<p>I am trying to decide which of these two schools to transfer to, and would really appreciate some feedback.</p>
<p>I am a computer science major. At Wesleyan I would also complete a major in economics, but at Vanderbilt this would not be possible. I have an academic interest in economics but I don't see an econ degree as central to my future plans.
I'm interested in grad school for computer science, or possibly law school, and it seems a high GPA at Wesleyan is significantly easier to come by than at Vanderbilt.
I do not enjoy parties. I don't drink or do drugs. I'm also not into sports.
I don't like hot weather.
I am very interested in industry recruitment for computer science internships.
Wesleyan has several extracurricular activities that i'm very interested in. Vanderbilt does not have them, but has one club that I would join instead.
I'm not particularly politically active, and I think Wesleyan's activist atmosphere could get annoying and frustrating. But I also don't enjoy being around "frat guys".
I like intellectual conversations.
Prestige would be nice.
Campus aesthetics are important to me.</p>
<p>If anyone has insight to offer, it would be very helpful.</p>
<p>Well, the best strategy would be to visit both campuses. That said, based on how you’ve described the factors in your decision it sounds like Wesleyan might be a better fit. I know nothing about computer science, but if it’s true that Wesleyan would give you easier entree into that field, that’s a point in its corner. You want to double-major in economics, which you say only Wesleyan would allow (are you sure?). That’s another point for Wesleyan. Your weather preferences suggest you would be happier in CT than TN. Wesleyan, again. That leaves the student vibe. You seem to find the stereotypes of students at both of these schools “annoying”–the hard working/hard partying/beer loving Vanderbilt Greek member vs. the Wesleyan sign-my-petition vegan. Of course, stereotype is the key word here–the truth is that you’ll find all kinds of students on both campuses. But Wesleyan does have a reputation for being more intellectual. So, unless what you’ve hard about Wesleyan’s social atmosphere is a huge turn-off to you, my best guess is that you’d be happier there. Either way, you’ll be going to a great school. Best of luck!</p>
<p>I don’t know that much about Wesleyan, so I can’t give you a comparison, but I can try to give you some information to help you decide. Computer science is pretty tough at Vanderbilt, but there are good internship and job opportunities, as there are major tech companies which recruit on campus. It doesn’t sound like you would enjoy the broader Vanderbilt culture, but you will easily find your niche, especially within the engineering school. You would probably be interested in the Vanderbilt Computer Society, and I don’t think you’d find a shortage of extracurriculars, as there are several other technology related groups on campus. Ultimately your years at Vanderbilt would probably be spent somewhat removed from the mainstream campus atmosphere, but they would also be very rewarding in the long run and may even prove enjoyable. Either way, good luck with your decision.</p>
<p>Wesleyan is much smaller than Vanderbilt. It has a very liberal culture, from what I understand. If you are interested in CS I am actually a little surprised you focused on transfer to one of these two schools simply because of their locations. They are not in tech plentiful areas. Why not one of the zillion schools in Boston/Cambridge? Or something in the SF Bay Area?</p>
<p>LBowie - Wesleyan not that far from Boston, but in any case Southern New England and New York are full of opportunities for people with CS degrees. An area doesn’t have to be cutting edge (although there are plenty of companies in that area that are) to have solid opportunities. I am sure Nashville has its share as well as VandyRealist points out, but in any case the OP clearly said that if he pursued CS he would be going to grad school, so location for finishing undergrad is really fairly irrelevant, at least with respect to the number of tech firms in the area.</p>
<p>OK, you have a point there, but s/he did mention internships. Wesleyan is not within daily commuting distance of either Boston or New York, so we must be talking mainly about summer internships. And, no, it is not irrelevant since experience during undergrad can help with grad admission. But I think either one is still a fine choice, it’s just that if one were looking to transfer, that would also be an opportunity to optimize location.</p>
<p>It sounds like vandywes is lukewarm about BOTH schools in terms of culture, as well as in terms of area of interest. Is staying where you are an option, vandywes?</p>
<p>Thanks for the responses. My response deadline for Vanderbilt has now passed, and I have told Vanderbilt I will not be attending. I have two more weeks to decide on Wesleyan, but I am leaning towards staying at my current institution. I don’t know if the academic upgrade is worth the possible fit issues.</p>
<p>if you can attend Wes without incurring more costs, you should seriously consider the advantages of a liberal arts education which include tremendous access to full professors, professors who have not gotten foggy or forgotten they knew you when you seek references or apply to grad school in a delayed manner, and classrooms that are exceptional. Wes also invests a great deal of money in the education and support of each student, although I have zip idea on your current type of college. I do think that activism and a more global world view/concern re things like the environment is part of the Wes student body tradition but I wouldn’t dwell on negative ideas about how activists can be tiresome if you are not keen on discussing politics and policy. I would focus on if you like being around a student body also famous for its undergrad film program, the arts, theater and performance. If rooting for your school sports teams is not on your top ten list, Wes has a lot to offer in students whose pastimes are in the arts.<br>
Whether you do econ or computer science courses, I encourage you to knock off quantitative courses somewhere. My Duke econ major son not only had employers asking for his SAT/ACT and GMAT scores, he had them looking at his Calculus college performance. I think small classes at Wes are a pretty good place to try to work on mastery of quantitative courses.</p>
<p>I just happened on this thread, I’m pretty familiar with Wesleyan as my son attends. He loves it, but as you say it does have a very liberal vibe. He’s middle of the road politically and it doesn’t bother him. </p>
<p>Having said that, it sounds to me like neither Vanderbilt or Wesleyan is a great choice, I’m not sure how you narrowed it down to those two. Schools that might be better fits:</p>
<p>UChicago (although a more difficult admit than Vandy or Wes)
Michigan
Carnegie Mellon
University of Illinois</p>
<p>I would think all of those would have any clubs or activities you’d want, and would fulfill your criteria. </p>
<p>If you wanted a smaller school you could also consider RPI.</p>
<p>How in the world is U of Illinois anything like U Chicago? Hard to see a scenario where both are fits for the same student, unless that student is either highly adaptable to many environments or completely apathetic to their environment. In any case, it is far too late to apply to other schools for transfer in the fall.</p>
<p>Illinois is a top CS school, but achievable as an admit/transfer.</p>
<p>There are tons of good schools for CS. Given all the criteria the OP listed for a school, it is really hard to see how Illinois is a fit. And of course it would have been “achievable”. Not nearly as hard to get into as either Vandy or Wesleyan. Anyway, like I said silly to bring up other schools now. It isn’t what they asked.</p>
<p>Funny you mention Illinois and Michigan. I applied to both, and was promptly rejected from both.</p>
<p>As a freshman or as a transfer?</p>
<p>Transfer, same as Vanderbilt and Wesleyan.</p>
<p>Well, then I guess we were wrong about achievability! Have to admit, really surprising Illinois would turn down a student that both Wesleyan and Vanderbilt considered up to their standards. Just goes to show there are so many factors involved we mere mortals cannot always know.</p>