<p>i’m not sure how Columbia works… but would you still have their Core if you do Engineering? I would assume that their Core is only for liberal arts students? I could be wrong in my assumption.</p>
<p>If you want to do more than one thing (two majors in engineering, or one major in engineering and one in liberal arts), then Wash U is one of the best places in the world for that. Most people have more than one major. Amongst myself and all of my friends, there isn’t one of us who has only one major. Schools with a Core really turned me off, because it just seemed so limiting and didn’t offer much freedom. Wash U has a nice compromise in that they want you to take classes in certain areas, but by and large you always get to choose how to fulfill those distribution requirements. Then again, some people want a Core because it means that everyone is going to be taking the same classes for a significant amount of their curriculum. </p>
<p>Wash U’s Chemical and Environmental Engineering department is great by all accounts. Since ChemE and Env Eng are intrinsically combined in one department, you get a true interdisciplinary education there. It doesn’t have a Civil Engineering major… its officially been fazed out as of this year. If you have an interest in structures, most people have been concentrating in Mechanical or Structural Engineering instead… which is somewhat similar to Civil in some ways, but yeah it doesn’t offer a fully fledged Civil Engineering major anymore. So if you only have a side interest in Civil/Structures, then you can find a great MechE department at Wash U. Civil Engineering is a really broad term, anyway, and traditionally is broken down into many sub fields… Mechanical, Structural, Environmental, Materials, etc. It really depends on how you want to focus a Civil Engineering education. One of my friends is doing some really cool research in Nanomaterials in the MechE department. I can’t understand a word of it, though 
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<p>Otherwise, the campuses are very different. At Columbia, you’re probably going to have more “New York City pride” than you will Columbia pride. At Wash U, you’re going to have more pride for your school than you will for your location. I think at the undergrad level it’s important to feel tied and close knit to a campus community, and not be in a place that has buildings scattered throughout city blocks. That’s just my feeling, but if you truly want to be in the middle of a downtown area and have very little campus attachment, then Columbia is a perfect place to go. Wash U is in the middle of lots of cool neighborhoods and Forest Park, so while it isn’t in the middle of big city, you’re not going to be lacking in opportunities. </p>
<p>From the curriculum/Core to the city environment, they are vastly different schools, and it’s good that you are visiting each!! Wash U always struck me as a school that gives you a diploma you can take anywhere… mostly because of the reputation of the school tied with the fact that you can major in really anything you want to, and that you are going to get involved in really higher-level research opportunities. That flexibility is really unparalleled and great for people who are relatively young in their education. Ultimately, you are going to be living somewhere for 4 years and calling it your home. They attract a different type of student, and depending on which type of student you are, I’m sure you’ll find happiness at either Wash U or Columbia. </p>
<p>At either Wash U or Columbia, you’re going to take great classes, get individual attention, and have a roughly similar quality of education. I really don’t think you can dispute the quality between these schools… 1) because there are no ways to objectively compare undergrad engineering departments, and 2) anyone who advocates for the quality of an undergrad department vs. one at another school is biased because they go to that school!!! It really comes down to other factors… again, things like what type of city you want, how much flexibility you want, etc…</p>