<p>Along with the question asked in the title, are you seriously considering Olin, and does anyone consider it their top choice? I would really like to go to Olin; last year, it was actually my top choice. However, although I am excited by their shifting curriculum and new style, I am still a little afraid of it at the same time. I'm applying to other schools that are more established, so I'll just have to see where I get into to decide if Olin is a good option. I wish there were a graduating class so that we could see how the graduating students were doing.</p>
<p>By the way, I found out about Olin at the beginning of my junior year. I got an email from them, and then I signed up for more information.</p>
<p>how they pay for tuition AND offer an amazing education. It looks like a great place. I applied, but I have no chance, but I would LOVE to go there. Good luck for you.</p>
<p>Thanks :) Why would you say you have no chance? Anyway, hopefully they will see your enthusiasm in your application; it seems like you like Olin a lot! :)</p>
<p>My SAT scores are pretty low, and I dont think that my list of EC's are anything incredible, just some ones that i have been doing since 10th grade and playing soccer since,well, forever practically. I just don't know if I have enough to stack up against someone with a 1500 and many other great things. Well, I guess I will have to wait and see. </p>
<p>I would gladly not mind having to sit out a year to have a seat for next year.</p>
<p>I hope everything goes well for the both of us.</p>
<p>If you have any questions for current students you might want to head over to the xforums. It's pretty quiet over there right now, but it'll pick up after CWE. </p>
<p>Search in google with "xforums" and "olin" as your terms. Should be the first hit you get.</p>
<p>Also if you have any questions you want to ask here, I could try to answer them.</p>
<p>My daughter is a soph. at Olin, and I'd aim to answer any questions. </p>
<p>She first found out about Olin in her junior year, with a large mailing piece that said, "Do you think bungee jumping is exciting?" </p>
<p>I wouldn't worry too too much about SAT scores. Believe what you read about the importance of enthusiasm, creativity, being articulate and able to work on a team. My daughter's work load has been intense, but that's true at all eng. programs. </p>
<p>There may also be an Olin student group in livejournal.com you might like to browse.</p>
<p>Olin looks like an interesting school. However, I've been wondering how its lack of accreditation will affect students who wish to become Professional Engineers. Many states require candidates to have graduated from an accredited school or to jump through oodles of extra hoops.</p>
<p>We're working on that whole accreditation thing, but they have this pesky idea that we should graduate kids before we're a real school. The good news is, we're only 15 months away from that happening. We can't promise that we'll be accredited as soon as we graduate our first class, but that is the current major obstacle. </p>
<p>We have been recently granted Candidacy status by NEASC (there's a link off Olin's website if you'd like to read about it) which puts us officially on their map and all that good stuff. </p>
<p>At any rate, the chances are VERY good that Olin would be accredited by the time you would graduate.</p>
<p>I think the accreditation issue is the major concern for most prospies, but after you visit the campus and meet the students and faculty, those concerns go away. The students are amazing in what they're doing and what they've accomplished so far. Besides carrying rigorous courseloads of work, most students are involved in the ec's they're passionate about. This usually means not only joining clubs but getting them started (planning, fundraising, securing sponsorships, etc). Freshman at Olin have opportunities that only select upperclassmen have at most other schools for research and participation. Combine this with their "hands on" experiences with their other ground-floor opportunities, and it makes for a winning combination. I think prospective employers will value these experiences. Since other engineering programs are now trying to emulate the Olin curriculum, I think that grad schools will be looking favorably on these trailblazers, too. jmho.</p>
<p>How would you rate Olin academically? On par with institutions like Caltech and MIT? I did notice that Olin can't admit international students now, do you think they will finalize this issue by next year?</p>
<p>I am willing to major in Electrical Engineering.</p>
<p>I have heard that international students cannot be admitted until Olin is accredited (on track for June '06). That's when Olin can issue the legal papers required for admitting international students.</p>
<p>Olin is pretty amazing academically. Are there any specific concerns you have about our academics? If you have more specific questions I might be able to give you a more helpful answer.</p>
<p>beck86nj, thanks for the offer of first-hand information. My S was impressed after his visit last weekend, but has some specific questions about the network infrastructure at Olin, with an eye towards duplicating the computing environment he's built at home. Whom should he contact to ask his questions? Thanks!</p>
<p>(PS: I would have sent this as a PM but you don't have that feature turned on. Feel free to respond to me with a PM if you'd prefer.)</p>
<p>My son was wowed at the olin candidate's weekend, and he places olin above mit, stanford, etc. - it's his far-in-the-lead top choice now. He is one of those who has had physics for majors and multivariable calculus at a university already, but he is convinced that olin will accomodate him and keep him challenged.</p>
<p>When my daughter attended the candidate's weekend, two years ago, there was another candidate who had been taking on-line math from MIT, and was looking at other schools for a math major. He chose Olin, and is now a sophomore there. You might look at the website, there's an article about an article written by some Olin students which has been published in a math journal.</p>
<p>Olin is unique. I think most students who do make it their top choice school feel very strongly about it, as it is so very different from any of their other options.</p>