Which small, private school is best for biochem?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hey guys, I am in the college search process as well. I've been drawn to smaller, private schools but I have not been able to figure out which ones have strong science programs and will give me the best chance at doing well and finding great opportunities in the future. I would really appreciate some help trying to rank these in relative order of reputation for biological/biochemical sciences: Bowdoin, Haverford, Williams, Middlebury, Brown, Swarthmore, and then Georgetown, Holy Cross, and BC are my "safety" schools. </p>

<pre><code> I have around a 4.0 gpa and about 2100 SAT I. I also have strong extracurriculars, some of which involve lab work and competing in national science conventions. Just so you get an idea of what my college application resume is like. Thanks so much for your help.
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2

<p>Here’s a chart ([REED</a> COLLEGE PHD PRODUCTIVITY](<a href=“http://www.reed.edu/ir/phd.html]REED”>Doctoral Degree Productivity - Institutional Research - Reed College)) from Reed College’s website summarizing the top ten schools in phd productivity for various disciplines. The chart is based on percentage of students that go on to earn phds so it’s skewed toward smaller schools.</p>

3

<p>Georgetowns not a safety if you only have 2100, you need a 2250 plus to call it a safety bc of its 18 percent acceptance.</p>

4

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<p>I cannot help you with #1, but regarding #2, be careful not to fall in to the thinking that school x will lead to great opportunities whereas school y will not. We have a tendency to cut that distinction too finely. School #1 will likely provide many more opportunities than school #100, but this is not true of school #20 vs. school #40 in the rankings. And especially not true of school #30 vs. school #70.</p>

<p>The follow-on to my point above is that beyond the first 5-10 years in your career, where you attended college is almost never thought of or discussed. Every business/enterprise has its way of measuring success, and one of the criteria is <em>never</em> where (and often whether) you attended college.</p>

<p>Every single school in your list is approx. equivalent in its prestige among employers, academicians, and admissions committees, with the exception of Williams which will have a small advantage over the others.</p>

5

<p>Holy Cross has very strong reputation in the sciences and has new $70 million science addition. HC also has a great alumni network for job placement and internships.</p>

6

<p>What you do when you get to college is a whole lot more important than what college you go to. </p>

<p>Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using CC App</p>

7

<p>What you do when you get to college is a whole lot more important than what college you go to. </p>

<p>Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using CC App</p>