<p>I was recently accepted to Duke, Rice, and UPenn for chemical engineering at Rice and Penn and Biomedical Engineering at Duke and I can't decide where I want to go! I want to study chemical engineering, specifically the pharmaceutical aspects of chemical engineering, which is why I think Biomedical Engineering at Duke would be a good option too. After college, I plan on going to medical school, but since those plans could definitely change, I want to go to a university that will have a good pre-med program and would have good career placement programs should I decide to enter the workforce after I graduate. </p>
<p>The most important factor to me is the social scene of the school, since all three schools have great academic reputations. I care about having a really close-knit community and school pride. I want a social scene with a lot of options that isn't exclusive at all, and not a really intense greek scene. I hear that Duke has an intense greek scene, with the entire social scene revolving around that, but I have no idea if thats a true statement. The whole elitist vibe is a turn-off and I don't want an overly competitive academic environment. </p>
<p>I am a pretty athletic person and fitness is really important to me too. I could play a varsity sport at Penn if I wanted to, but I could play club at Duke, and Rice doesn't have the varsity or club sports that I play, but I hear the intramurals are really competitive because of the residential college system. </p>
<p>...So any suggestions and opinions are welcome. I will be visiting all three before making my final decision. It seems like everyday I have a different first choice, and the pros and cons just keep adding up. Help!</p>
<p>Good luck choosing, you just hit the university equivalent of the Powerball lottery.</p>
<p>Based on the factors you have listed as important to you, I feel that Rice would be the best choice for you out of these schools. I used to be a Chemical Engineer at Rice before switching to Mechanical (because I liked it more, not because of anything bad) and within my first weeks at school I was working a lab on research, I had a very close-knit community in my residential college, lots of events planned, and a great admiration for my new school. I greatly prefer the residential college system to any greek system because while it grants instant acceptance and creates “fun” rivalries while not excluding anyone. People in one college can be rivals of another without ever letting it interfere with friendships. It is all for fun, but also very intense during events like inter-college athletics and Beer Bike (Bike race with giant water balloon fight that occurs annually).</p>
<p>For Pre-med, Rice is incredibly difficult to beat due to the Med Center being across the street. The flexibility in changing majors also greatly enhances your security in case you want to switch (I am confident Penn and Duke are similar too though). What I find strange, but great, is that Rice is very collaborative and even among pre-meds the classes aren’t cut-throat competitive (even in the hardest ones like Organic Chem I and II (both of which I took)). </p>
<p>The club sports here are great too from what I have heard, though you should ask someone with more experience for input on those once you visit.</p>
<p>Good luck picking a place you fit best! I love Rice and am quite sure you will too, but no matter where you end up, your choices make it impossible to be upset.</p>
<p>SchoolAdvice definitely gave you some good feedback on Rice. Of course most of us will be biased, as will others on each forum you post this on :-).</p>
<p>Each school and location is very different. It’s good that you will be visiting all 3. Check out the curriculums and opportunities at the 3. While they are all good schools, I think they each have their own strengths.</p>