I was wondering, which types of schools are better? Small engineering schools (Rose Hulman, Harvey Mudd, Olin) or large schools (MIT, stanford, Caltech)
What are the pros/cons of big and small schools? If I know that I want to be an engineer already, where should I go?
Also, which are more competitive and harder to get in?
Thanks
Caltech is generally considered a small school. Stanford and MIT are often considered midsize schools.
In terms of admission selectivity, small schools can be easy or hard to get admitted to (compare South Dakota School of Mines and Technology to Caltech). So can large schools (compare CSULA to UCLA).
You can become an engineer from either type, one is not “better” than another. A lot of it is your preference of environment. The small schools may be a bit more “hands on”, but you need to check out each one. Selectivity varies widely – some of the schools you listed are very hard to get into (Stanford’s acceptance rate was under 5% this year, I know Mudd was 13%, you can look up CalTech and MIT, both are very low). Just saying it is a whole list of reaches, except R-H. Michigan Tech is a nice mid-sized school to check out, about 5,000 students. A less expensive choice (and probably easier admission than the reaches) would be your state flagship (most have engineering).