personal knowledge of these colleges?

[OhioMomof3]

Hi! My son, whose major is engineering, has the following colleges on his list. If anyone here has personal, recent knowledge of any of these institutions, would you mind sharing?

 

Carnegie Mellon

Hope (MI)

Vanderbilt

Duke

Rochester Institute of Technology

Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Wheaton (3/2 with Illinois Institute of Technology)

Milwaukee Institute of Technology

 

 

I'm interested in both good or bad feedback. Our biggest concerns are

campus culture and having an exceptional program.

 

Thanks in advance,

Melissa

[Chris in VA]

Dear friend went to Wheaton. It's considered the Harvard of Christian schools (in a good way). Campus culture is interesting--some send their kids to Wheaton because they want their kids to remain Christian. Others send their kids so they will "become" Christian--there's a rebel culture there, like at any college.

 

That's all I've got.

 

Has your ds considered VA schools? VA Tech has a great program, and also has 3/2 programs with Old Dominion (not recommended here...), Radford (party culture but strong), and Longwood (pretty good). Some of the 3/2's lead to two BS degrees (Radford's is a strong program that leads to a BS in Physics and a BS in Engineering) and some lead to a Masters.

[Yolanda in Mass]

My bil went to Worcester Polytech and I know a recent grad and a current student. It has a very good reputation in these parts and the people I know who are going/went there are quite happy with results. They have a senior project which is where you show that you know how to apply what you've learned. One of the 3 is a strong Christian who hooked up with other Christians on campus. Even though it's an engineering school, lots of kids get drunk (just like most other secular schools), but the people I know were definitely not partiers.

 

Yolanda

[OhioMomof3]

Thank you, Chris and Yolanda, for responding and for your insight.

 

Melissa

[RegGuheert]

Hi! My son, whose major is engineering...

Hi Melissa,

 

Does your son have an idea of what type of engineering he would like to do? This can be important, since schools tend to be better in some disciplines than in others. Even within a particular discipline there will be differences in the quality of the education.

 

For instance, Carnegie Mellon is world-renowned for robotics technology, which is really a multi-disciplinary endeavor involving mostly mechanical and electrical and computer science.

 

You often can guess what a particular school will be strong at by looking at what industries are found in that city. This will tell you what type of companies are likely funding their programs and therefore directing their curricula. For instance I would guess that Milwaukee Institute of Technology is strong in research for medical engineering technology as well as mechanical and industrial engineering. (You should check me on that, since I did not look.)

[Blue Hen]

Hi! My son, whose major is engineering, has the following colleges on his list. If anyone here has personal, recent knowledge of any of these institutions, would you mind sharing?

 

Carnegie Mellon

Hope (MI)

Vanderbilt

Duke

Rochester Institute of Technology

Worcester Polytechnic Institute Search on WPI

Wheaton (3/2 with Illinois Institute of Technology)

Milwaukee Institute of Technology

 

 

I'm interested in both good or bad feedback. Our biggest concerns are

campus culture and having an exceptional program.

 

Thanks in advance,

Melissa

 

Last year folks posted on the College Board about their college visits. You might want to do come cruising through past threads to see them. I only found two threads with College Campus Tours as the tag.

[tampamommy]

OOooo!! My hand in the front row is up. With a vote for Rochester Institute of Technology. It's worth looking into.

 

I worked there for several years. I also earned my graduate degree there. My degree isn't in engineering, but due to the nature of my job, I was very familiar with most of the degree programs across the various colleges.

 

I liked the campus culture. I had some marvelous professors. Rochester is a pretty nice place to live (except for the weather). It isn't a huge city, so that appealed to me. The suburbs sprawl, and RIT is in the suburbs. The location is nice and I always felt safe there.

 

What sets RIT apart is the emphasis on practical experience and internships within most degree programs. They highlight this in their advertising...it really is true. It makes a big difference in how students learn.

 

Just make sure your ds likes COLD weather. I mean really cold. With lots and lots of snow and ice. Fall and summer are beautiful. Spring can be very short. Winter is long.

 

I fled to FL and won't go back to the cold weather.:)

[OhioMomof3]

Your thoughtful replies were appreciated.