Johns Hopkins vs. Barnard vs. Mt Holyoke

lightsandsounds · 03-30-2012, 10:21 PM

Hello!
I've recently received decisions for all three of these schools saying I was accepted, but I'm having a hard time deciding between them. I'm a senior in nyc currently, and I wish to major in Neuroscience, maybe double-majoring with Middle Eastern Studies or History as well.

My personal preferences would be a school with a good close community, a lot of opportunities for me to do research, and allows me the option to take some creative classes. (I want to take a creative writing course in the near future.) Also, I'm planning to go on the pre-med track, so that should probably be accounted for as well.

I know that Johns Hopkins is the most distinguished of the bunch, but I'm a 21st century scholar at Mount Holyoke, which means I get some much needed aid from them. Barnard is very close to home, and I'm loving the tight knit community there, but I'm worried that Johns Hopkins may have the best resources for research and internships.

Help? Thanks in advance!

bonanza · 03-30-2012, 10:47 PM

Congratulations. You have three great choices and can't make a serious mistake. That said, you can't compare the research opportunities at the three schools although there are opportunities at each. Hopkins gets more research money than any university in the US, by quite a bit if truth be told. Barnard and Holyoke are great LACs but simply aren't in the conversation when it comes to research money.

warblersrule · 03-30-2012, 11:50 PM

My impression is that Barnard students can take advantage of the research opportunities at Columbia, which are comparable to those of JHU. Under the senior thesis portion of the neuroscience major website:

Quote:

Explore the research interests of Neuroscience faculty:

within the NAB program
in the Departments of Psychology and Biological Sciences at Columbia University, on the Morningside campus
at the CU Medical Campus (use white search box in upper right corner of page)
at the NY State Psychiatric Institute.
at nearby universities, including NYU, Rockefeller University and Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

Middle Eastern studies is stronger at Columbia/Barnard than Hopkins by default. They are comparable for history. I don't know anything about the programs at MoHo.

For pre-med, any of the three would be fine. It's best to keep costs down for undergrad, so I would carefully compare financial aid offers.

happymomof1 · 03-31-2012, 12:39 AM

All of these are fine institutions, but do run your numbers first. Here is one useful calculator: FinAid | Calculators | Award Letter Comparison Tool From your comments Mt. Holyoke may be your only affordable option. If it is, go there and don't worry about what you are missing by not being able to pay for JHU or Barnard.

lightsandsounds · 03-31-2012, 12:51 PM

Thank you for all your help!
I really want (and need) more input and opinions about this sooo
BUMP!
anyone else?