William and Mary Vs. UVA Computer Science/ Biology double major

[bobby12344]

<p>Hello! I recently got accepted into both of these schools, and I was wondering if either one has an edge on double majoring in CS and BIO. Right now, W&M is the college I like, because I heard that Undergrads get more attention in W&M than at UVA, in which Grad students get a lot of attention. But, I am in a bit of a dilemma. I think that, for Bio and Pre-med, William and Mary is slightly better, but, I have heard that Computer Science is way better at UVA.</p>

<p>For UVA though, I would have to major across schools for BS in Comp Sci and a degree in Biology, whereas, at W&M, I can take both in one school because W&M is one combined school. </p>

<p>What is the difference between majoring across schools and doing it in one school? Is one harder than the other? </p>

<p>Which school is better for a person in my position? </p>

<p>Is there really a huge difference in Computer Science between the schools? Or, am I wrong about the fact that W&M is slightly better at Bio than UVA?</p>

<p>Are my thoughts about W&M having better research for Undergrads misconceptions?</p>

[hedgehog12]

Hi! As a current W&M student I’m happy to weigh in on this! Also, my older brother is a math and compsci major at UVA so I have personal experience there as well.

First things first: You would NOT have to major across schools at UVA. They have a BA in compsci (in the College of Arts and Sciences instead of Engineering) which is essentially the same thing as the BS. My brother is doing the BA and he’s working at Microsoft this summer, so in case you’re doubtful it is just as legit as the BS.

If you intend to major in CS I would really not go to W&M. The department receives little attention and is mainly used as a second major for students who want to add something more technical to whatever their other major is.

Also, unless you were accepted to the E school at UVA you can’t major across schools…the compsci BS is in the E school and you would have to have been accepted to that already or apply once you get there. But again, there’s no point, you can just do the BA.

As for bio, I think WM might have a slight edge in that the premed program is not as cutthroat competitive as at UVA. The faculty are a bit better as well. I think I’ve also heard that WM has better med school placement? You should look that up.

To answer your last few questions, there is definitely a huge difference in Compsci. UVA is MUCH better for that. Keep in mind, WM is a liberal arts school. As for Bio, WM probably as a slight edge. Also, undergrad research will be much easier to come by at WM (I know this from personal experience).

It really depends on which major you’re more interested in. Ask yourself why you want to do compsci if you plan on going to med school. Also, keep in mind that those two majors have practically no overlap and it will be very difficult to major in both wherever you go. If you want to go to med school, I would suggest picking one major and sticking with it. Bio would be the obvious choice, but you could do compsci and just do all the pre-med requirements. Having a compsci major might make you stand out, but I’m not a med school expert by any means.

Also, do you want a liberal arts college or a large university? Have you visited both?

[Squiddy]

I’d just add that, while Bio is the most common route to med school admissions, it’s by no means a requirement - and there’s some evidence that med schools are looking for matriculants with alternative backgrounds - admissions rates for non-BIO majors can be higher than BIO (although there are obviously a lot of factors that can play into that.)

Of course, you need to get that solid core of coursework that prepares you for the MCAT, in Bio, Physics, Chemistry, etc, but that can be done with an alternative major (though it is more work.)

Having a solid number of hours in “research”, preferably in basic sciences like Bio or Chem, is also required, and as @hedgehog12 noted, that’s probably much more accessible at W&M. IIRC, 200 hours is sort of the floor for your AMCAS (but don’t quote me on that, it’s been awhile.)

The thing about med school is, while the preparation for the MCAT is do-able under a different major, you still have to fulfill many basic “requirements” - the aforementioned research hours, community service hours, and clinical hours, in addition to preparing for the MCAT. So, it’s best to make a commitment to “pre-med”, to include those those extracurriculars, fairly early on so that you can be competitive in med school admissions. And, of course, you must maintain a fairly high GPA while doing so - a double-major courseload, plus your extracurriculars, might threaten that SciGPA.

In my opinion (and it’s just an opinion), you’d have to weigh the likelihood that you’ll be going to med school - if you’re 100% certain that’s where you want to be, then W&M will probably support that a bit better than UVA for reasons of research availability and a less-competitive atmosphere. If there’s a significant likelihood that CompSci is your intended career path, than UVA will probably support that better.

And finally, there’s the environment - each school has a rather different “environment” (the sum total of a lot of things) - some people will have strong preferences in that regard, while others would thrive in either environment. I’d suggest you consider that as well - you don’t want to be miserable for four years, no matter how good the decision looks on paper.