Olin vs. MIT?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Olin College
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<p>Hi CC,</p>

<p>I'm just wondering if anyone is a student or parent of a student who chose Olin over MIT. I've been admitted to MIT and invited to CW for Olin (obviously, I don't know if I'm in, but I'm just trying to figure out what I'd do if I did get admitted both places). I looooved Olin when I visited, but in retrospect, I definitely viewed it as a "since I'm not gonna get into MIT" sort of deal. Obviously they are very different schools, I'm just wondering if anyone else loved both of them the way I do.</p>

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<p>luisarose --</p>

<p>Sent you a PM.</p>

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<p>My D is in the same situation. She is going to CW, and to MIT’s Campus Preview Weekend in April. I suggest you do the same. Assuming the financial aid calculators are close, for her, Olin is a little cheaper, but not by enough to make a difference.</p>

<p>Objective things to think about are:</p>

<p>1) If you know which field of engineering you want, how do the two schools compare? Olin may not have the field you want.</p>

<p>2) Job placement for graduates.</p>

<p>3) Other objective factors important to you.</p>

<p>Eventually, it will come down to: How do you feel about each school after spending a weekend at each one. As a parent, I want to visit during those events and get wined and dined by the school too. Then I decided that my input is not likely to make much of a difference, nor do I need to influence her. Both are good schools.</p>

<p>Assuming my D is admitted to Olin, I think my D will know after MIT’s Candidate Preview Weekend. She will like one school over the other, and that will be her choice. If she is truly on the fence at that point, then I can bury her with the objective reasons to pick one over the other, and have her complete a decision matrix.</p>

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<p>Once you have visited both schools, you will know which is the right school for you. If you are still undecided, then decide on cost, job placement, reputation, etc.</p>

<p>What is really heart breaking is: School A is the one you really want, but costs twice as much as School B.</p>

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<p>I agree with the advice to go to CW and to MIT’s Campus Preview–you will (hopefully) know which school you prefer. Also, you will definitely meet students who turned down MIT (or Princeton, or Columbia, or CalTech etc.) for Olin, and parents who attended one of those schools and then sent their kid to Olin very happily. Conversations with those people may help you decide (of course, admittance to MIT doesn’t necessarily mean you will be admitted to Olin :)</p>

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<p>Your students will know after attending both weekends, mine did. It was tough for him to turn down MIT. Olin was a great fit for him and he never regretted his choice.</p>

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<p>Thanks for your responses. Thanks also for the PMs – that was my first post so I can’t reply to them, unfortunately, but I really appreciate the input and advice.</p>

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<p>I’m looking at bioengineering, which is a concentration of general engineering at Olin, but I think MIT is definitely stronger in the field. So there’s that.</p>

<p>I have visited both campuses and loved both – but I do think the weekends will be important (I’m definitely going to both). As for cost, I’m hoping that the need-based aid I get will make it so my bottom line is similar at both schools…but we’ll see about that :p</p>

<p>So far, I’m still leaning towards MIT, but I’m very excited for my CW in 2 weeks! Thanks again, everyone :D</p>

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<p>My Oliner visited MIT during the summer before senior year and really liked it. But tor him, it was not as appealing during the February visit when he went to class and mingled with the students. (It’s all about fit. Other visitors might like the intense MIT vibe even better at 2nd visit.) When MIT rejection came it was a bit of a relief - there would have been a lot of peer pressure to attend… from son’s friends and our parent friends too. </p>

<p>Certainly MIT has more variety of coursework and more prominent international reputation. If you get an Olin acceptance, you’ll have two (and probably more) fine choices. Good luck!</p>

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<p>I wonder how many kids this year were admitted to both Olin and MIT. My D is, and with all the results in, it is time for her to decide. Being on the HS’s robotics team has helped her see what project based learning is like. If Olin were bigger with more recognition, it would be a much easier decision (although still hard to turn down MIT).</p>

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<p>My accepted Olin D was rejected by MIT. Taking a waitlist spot at Duke - Pratt. Will accept one of her full scholarship offers by 4/5 - since one of them requires her to. Olin not one of the full scholarship offers.</p>

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<p>OperaDad - which environment does your daughter feel is a better fit for her? What qualities/activities is she looking for during the next four years? Which school best matches that list? What kind of education does your daughter want? </p>

<p>Cancmom - congrats to your daughter on her terrific opportunities</p>

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<p>OperaDad - I can see it would be a tough decision. Your D has already had a close look at Olin and potential peers at CW. Will she be revisiting MIT? I think they run an accepted students weekend.</p>

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<p>Congrats Cancmom. Just make sure you compare net cost of attending (including room and board). Some people get “full tuition” and hear “full ride”. “full tuition” can leave a $10k or more cost for room/board/etc.</p>

<p>D is going to MIT’s preview weekend, and will go to Olin’s overnight (if she can get a slot). At that point, she <em>might</em> know which is a better fit. Seems like MIT’s preview weekend is more a party weekend.</p>

<p>She wants more of a broad based education. In some respects, Olin’s cross registration with Wellesley might be a better fit. MIT does have a humanities department, but still mostly engineering. Taking classes at Harvard is not as straight forward from what I read.</p>

<p>I’m not sure she knows enough to be able to understand the difference in teaching/learning styles. I intellectually understand the difference, but would be hard pressed to say how that translates into a difference in the outcome 2 to 3 years past graduation.</p>

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<p>" I intellectually understand the difference, but would be hard pressed to say how that translates into a difference in the outcome 2 to 3 years past graduation." - Don’t sweat that question too much. Long term outcome should be terrific with either option. It’s more a matter of fit for a particular student. </p>

<p>One minor factor could be lack of name-recognition for newbie Olin when doing job search, especially if looking at smaller companies not on East or West coasts. It seems like grad schools would know Olin (by name or by info in prof recommendations). Not sure about industry. Here in CO many people have never even heard of Carnegie Mellon, much less Olin. But everybody knows MIT.</p>

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<p>So maybe you all can help me a bit more. D needs to give Webb Institute an answer by Friday. The visit was the best she’s had and it seems like a perfect fit to me. And we thought Olin was small…Other choice UNC-CH right onto a Ph.D. track. Go figure. But no engineering. Would have to start out in math or physics. Any help appreciated.</p>

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<p>Of course one wouldn’t expect a small company doing very small business to be aware of the prestige of lots of colleges. But for the rest of industry, and I mean cutting-edge industry, Olin is already well-known.</p>

<p>One very relevant question is where your child would want to end up? Be aware that this answer may change across the next four years. What kind of work would your child want to end up doing? The fact that some small companies doing very small business may not have heard of Olin may no longer be relevant.</p>

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<p>Cancmom - we looked at Webb also, but just online. For the right person, it looks amazing. Is tuition still free? You indicated your dd thought it is a perfect fit. If so, what is holding back her acceptance? If you want to PM me or talk to me, let me know. BTW, I thought all colleges were “required” to abide by the May 1 deadline.</p>

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<p>Cancmom - I had not heard of Webb, but looking at their website it looks for a great place for a student with nautical interests. Good luck whatever she chooses!</p>

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<p>Agree. Any company that doesn’t know Olin isn’t on the bleeding edge of tech. Microsoft (the “good” divisions), google, etc. hiring managers are well aware of Olin.</p>

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<p>Luisarose - just want to send you hugs & positive thoughts!! My D is going through the same situation now. She was accepted to Olin, Caltech & MIT. She will attend admitted students events at all three before making her final choice, but fit and $$ will likely play largest roles in that decision. </p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

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<p>carimama - Your D is lucky that she can attend all three weekends. Often there are April conflicts when students are comparing schools. Enjoy the excitement!</p>