</p>

<p>Seattlechica,
Thanks for the clarification. I think the program must be SOURCE projects as it took place in Thwing last Friday. As I recall now, one student was a junior. Are there similar presentations of SAGES capstone projects? In any event, the posters and presentations by students were quite impressive. I used to work at NIH and each summer there is an annual institute-wide poster fair showing projects by summer students and post-bacs (students who spend one or two years there after college before going onto medical or graduate school). I would say the majority of the posters I saw Friday would be in the top 10% of the posters at our fair. Seems like a lot of faculty also must enjoy mentoring undergrads in their research.</p>

<p>pmyen-</p>

<p>We were up there on Friday, too. We were too busy to see the poster sessions in Thwing, though we saw them setting up the easels in the morning. </p>

<p>What a beautiful day! I guess it's not like that all winter, though ;)</p>

<p>We really liked the school. S was planning to go to RPI, but I think the visit changed his mind and he'll be in Cleveland next year. I'll be interested to see where your S chooses. Atlanta is warmer!</p>

<p>Dad'o'2,
Son decided on Case over the weekend. His older brother is a senior at Emory but still happy for him. Two other students from his high school also attended the open house, and both have also decided on Case. One of them went to the Carnegie-Mellon open house last week, so it also was a down-to the-wire decision for him also. By the way, my son's h.s. is out-of-state, and has not had attendees in the recent previous classes, so I imagine there will be a lot more future applicants from our h.s. Several schools from outside our geographic area-Emory, Indiana Univ, UNC, and Northwestern became very popular when a few students attended and had good experiences.</p>

<p>Congrats to those who decided for Case! :)</p>

<p>We're making plans to go get our S on May 10. Exams are coming up, but overall, it's been a great year!</p>

<p>Case in no way is as unhappy as ppl say. I visited there and found the students very helpful during my visit (flown out with other scholarship students) ultimately I chose another school because I felt it fit me more, but the students I interacted with while I was there seemed fine. Some even drove me and the people I was hanging with to a party ;).</p>