<p>For a number of reasons I'm choosing between these two colleges to attend. I'm going to major in econ and intend to go into IB out of undergrad. I know UC is world renowned for its econ, yet CMC is reputed to have the #1 LAC econ program. I definitely feel a better fit at CMC and much prefer LA/the weather, but UC will probably place significantly better among top BB IBanks.</p>
<p>My main concerns for UC are the difficulty of academics (legendarily difficult + I hate the idea of a bell curve and would like to have some sort of social life), the weather (COLD (I'm from the southwest, so it would be a big change)), social life (again, legendarily sparse), and just some issues with general feel, fit and atmosphere. Would you have any advice concerning the options between the two schools or any thoughts to allay some of my fears? I really appreciate any time you would care to give.</p>
<p>If the cost is the same, Chicago Econ hands down. If you were accepted, you are going to be able to handle the work, at least the school has confidence in you. Everything else, you will get used to it.</p>
<p>freddy1185,
Are your concerns about fit at Chicago based solely on what you’ve read/heard, or also on direct observation (i.e. a personal visit, discussions with current students, etc)? If the former, I would say that your concerns are likely overblown. Chicago is not THAT tough, nor is it socially barren (although workloads typically required decent organizational skills to successfully co-manage academics and extracurriculars). If, however, you have visited both schools and still feel that Claremont is a better fit, I’d recommend going with Claremont. You can certainly get a first-rate education there (with good post-grad opportunities in your selected field), just as at Chicago. Good luck with your decision.</p>
<p>Thanks to both of you HST and artlover. @HST, I would never make a decision purely based on hearsay, I just recently finished an overnight actually. I definitely realize there is quite a lot to get out of the UC social experience, however, I did find several of the stereotypes to have a small ring of truth to them. (granted, I did stay in BJ). Although I’m sure I could make a lot of a chicago experience, I do feel that I have a much better fit at CMC. However my main concern is how much better UC might be viewed by future employers or grad schools.</p>
<p>As to academics, I did not get a particularly thorough understanding from my visit. Haw difficult are they? what frightens me the most is the possibility of a large number of bell curve grading and intense competition over a few A grades, something I think would be much more prevalent at UC than at CMC. Would anyone have any advice concerning that?</p>
<p>freddy1185,
I was not an economics major, but my impression is that rigid curves are not in effect in most courses; i.e if you do ‘A’ calibre work, you will generally be awarded an A. Nor is the prevailing culture one of competitiveness; on the contrary, I both experienced and observed a prevailing spirit of collaboration among students there. However, what you will not be able to avoid in UChicago economics is a heavy emphasis on both theory and mathematics. If you like both theory and math, you should be fine. If not, you will probably not be very happy at Chicago.<br>
I hope this helps a bit. Hopefully, a current Econ major will weigh in on this thread.</p>
<p>freddy1185 First of all, congratulations!
UChicago is an amazing school, but I see that you find CMC a better fit for you and you should not worry about it being slightly worse in terms of getting a job/into top grad schools.
It is extrememely well-known amongst people who matter (grad schools admissions and employers). It is very common for employers to actually visit Claremont Colleges to recruit students ( they most commonly visit Claremont and Stanford only). Plus The Wall Street Journal listed CMC as the eighth best liberal arts feeder school into elite graduate programs in law, business and medicine, and it was five years ago, and now CMC’s reputation is much better. Besides, as CMC is much more business-oriented I am sure that if the rankings were for business only, CMC would have been in top 3. The internships are amazing : there is even a Silicon Valley internship, where you can go to companies like Google. There is also Financial Economics sequence, and it seems to be exactly what you are looking for. Don’t get me wrong, i love UChicago, but CMC seems to be better for you.</p>
<p>Yeah, I would suggest going to CMC too. Since you feel the fit is bettere at CMC, go there. There is nothing worse than choosing a school, then when you arrive, you don’t feel like you fit in the the students.</p>