I was recently accepted to Yale in the early action round and am interested in going into science (probably physics). I loved all three universities when I visited, and think that I would be happy at any of them, but I liked Yale the most overall. I guess what I wanted to ask is: is there a significant difference between the math and science programs or overall teaching at those universities at the undergraduate level? Would this have an effect on what I did after college?
It’s Yale; you’re fine.
Yale will be awesome. UChicago and MIT might be slightly higher ranked or better known for math and physics, but you are really hairsplitting when it comes to schools at this level, especially for undergrad.
By the way, I would have given you the same answer no matter which one of the three you had gotten into first.
At Yale you will be taking lots of humanity courses. Yale is just not know for math and science, even though it is a great institution. The depth of curriculum in math and science pails in comparison to MIT.
Everything at Yale is at least pretty good. There might not be quite the research possibilities that there would be at Chicago or MIT (still check, obviously…) , but it’s Yale – one of the best undergraduate educations money can buy – so they’re going to have great teachers, facilities, and opportunities, regardless of major.
So unless you get a much better deal at MIT or Chicago, or if you change your mind regarding which you prefer, be happy about becoming a Yalie.
“I liked Yale the most overall”
You answered your own question. Go buy your Yale hoodie and have a great college experience.
I will accept @3CsinLifes call that Yale does not have the depth in science that MIT offers, if @3CsinLife will agree that pails =/= pales 
As for @3CsinLifes assertion that at Yale “you will be taking lots of humanities”, take a look at the distribution requirements for the 3 schools. Note that in all cases, classes you take for your major count towards the requirements.
Humanities/Arts, Social Sciences/Writing: Yale- 8 // MIT- 8 // U Chicago- 9
Sciences: Yale- 2 // MIT- 7 (1 chem, 1 bio, 2 physics, 2 electives, lab) // U Chicago - 4 (2 bio, 2 physical)
Foreign Language: Yale: 1,
Math/Quantitative Reasoning: Yale - 2 // MIT - 2 // U Chicago -2
PE: MIT, 4 (+ swim test)
So, the required level of humanities is fundamentally similar across the 3 schools. A big difference, however, is that UChicago’s “Core” is highly structured, whereas at Yale and MIT you have more options in your humanity course selection.
@MustafaKemal, the caliber of teaching at all three is superb. You will be well prepared to get into any post-grad program from any of them. They are very different undergrad experiences, so if you have the choice, go with the one that seems as if it would suit you best.
But, a gentle reminder: you do not know yet if you have a choice to make: you are into Yale, but that does not mean you will get offers from either/both of the other two
Thanks! The more I read about Yale, the more I like it and think it will be a good fit. I can’t really see myself at either of the other two anymore, so I think I will commit to Yale. Thanks again for the help.
Sorry for the thread jack, but nice analysis! Do you happen to have Penn and Stanford sitting around on a spreadsheet somewhere?
I’ll try to answer all your concerns - The number of courses/research opportunities in Science and Math at all 3 colleges are so huge that no undergrad will ever be able to exhaust them in their four years. With regards to teaching quality, professors at all 3 colleges come from the same top-20 departments, and the students are of roughly the same intellectual caliber, so I highly doubt there’s any discernible difference in teaching quality.
Where Yale/Chicago and MIT differ is that MIT has a higher concentration of ‘STEM nerds’ - hardcore engineers/pure math geeks compared to the other 2 colleges. At Yale your average Physics major will probably be more well rounded - for instance, a physics geek who also loves music theory.