Wash U vs. Notre Dame

<p>So I want to be a biomed engineer (not interested remotely in med school though) and I realize that Wash U is the best place for that. However, I think Notre Dame would be the better atmosphere for me...I was wondering exactly how much better Wash U is than ND in that area and if I should just deal with the fact that I like the feel of ND better. I toured Wash U recently and went to one of the classes and the professor didn't speak good english and it was very monotone and boring and the atmosphere was way more subdued than I would like.</p>

<p>Also I'm not worried about which has the more well known name...because I'm probably going to do grad school and I feel that a known name is more important when you are going into the work force</p>

<p>if deciding solely on BME, I would suggest WashU.</p>

<p>However choose whereever fits you best, since you are going to attend graduate school and both schools can make you into a good one.</p>

<p>…yeah…I want to do undergrad research but I think it would be smarter to pick a school more focused on teaching over one more focused on research…research probably doesn’t matter in undergrad as much…from what I surmised ND still has oppurtunities and if you get in touch with a professor you can find something. My main worry about ND is that the biomed degree is within the mechanical engineering degree and top engineering schools usually have a very distinct biomed degree</p>

<p>Talking about undergrad research. WashU focuses on research and teaching simultaneously.</p>

<p>If you want to do Med in graduate, I would suggest WashU because the obvious advantage it has in BME.</p>

<p>I’m also curious that you didn’t get a good experience in WashU. People I talked to who visited WashU all claimed they have absolute great time</p>

<p>WUSTL might have a slight edge, but they’re pretty much the same.
Go with the one you like the most.</p>

<p>Yeah, I was almost set on Wash U before I visited; awesome biomed program, flexibility to shift majors with many good programs to shift into, and I thought St. Louis seemed like a pretty decent city. Plus one of my best friends was going to live very close and the campus is just gorgeous. Then I went on a tour and felt like I absolutely wouldn’t fit. It was very quiet, my host was so serious, everyone was fast-walking places, I went to a class and the teacher seemed very unhappy to be teaching and was so unenthusiastic, plus two of the people I talked to threw in the ivy leagues they denied to get into Wash U and the facebook group has a whole section on “Aren’t we great because we denied these colleges” section which just seems very vain, and the admitted student presentation was just not good…I don’t know, if I’m spending four years somewhere I want to feel like I fit in and if Notre Dame is still a pretty good option I think I’d rather go there. The only other thing is that Wash U offers this summer biomed internship in DC that I really wanted to take advantage of, so I’m looking into if I can get that somewhere else.</p>

<p>That being said, it could have just been a fluke, but I don’t really have anything else to judge by</p>

<p>WashU should be worth it just to see [String</a> Theory](<a href=“http://www.youtube.com/stringtheorytube]String”>http://www.youtube.com/stringtheorytube), heh.</p>

<p>Seriously though, I’m admittedly biased, but a lot of (awesome) seniors I know are attending Wash U next year, so I’m sure you’ll be in good company. St. Louis is a cool city to live in, though it can get a little slow at times. Plus, WashU seems to have the edge based on BME.</p>

<p>In other words, WashU all the way. =)</p>

<p>What class were you in? I don’t think I would judge an entire school by just one class. Wash U is very diverse in that it has a lot of colleges (it has artsci, business, engineering, art, architecture, etc.) I had a blast when I visited, thats why I enrolled.</p>

<p>I’m curious about the factors that you think make ND “a better atmosphere” for you. Could you elaborate? You talked about some of the negatives from your WashU visit but what does ND have that makes them so much better in your eyes?I feel they would need to be pretty weighty in light of your assessment that WashU presents a better academic fit. </p>

<p>As a rule, I would strongly caution you not to judge any school by one class where the professor didn’t speak English or even one short visit. If you went to 5 classes and that was the case everywhere, maybe worry a little. But don’t blow something small like that out of proportion when making your final decision. It’s just another factor to consider alongside all other factors.</p>