<p>my son has been accepted to stanford. we are very interested in hearing what mechanical engineering at stanford is like for undergraduates. how much hands on learning is available? how many research opportunities? can anyone compare the stanford experience to mit or olin?</p>
<p>its strong in enginnering</p>
<p>After the basic courses freshman/part of sophomore year, the upper-level classes are all pretty hands-on, from what I've heard. My friend who's an ME major spends a lot of hours each week in the shop and in her lab. There are research opportunities, but it'll take some impetus on your son's part (i.e. e-mailing profs, applying for grants, etc.). Don't know much about comparisons between Stanford to MIT/Olin, but I'd say Silicon Valley would offer more in terms of stuff your son can get involved in. Businesses tend to recruit more at Stanford, simply because it's closer and cheaper than spending money on a plane ticket to Boston for the same caliber of student.</p>