Which is better: U. of Michigan, Carnegie Mellon, Georgetown or John Hopkins
I'm studying liberal arts and/or possibly business, I'm coming from Germany and I'm not sure which of these schools is the best for my future, any advice is appreciated 
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I wouldn't choose any of them for liberal arts (perhaps look at Amherst, Swarthmore, Wellesley, Bryn Mawr, Bowdoin etc). No idea about business
Its a bit too late to be changing my decisions now that I've gotten my acceptance letters.
Let me put it this way, which university has the most prestige?
Let me put it this way, which university has the most prestige?
Original post by mertearkan
Its a bit too late to be changing my decisions now that I've gotten my acceptance letters.
Let me put it this way, which university has the most prestige?
Let me put it this way, which university has the most prestige?
Hey, I'm an international as well; when, did you hear back from Umich?
All of them but Carnegie (it's known for maths and engineering rather than lib arts) are pretty much the same in terms of prestige for liberal arts/business. Seriously, they're too close to bother choosing them on that sole factor; so, find out which one you prefer.... Do you want a city experience or a typical, leafy green, rolling hills college experience?
(edited 13 years ago)
I'd say leafy green, rolling hills...
Original post by mertearkan
I'd say leafy green, rolling hills...
Then, go for Umich.... it's your typical college experience; very school spirit and sports-orientated. When did they inform you of your acceptance by the way?
Original post by spazman21
Then, go for Umich.... it's your typical college experience; very school spirit and sports-orientated. When did they inform you of your acceptance by the way?
2-3 months ago.
The Midwest is cool and all...but I have to say, I went to CMU for a six week program, and I LOVED it. The food was pretty crappy, but the dorm I was in was really spacious and pretty, the campus was gorgeous and just close enough to the city to have plenty to do and just enough of its own bubble for it to be safe and beautiful. I really loved Pittsburgh. I think Pittsburgh gets a bad reputation for no reason, it's really a gorgeous city. And there are plenty of rolling hills around Pennsylvania.
Also, I don't know what spazman21 is talking about, leafy green hills at umich... the midwest north of a certain point is completely flat (melting glaciers and erosion flattened it and made it into rich farming land). I mean, it can still be pretty, and it's still green, it's just not hilly. At all.
So, I say you should go to CMU. But that's just my own personal bias and love for the school. :P
Also, about which one has the most prestige: They're all good schools. Employers (in the US, at least) will all recognize that you went to a respected university. Have you visited any of these schools?
Also, I don't know what spazman21 is talking about, leafy green hills at umich... the midwest north of a certain point is completely flat (melting glaciers and erosion flattened it and made it into rich farming land). I mean, it can still be pretty, and it's still green, it's just not hilly. At all.
So, I say you should go to CMU. But that's just my own personal bias and love for the school. :P
Also, about which one has the most prestige: They're all good schools. Employers (in the US, at least) will all recognize that you went to a respected university. Have you visited any of these schools?
(edited 13 years ago)
Original post by youdothemath
The Midwest is cool and all...but I have to say, I went to CMU for a six week program, and I LOVED it. The food was pretty crappy, but the dorm I was in was really spacious and pretty, the campus was gorgeous and just close enough to the city to have plenty to do and just enough of its own bubble for it to be safe and beautiful. I really loved Pittsburgh. I think Pittsburgh gets a bad reputation for no reason, it's really a gorgeous city. And there are plenty of rolling hills around Pennsylvania.
Also, I don't know what spazman21 is talking about, leafy green hills at umich... the midwest north of a certain point is completely flat (melting glaciers and erosion flattened it and made it into rich farming land). I mean, it can still be pretty, and it's still green, it's just not hilly. At all.
So, I say you should go to CMU. But that's just my own personal bias and love for the school. :P
Also, I don't know what spazman21 is talking about, leafy green hills at umich... the midwest north of a certain point is completely flat (melting glaciers and erosion flattened it and made it into rich farming land). I mean, it can still be pretty, and it's still green, it's just not hilly. At all.
So, I say you should go to CMU. But that's just my own personal bias and love for the school. :P
Apparently Carnegie Mellon is the most boring place on earth: no parties or anything.
Also, what I meant by "rolling hills" was the typical college experience, of a centralised campus with a strong community, frats, beer and a big sports scene.
Oh. Well, I went to CMU for the summer as a pre-college student a while back. There were parties every night. But I can see that happening during the school year. You'd just have to find the music theatre kids. They know how to party. :P
Yeah, I'd imagine U Mich is the most typical American college experience you could find, but I don't typically think rolling hills when I think of U Mich! Not that I think of it often. I'm sure it's a great school, didn't mean to put it down if that's what it sounded like. I just loved CMU when I was there. Beautiful campus, fun people; but again, that was during the summer.
Yeah, I'd imagine U Mich is the most typical American college experience you could find, but I don't typically think rolling hills when I think of U Mich! Not that I think of it often. I'm sure it's a great school, didn't mean to put it down if that's what it sounded like. I just loved CMU when I was there. Beautiful campus, fun people; but again, that was during the summer.
But I don't want a 'typical American college experience' I want to go to the school which will afford me the best education/opportunities...
Original post by mertearkan
But I don't want a 'typical American college experience' I want to go to the school which will afford me the best education/opportunities...
Well, that's pretty boring, to be honest. Half the reason I'm going to college is for the experience and fun.
I just don't feel comfortable using my parents money in such a way...
American here! All four are excellent schools. Personally, I'd rank JHU as being a smidge above the other three, but honestly all four are great options. I would agree that at this point you should consider the other factors: cost, environment, size, or any other criteria that matter to you. All four schools will give you basically the same quality of education; now you need to consider which one you would enjoy being at the most.
Seriously people worry way too much about rankings...
All these schools are great. Not one is going to give you a better chance of success in your career compared to the others, so just choose the school depending on where you want to live..
It's all about the whole experience you get, not just a piece of paper after 4 years of study.
I lived in DC and Georgetown has a great campus. Johns Hopkins also has a nice campus, but the surroundings are UGLY. I have no beef with Baltimore, but that's just a city I DON'T want to live in...
Don't know too much about UofM or Carnegie Mellon, other than UofM is awesome for sports, especially football: their stadium is HUGE and they have crazy parties there
All these schools are great. Not one is going to give you a better chance of success in your career compared to the others, so just choose the school depending on where you want to live..
It's all about the whole experience you get, not just a piece of paper after 4 years of study.
I lived in DC and Georgetown has a great campus. Johns Hopkins also has a nice campus, but the surroundings are UGLY. I have no beef with Baltimore, but that's just a city I DON'T want to live in...
Don't know too much about UofM or Carnegie Mellon, other than UofM is awesome for sports, especially football: their stadium is HUGE and they have crazy parties there
If you're super hung up on rankings, US News and World Report ranks Johns Hopkins #13, Georgetown #21, Carnegie Mellon #23, and U Mich #29. But again, you really shouldn't be so concerned about the ranking. You may think it is THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN THE WORLD right now (I know I did), but really, it's not. What matters most is where you'll be happy. Because if you're not happy where you are, you're not going to learn anything. You'll spend your time hating life instead.
Again I ask: have you visited any of these schools? That's really the best way to gage which school you're going to like best. If you haven't, I STRONGLY recommend you do so if at all possible. before you make your decision. If you make it solely on "reputation" (which is arguable and changes from year to year no matter what movies and television tell you) you might really regret it.
Again I ask: have you visited any of these schools? That's really the best way to gage which school you're going to like best. If you haven't, I STRONGLY recommend you do so if at all possible. before you make your decision. If you make it solely on "reputation" (which is arguable and changes from year to year no matter what movies and television tell you) you might really regret it.
Hi if you have any questions about JHU you can ask me I graduated from there. JHU is a liberal arts school and a research uni rolled up in one and unlike the other schools you've got into, JHU is currently reinventing itself by increasing funding to its undergraduate schools, the goal is within the next 3-5 years to have a 7-8:1 student professor ratio, only Yale Princeton and a few LACs have that. UMIch has the ross school but you need to apply to it your freshman year at michigan and there is no certainty you will get in. JHU is great because if you want to do research on any topic, they will throw money at you. Its also a smaller school which can be a con though. Among Gtown JHU and Michigan, JHU has the smallest amount of departments but remember, the study of archeology in America was founded in JHU, so was the first classics department, the term "political science" was coined there. Most of the professors at the humanities departments are super respected in their field and are constantly trying to be poached by the mighty trinity with very very few successes on their part. You will not be taught by a TA in any of the humanities courses and for the liberal arts, the professors I've had were more than eager to really help students passionate about the subject grow. Also to be honest, if you are looking at grad school in the future, JHU has an incredibly high placement for its students in top grad schools in America and the UK. All of my friends that are in grad school from JHU are in the top schools for their field. Mainly because schools know the JHU work ethic is top notch.
(edited 13 years ago)
I think you have to firstly have a careful look over the website for detailed information about the specific program to which you are admitted or in which you want to study.
Original post by mertearkan
But I don't want a 'typical American college experience' I want to go to the school which will afford me the best education/opportunities...
Here's the thing that Hollywood won't tell you: there is no such thing as a "typical American college experience." You get out of your college experience what you put into it. UMich has a reputation for having lots of parties, but also has some of the top academics in the country. Sure, they have a great football team and a huge culture built around that, but not every single person who goes there is a die-hard fan of the Blue and Maize. I'm only using Michigan as an example here because I'm the most familiar with it, this is true of all universities.
Foreign students especially seem to focus far too much on rankings and big name schools. The best way to get a strong educational experience is to find a college where you can have direct, close access to your professors and opportunity to do research and get experience in your chosen field. Sure, the name of your school can open some doors, but what you get out of your education personally will be much much more important.
I have a friend who studied design at a tiny tiny college in Ohio with a very low ranking and without a strong design department and he got accepted into all these really exciting grad programs above other students who had gone to more prestigious programs. The secret? He had a professor who really nurtured him and gave him opportunities to actually do design work. Not just class projects. So he graduated with a really stellar portfolio and tons of experience that he could use. At a big design school, those opportunities would have all gone to grad students.
I know you're not going into design, but this is true across departments. Don't discount what someone said about having all classes taught by professors, rather than TA's. Don't let yourself be swayed by pretty pictures in a brochure or a website. Those are marketing tools designed to show the school in the best possible light.
A visit would be ideal, but if you can't get here from Germany get in touch with the admissions departments and see if they'll put you in touch with current students at the school who are interested in your department. Often they can connect you with admissions student employees who can answer technical questions about the school, but can also give you an idea of the day to day experience. They can give you honest, non-marketing answers to questions and help you figure out if it's the right place for you.
Congratulations on being accepted to four great schools! Good luck!
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