<p>Hi! I was accepted by both Rice and Haverford and am having a hard time choosing between these two excellent schools. Can anyone gives me some advice?
I want to study anthropology and economy for double majors and work a year after graduation. Then I want to get a JD or MBA. The reputation and atmosphere of Rice seem better than Haverford, but the education of Haverford really attracts me a lot. Besides, Haverford students can take class at both Upenn and Swarthmore. Can anybody help me out of this hard decision!</p>
<p>You can’t go wrong with both schools. Consider…</p>
<p>1 - do you need to be in a bigger academic community, or are you happy with a smaller group of intelligent peers and professors.</p>
<p>2 - do you have a strong preference for being in Houston or Philadelphia? </p>
<p>Did you visit both?</p>
<p>Hi, thank you for your advice. I have been to phi before but didnt really like the atmosphere of the city. To be honest, big cities attracts me more. I have never been to Houston before but fell in love with it immediately after searching some information about the city.
Haverford VS Rice is a hard decision for me. On one hand, because I planned to go to a law school afterwards, lbc seems to be a wise choice. Many of my friends told me Haverford is a great college and I shouldnt miss it and Haverford students can take classes at upenn and Swarthmore, but I am afraid the school is too small and meeting the same face everyday would make me feel depressed. Besides that, I may work first, but I have heard that most students there would go to graduate school and sometimes they find it hard to get a job. On the other hand, although I like the campus of rice a lot, I am little worried that the education of anthropology and economy of rice may not be as good as that of the lac since rice is famous for its engineering and it doesnt have a business school for undergraduates.</p>
<p>Based on the information I gave, can you give me some suggestion? Thank you very much for your warm help!</p>
<p>Hi! I’m also a prospective anthropology and economics major and I applied to Haverford ED and here’s why.</p>
<p>Anthropology
I really liked the courses at Haverford. I think they give a very sound grounding in anthropology because the courses go into anthropological theory as opposed to application of it.</p>
<p>Recent graduates in anthropology have also done really well. For example, [Jennifer</a> Zelnick '12 Named Luce Scholar](<a href=“http://www.haverford.edu/news/stories/58271/51]Jennifer”>http://www.haverford.edu/news/stories/58271/51). The interesting thing about Haverford is that it has the [Center</a> for Peace & Global Citizenship](<a href=“http://www.haverford.edu/CPGC/]Center”>http://www.haverford.edu/CPGC/) which allowed her to do ethnographic research in Indonesia during the summer. You can read more at [Haverford</a> College: Department of Anthropology : Welcome](<a href=“http://www.haverford.edu/anthropology/news/]Haverford”>http://www.haverford.edu/anthropology/news/). You can see from this list ([Haverford</a> College: Department of Anthropology: Senior Thesis](<a href=“http://www.haverford.edu/anthropology/senior_thesis/full_list.php]Haverford”>http://www.haverford.edu/anthropology/senior_thesis/full_list.php)) of senior theses that many were conducted outside of the United States. This was also made possible by the CPGC ([Center</a> for Peace & Global Citizenship](<a href=“http://www.haverford.edu/CPGC/programs/index.php]Center”>http://www.haverford.edu/CPGC/programs/index.php)).</p>
<p>Economics
Economics majors are allowed to take classes at Wharton.
You can read more about it here: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/haverford-college/1123149-can-haverford-students-take-classes-penn.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/haverford-college/1123149-can-haverford-students-take-classes-penn.html</a></p>
<p>Size of school
Coming from a high school that was just over 1.5 times the size of Haverford, I understand where you’re coming from. I’m really not sure what your high school class size is but I feel that the small size of Haverford allows you to have close interactions with your peers. There’s also the opportunity to take classes at Bryn Mawr, which many students do, and so you’ll get to know more people too. It’s more difficult to take classes Swarthmore and Penn but they are options that you should definitely consider if you decide to come to Haverford.</p>
<p>Two things that haven’t been touched on are the honor code and the customs program. Here’s more info:
[Honor</a> Council](<a href=“http://honorcouncil.haverford.edu/]Honor”>http://honorcouncil.haverford.edu/)
[Haverford</a> College: Customs](<a href=“http://www.haverford.edu/customs/]Haverford”>http://www.haverford.edu/customs/)</p>
<p>If you’re still not convinced, join the Facebook group (Haverford College Class of 2016) to ask questions and have them answered! There’s also a web chat on Wednesday so you can ask these questions too.</p>
<p>Congrats on your acceptances and I hope you choose Haverford.</p>
<p>Hi Sisixue,
I’m also here advocating for Rice, since I go here, but I just was a little confused about one thing. You said that you didn’t like Philly, because you prefer bigger cities. I’m just going to assume you visited Haverford and not actually the city because Philly is the 5th biggest city in the country, just one spot behind Houston. So, if you think Haverford isn’t near a big city, I would at least cross this concern off your list. I also (personally, having grown up there) think Philly is a great city, although like any city, make sure you learn the different areas before straying off by yourself. </p>
<p>All that being said, I love Rice because unlike Haverford it is actually in the city it claims to be in but still has a great campus feel. I don’t know much about your prospective majors but I have enjoyed the few anthropology classes I have taken, and know very satisfied econ majors. Not sure what type of job you would be looking for after college (you said you might want to work) but if it is some kind of consulting, Rice can definitely facilitate that as these jobs dominate the job fair here.</p>
<p>Hope this helps some!</p>
<p>Hi! Thanks for your information. It really helped me a lot! I love Haverford a lot and I understand that Haverford is a very selective college and I am really honored to be one of the lucky guys. Many of my friend told me that it is the leading lbc and I really shouldnt miss the chance. I searched a lot of information about Haverford but still have several concerns.</p>
<p>One of my friend went to Haverford and she told me that sometimes it is hard for haverford students to find jobs( I dont know this is true or not and very curious about the reason). To be honest, this really made me worried a lot. Its true that Haverford provides the best education but I am not brave enough or rich enough to go to a college not considering finding a good job. On the contrary, the affluent internship opportunity in Houston really attracts me a lot. Is that true about what my friend told me? Do Haverford students do Internships on vacations? Is that easy to find an internship? My plan for college is studying hard, knowing a lot of people and doing several internships to explore a bigger world. Do you think Haverford can help me with that?</p>
<p>I am very excited about the Wharton thing but my friend told me upenn is 1 or 2 hour away and it takes 10 bucks for transportation to go to penn every time. I think it really cost a lot of money and time. What do you think of that?</p>
<p>I am very happy to find a person who has the same interests with me both on majors and colleges! I just applied anthropology as my major. Is that easy for me to get another economy major in Haverford? </p>
<p>Thanks for your warm suggestion! I will seriously consider what you said and congratulations for your acceptance too!! Wish you have an amazing time in Haverford!</p>
<p>Ok just 2 points to make:
- I did an REU internship last summer, and there was a girl from Haverford there. So n of 1, yes people from Haverford get internships.
- There is absolutely no way it takes an hour or two to get to penn from Haverford. My house is a little more than twice the distance from the city as Haverford is (I pass Haverford on the way in) and I can drive the whole way in about 35 minutes (not during rush hour of course but in regular traffic) so I’d say 20 minutes driving from Haverford. It sounds like you would be planning on taking public transportation though, and again from my area (double the distance from Haverford) the train takes about 50 minutes.</p>
<p>Hi sffhgoalie73:
I was replying you before but my mom turned off my computer when I left…so I will do it again. I went to Philly once and never been to Haverford, but only those historical places not downtown. Maybe thats why I didnt know other parts of Philly, but definitely it is a big city! I have never been to Houston before but based on the information I found, I really love this city! Houston is very modern but clean, different from other big cities like New York. The economy of Texas is among the tops in the states. So I assume there are a lot of internship chances( Hope I am right!) Is that easy for Rice students to find a job or Internship? The problem is that I just applied anthropology before, can I choose economy as a second major afterwards? Yes I am very interested in consulting. How’s the job market in Houston and usually what kind of company would a economy major student enter?</p>
<p>To be honest, I didnt know much about Rice before until I was accepted, but the more I know about Rice, the more I love Rice! Everything looks amazing: the beautiful campus, the easy access to the city, the small classes, the professors who know the names of every students, the delicious food, the museums near campus…Rice really seems like the perfect match for me. Now I understand that there is a reason why I chose Rice and Rice chose me:)</p>
<p>My only concern is that Rice is famous for engineering and doesnt have a business school for undergraduate. If I want to learn sth about business, is economy the only major I can choose? Is Rice students competitive among other business major students?</p>
<p>Thanks for your information and it really helped me a lot. I am very happy to talk to a student who also from Rice. whats your major and how do you like it?</p>
<p>Hi,
Yes Houston is a very different city from those in the northeast, I really like it but will always have Philly #1. But…if I were you I would definitely choose Rice (biased opinion). I can’t say it is easy to find a job or internship just because the economy is so bad, but talking to people, it seems like most are doing pretty well, both during the summers, and now that I’m a senior, post-grad stuff as well. I don’t really know much about consulting, I just always look on the job fair flyer and it seems like half of the companies coming are consulting companies.</p>
<p>No worries about what major you applied for, you don’t even have to declare until the end of your sophomore year, and no one is going to check back to or care what you said on your application. I definitely think that anthropology/economics is doable. It is true that Rice is known for its engineering but it really does have top-notch education in the social sciences as well. I am a psychology major and absolutely love it, the only negative being that most of the engineering students think you are in a soft major and can’t possibly have as much work as them.</p>
<p>As for the business aspect, there is a business minor here that you can do. All of the business classes are very popular and there is a lottery-type system to get into most of the classes, just because there is so much demand. But I’ve heard people who are minoring don’t have too much of a problem getting it done and they really enjoy it.</p>
<p>Hope this helps!</p>
<p>Sisixue- I went to Haverford, and absolutely loved it. That said, Haverford is a very unique community and I don’t think it’s right for everyone. From what you’re saying, it sounds like you’re much more excited about Rice. If that’s the case, then you should go there.</p>
<p>It sounds like you’re mostly still thinking about Haverford because your friends think you should go there (“Many of my friends told me Haverford is a great college and I shouldnt miss it and Haverford students can take classes at upenn and Swarthmore, but I am afraid the school is too small and meeting the same face everyday would make me feel depressed.”) … you don’t sound excited about Haverford. You’re not a big fan of Philly, and, honestly, if you don’t want to go to a small school, you shouldn’t go to Haverford. Yes, you will see the same faces everyday. For a lot of people this is a positive thing because it’s a close community. For others, it’s not what they want. Yes, we can branch out and go to BMC or Swat or Penn, but I think those should be seen more as “I love my small school but i need a break from it sometimes” options rather than “I don’t want to go to a small school but this will make it better” options. If you’re using “depressed” and “Haverford” in the same sentence, it’s not the school for you. You should be excited about where you’re going.</p>
<p>It DOES sound like you’re excited about Rice: “I have never been to Houston before but based on the information I found, I really love this city! Houston is very modern but clean, different from other big cities like New York. … To be honest, I didnt know much about Rice before until I was accepted, but the more I know about Rice, the more I love Rice! Everything looks amazing: the beautiful campus, the easy access to the city, the small classes, the professors who know the names of every students, the delicious food, the museums near campus…Rice really seems like the perfect match for me. Now I understand that there is a reason why I chose Rice and Rice chose me.” Do you see the difference in tone? Go with your gut on this one. I will defend Haverford to the end of the world if the match is right, but it doesn’t sound like it’s right for you, and you shouldn’t force it.</p>
<p>A few more quick things:
- Philly is great, but I certainly wouldn’t call Philly either “modern” or “clean” … I’d call it “quirky” and “diverse” and “artsy” and “low-key” and “endearingly grungy” … so I don’t know that it fits your bill of what you want in a city.
- You can double major in anthro and econ at either Haverford or Rice, and while it’s true that Haverford might have better classes across the board than Rice does, that doesn’t mean you can’t get a great education at Rice. You might have to be more deliberate about it, but it sounds like you’re driven enough to do that. So I wouldn’t worry about that too much. I’d just befriend an older student majoring in those subjects and get their advice early on about classes and profs. You’ll be fine.
- “My only concern is that Rice is famous for engineering and doesnt have a business school for undergraduate. If I want to learn sth about business, is economy the only major I can choose?” Ok, if this is your concern, then you REALLY shouldn’t go to Haverford. We certainly don’t have a business school for undergrads. Yes, we can take classes at Wharton, but realistically you’re not going to take very many just because of time. At least at Rice you’d have a business school on campus, so you might be able to talk your way into some other classes later in your time at college. And econ is not a bad major, anyway.</p>
<p>Hi，pinwheel02！
You really gave me very useful suggestions and I am very happy to talk to a Haverford student. One week before, I almost decided that I would go to Haverford considering the incomparable lac education and the chance to study at both Swarthmore and Upenn, but I was still not sure if I can get used to the small campus size and the limited number of students, so I searched more information about both schools, including ask suggestions from students who went to those schools. The answer of one of my friends who went to Haverford really scared me. She said her friends found it is very hard to find a job after graduation and the job chance depends on the social networking one made not the school name, but there are only very limited people I can now in school, so if I am confident enough that I have very good personality to make big social networking by myself not the school and I am rich enough that I dont need to worry about the job thing, then I should come to Haverford; If I want to find a job after graduation, I should go to Rice. </p>
<p>On the contrary, I gradually found Rice matches me in many ways and it is true many things about this school attract me a lot. So I have to admit that Haverford is a great great school but it is just not my thing. But I still want to be careful about my choice. So I spoke out all my concerns and held the hope that somebody from Haverford would convince me.</p>
<p>You gave me very subjective suggestions and that really helped me a lot. Yes, until now, I prefer Rice and your reply gave me more courage to make the decision.</p>
<p>So thank you very much for your careful reply and even only from you, I can see that Haverford is a great school and students there are very nice!</p>
<p>Hi：
Thanks for your reply! I am very happy to hear that I can declare my major until the end of my sophomore year. That would give me enough time to explore more and find out what I really like. Does that means I dont need to take classes to get credit for my major(say anthropology) for the first two years since I am not sure this will be my major at the end? It would be awesome if that is true! Then I can take classes from many different fields.</p>
<p>I saw it on the website that anthropology and economy are in the same department. I can still choose these two as double major? Speaking of business minor, can I get double major and a business minor at the same time? Do you have any friends who study anthropology? What kind of job would they do after graduation？</p>
<p>I also want to do some part time job in my sophomore year( if there are still some free time). What kind of job would Rice provide?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Not a recommended approach. You can take your major classes AND others at the same time. Anthropology is not a large major in terms on credits needed, so you can take a few non-major classes of choice per semester.</p>
<p>
</p>
<ol>
<li>Do you mean Economics?</li>
<li>They are in the same school not department. Both are social sciences. </li>
<li>You can major in Anthropology and Economics</li>
<li>You can also minor in business at the same time</li>
<li>I do not</li>
<li>It depends on what you want to do. Your reasons for choosing anthropology should drive your career path.</li>
</ol>
<p>
</p>
<p>Rice has several student job positions - on the academic side you can do research, work as a TA, grade papers etc. You can also work for the university itself in the many departments.</p>
<p>PinWheel02, Great reply!!! I love your name…pinwheel day was amazing. As an adult we no longer get it.</p>
<p>I’m considering a major in anthropology and have several other friends who are decided on anthropology as their majors.</p>