<p>I am a student at Penn State that has just been accepted for transfer admission to Carnegie Mellon. I am a mathematics major and I intend to go to graduate school. I do not know if I should go back to Penn State or go to Carnegie Mellon. The schools have very different academic reputations with Carnegie Mellon being more highly regarded in mostly all fields academic with Penn State being more highly regarded in all fields party. However, Penn State is actually ranked higher for math graduate schools on U.S. News and World Report's rankings. Also, Penn State offers a program called MASS where students take a semester in a setting that simulates graduate school fairly effectively by taking only 3 specially designed math courses that offer a high level of difficulty with a very small number of students.</p>
<p>If I stay at Penn State, I will also be able to pick up another major in economics. I am not sure that I will be able to do this at CMU since the courses will be very difficult and I will have to focus all of my time and effort into school to graduate with one degree. My GPA will also be significantly higher at Penn State as well.</p>
<p>My goal is to get into the best graduate school possible. What would be the better option? I am in a bind between having better grades, and being more multi-dimensional at Penn State, or going to Carnegie Mellon to be in class amongst some of the future innovators of the new age, with a lower GPA but a great prestigious name that will follow me forever.</p>
<p>My final thought is that math is math. There are constantly new things being added to the field, but as far as undergraduate mathematics is concerned, the field is pretty set in stone. There is not much change that can come to the way calculus is taught outside of notation and teaching everyone how to follow and write a proof is unique to the teacher, and is a pretty universal language. I do not think that CMU will teach me any different math, but it will likely be more difficult and make me better. I would really appreciate some advice and thoughts. Thank you.</p>