<p>From the standpoint of grad-school prospects (in philosophy), which is a better undergrad school?</p>
<p>Uhh...Chicago. They have one of the best philosophy departments in the world.</p>
<p>That question is akin to saying "I'm thinking of becoming a pro surfer. Where should I move to, Des Moines or Huntington Beach?</p>
<p>according to the most well-respected philophy rankings, brown ranks higher than chicago for philosophy
<a href="http://www.philosophicalgourmet.com/overall.asp%5B/url%5D">http://www.philosophicalgourmet.com/overall.asp</a></p>
<p>brown has one of the strongest philosophy departments in the world, despite its small size. brown is home to two of the top philosophy journals in the world, PPR and Nour</p>
<p>the two most recent faculty recruits to brown were formerly full faculty members at Chicago and Harvard respectively</p>
<p><a href="http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2000/02.03/heck.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2000/02.03/heck.html</a>
<a href="http://www.brown.edu/Departments/Philosophy/faculty/heck.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.brown.edu/Departments/Philosophy/faculty/heck.html</a></p>
<p>dcircle,</p>
<p>Despite my original post, which was meant to be taken with a grain of salt, I don't really think brown is crap. However, Chicago's philosophy program, as far as I know, is seen as probably the preeminent philosophy programs in the world.</p>
<p>Erm, wait badman, are you deciding on an undergrad school with the hope that you'll be going to grad school after college? Or are you trying to decide on a grad school? It's not clear to me... </p>
<p>If you're heading to undergrad, I don't know about philosophy, but at least in a lot of sciences/math (bio, physics, chem, math), a lot of the top schools will NOT take their undergrads back for grad school because "academic incest"--staying in the same place for multiple programs/positions--is generally frowned upon. People prefer to see that you've gone somewhere else, branched out, been exposed to a different school's way of thinking, etc. If you're thinking about undergrad, that's something you might want to consider if you're certain you'll be applying to grad school.</p>
<p>jmleadpipe, though chicago is a great school it is ranked 20th for philosophy next to UC Irvine and UCSD
<a href="http://www.philosophicalgourmet.com/overall.asp%5B/url%5D">http://www.philosophicalgourmet.com/overall.asp</a></p>
<p>Dcircle,</p>
<p>I find that hard to believe, no matter what an internet ranking I have never heard of may say.</p>
<p>
Erm, wait badman, are you deciding on an undergrad school with the hope that you'll be going to grad school after college? Or are you trying to decide on a grad school? It's not clear to me...</p>
<p>If you're heading to undergrad, I don't know about philosophy, but at least in a lot of sciences/math (bio, physics, chem, math), a lot of the top schools will NOT take their undergrads back for grad school because "academic incest"--staying in the same place for multiple programs/positions--is generally frowned upon. People prefer to see that you've gone somewhere else, branched out, been exposed to a different school's way of thinking, etc. If you're thinking about undergrad, that's something you might want to consider if you're certain you'll be applying to grad school.
I'm deciding on an undergrad school with the hope that I'll be going to grad school after college. Academic incest? Again, I'm just trying to decide on an undergrad school. When I'm applying to grad school four years down the line, I'll probably pick a different university from my undergrad.</p>
<p>@jmleadpipe and dcircle:
The difference in ranking, from what I've gathered, is quite insignificant here. Both philosophy departments are nearly equal (ranked 16 and 20 by philosophical gourmet)</p>
<p>Anyway, when I'm applying to grad school, is it that important that I went to an undergrad school with a strong philosophy department? I didn't think it would be so important.</p>
<p>My question was actually more general - When grad schools are evaluating a student - would they give more weight to a UChicago or a Brown degree, all other factors being equal.</p>
<p>badman,</p>
<p>When applying to grad school, the presige of your undergrad means something but not nearly as much as people around here will insist it does. When, and if, you do go to grad school you will be in there with people from LAC's, state universities, ect. even if you go to a very good school such as Chicago or Brown. I actually find it hilarious when a kid from a LAC or a state university gets into grad school in place of an Ivy leaguer because the former not only got in, but also because he/she has tens of thousands of dollars less in debt than the latter. What is more important than prestige when applying to grad school is doing excellent undergrad work, cultivating good relationships with profs, getting published if you can and doing everything you can to show admissions boards that you are ready for grad school.</p>
<p>jmleadpipe, I agree with you in general, but I also have to defend the "Ivy League" education. I have less debt than a lot of my friends who actually did go to state schools because a number of the Ivies (including the one I attend) have <em>fantastic</em> financial aid since they have such large endowments. Contrary to popular belief, the majority of us at these schools do not come from wealth and most of us get financial aid. I definitely pay far less to go here than I would have had I gone to my state school.</p>
<p>
badman,</p>
<p>When applying to grad school, the presige of your undergrad means something but not nearly as much as people around here will insist it does. When, and if, you do go to grad school you will be in there with people from LAC's, state universities, ect. even if you go to a very good school such as Chicago or Brown. I actually find it hilarious when a kid from a LAC or a state university gets into grad school in place of an Ivy leaguer because the former not only got in, but also because he/she has tens of thousands of dollars less in debt than the latter. What is more important than prestige when applying to grad school is doing excellent undergrad work, cultivating good relationships with profs, getting published if you can and doing everything you can to show admissions boards that you are ready for grad school.
</p>
<p>Ok, I realize that grad school applications generally depend on my relationship with the professors, research work, etc. But my question still stands - where would I have a better opportunity to get involved in research, foster good relationships with my professors, etc.
I know that you can probably do these things at any college, but is there any reason one of these two colleges would provide me with better opportunities for such pursuits?</p>
<p>badman, I think both Chicago and Brown will provide the same opportunities for you to be an excellent grad school candidate. The real question is which environment works best for you. Chicago has all the big city amenities/distraction while Providence is about one-hour train away from Boston. By the same token, Brown is notably smaller and more cozy.</p>