Yale vs Columbia for Chemistry/Physics

Colleges and Universities A-Z Yale University
1

<p>Hello everybody.</p>

<p>I'm an international student and I've been admitted both to Columbia College (as a Rabi Scholar) and Yale. I'm planning on majoring in Chemistry, with a focus on its physical branch.</p>

<p>At the moment I'm strongly leaning towards Yale; my only concern is that Chemistry at Yale seems to favor the life sciences. There seem to be more opportunities for people that want organic chemistry than for those who prefer inorganic or physical chemistry. From what I can tell from Columbia's chemistry department website, the opportunities there are balanced for all the branches of chemistry.</p>

<p>I'm sure that the quality of undergraduate teaching and research is top-notch and about the same in both universities (and probably not as good as that of MIT or Caltech; but I also want an excellent liberal arts education, and that's something Yale and Columbia certainly offer). However, I wouldn't want to end up choosing Yale and realizing that Organic Chemistry is the only reasonable path to follow there.</p>

<p>Can anybody knowledgeable of the science departments of either university help me out here? :D</p>

2

<p>My suggestion is to go where you feel you will thrive. If you go to Yale and it turns out that it does not have what you desire most, you will regret it throughout college. You say that both universities have everything you want (top research, great liberal arts education). I would suggest Columbia for you, simply because it is more risk-free. Ultimately, it is up to you though.</p>

3

<p>No need to worry about the opportunities in physical chemistry at Yale, xellos93. I know John Tully, Bill Jorgensen, Pat Vaccaro, and Victor Batista personally, and they are not only exceptional scientists, but also great people to work with! This is not to slight the people I haven’t mentioned–just that our paths haven’t really crossed for any length of time.</p>

4

<p>You can’t go wrong with either- I’ve heard the Rabi Scholars award is very selective. Congratulations on your successes thus far.</p>