<p>what do you guys think the hardest engineering schools are, both overall and in electrical (my future major) in terms of effort required to get a 3.0 and rigor.</p>
<p>I’ve heard that it’s very hard to maintain a high GPA at Georgia Tech but this could be untrue because
- Tech has a higher concentration of engineers than most other schools and therefore seems more difficult in comparison even though engineering programs at other schools could be just as rigorous.
- The school has a high acceptance rate but is a top-tier institution so many students come in unprepared for the workload. They would have been rejected from most schools of a similar caliber.</p>
<p>@jsies11 ive also heard that tech is really hard, and ends up leaving its students with alcohol and drug addiction problems. The school’s application pool got really competitive in the last 2 years, so im sure its newer students are more prepared than the ones that attended before. thanks for the input!</p>
<p>The usual schools like MIT, Caltech, Cornell and Berkeley.</p>
<p>Caltech and MIT - but I’m just saying that because it’s the standard answer.</p>
<p>I have heard Harvey Mudd is a bear.</p>
<p>Purdue (lowest grade inflation). Every class is a challenge. </p>
<p>^ Purdue has a high drop out rate for a reason.</p>
<p>Start with the proposition that nearly every U.S. engineering school is hard. The traditional engineering disciplines are tough, no doubt about it. The fine point is that some schools place a very high workload upon their students. Then there are the notorious “weeder” schools. It may be an urban myth type of thing, but I understand that Georgia Tech and Iowa State are two excellent engineering schools that are notorious examples of weed out programs. And during an applicant and parents orientation program I visited at RPI, one of the deans sort of sneered and said to the audience “we don’t mess around,” so be prepared to work.</p>
<p>Nobody really knows the answer to this question since nobody has had the opportunity of simultaneously attending every engineering school in order to form an accurate opinion.</p>
<p>What has been said so far in this thread is purely speculative, based on the idea that more selective = more difficult. While there is some correlation between these two factors, they are still largely independent (as proven by a number of easier-to-get-into schools with rigorous programs). </p>
<p>@fractalmstr @LakeWashington @billcsho @DrGoogle
- Would a lower retention rate be a good indicator in determine the rigor of a school?
- What are you thoughts about Case Western’s rigor level.</p>
<p>no, it’s the opposite. All the top UCs have 90+% freshmen return to campus rate, is that the same as retention rate?
MIT is hard, coworker’s daughter is there and he told me she thinks it’s hard but she likes it, but I think MIT has high freshmen return to campus rate(not sure what the term is on top of my head).</p>
<p>@DrGoogle yes, im pretty sure that is the same as retention rate. thanks! </p>
<p>OP, it depends on what you mean by “hardest”. These are some of my considerations:</p>
<p>a) Relative competition - MIT, Caltech, Stanford
b) Getting weeded out - Many of the best state Engg. schools like Purdue, GTech
c) Tough stream/courses - I did Mech Engg (in the 80s) at an elite institution but always considered my fellow batchmates in EEE to be the “tough” ones
d) Maintaining a high GPA - any Engg. school I guess
e) Post grad opportunities (Engg. or otherwise) - Fairly good for most Engineers - I was an average Engineer but ended up at a Top 3 Business school for an MBA and did well there
f) Possibility to change stream - don’t know about much about which colleges are better. But one of the reasons my D2 chose GTech over UCB was the difficulty (maybe apocryphal) to change from the UCB College of Chemistry to the College of Engg. as she was not totally decided between ChemE and CS.</p>
<p>I am sure there are more considerations others can shed light on.</p>
<p>@toesockshoe No. The higher drop out rate not necessarily due to the hardness of the school. At Purdue, they set a lower threshold to accept freshmen and let those who could not catch up to drop out. The graduate school I attended was like that too. Basically, they do not depend on the high school GPA and standardized score but select for those who can really success in college afterward.</p>
<p>I’d say most engineering programs are either Hard or Very Hard. As you research colleges, look for one that is a good fit for you (academically, financially, socially) and ABET accredited… with a decent track record of employment after graduation. </p>
<p>Colorado_mom said it all. Now pay attention!</p>
<p>Incidentally, Case Western Reserve U is an excellent STEM school, and there are SEVERAL others. Follow the advice above and begin to examine/evaluate the potential for happiness and success at a place like Case.</p>
<p>I think Cornell is also hard.</p>
<p>@LakeWashington yes, i did do that. one of the reasons I chose case was because it is a small school and is mostly concentrated in STEM majors. It also has a good accounting/business department. (that is my backup major incase i find that I absolutely can not stand engineering). What worries me though is that Case graduates say that Case was EXTREMELY hard, but then again i hear that all engineering schools are difficult. I don’t know if i can keep up with the rigor at case. I like the environment at case, but its the just difficulty that worries me.</p>
<p>There’s a difference between difficulty with support and do it yourself, right of passage grind. I believe there are lots of support structures at Case and the student body is not cut throat competitive, but rather works cooperatively.</p>