sparkle22

Hi,

My main interest is environmental science - I'd like to study climate science and alternative energy, and also the economics/policy side of environmental issues. I'm choosing between Harvard and Stanford, so academically, would Harvard or Stanford be better for this?

Hanna

I don't know much about Stanford's strengths in this area, but Harvard has a fantastic major in Environmental Science and Public Policy that sounds like it's exactly what you're looking for.

Environmental Science and Public Policy

My ex-boyfriend was an ESPP major and has been working in alternative energy and environmental consulting since graduation (his college grades were average).

datalook

Stanford probably has the strongest program in evironmental science. 8 Stanford faculty members in environmental science belong to the prestigious National Academy of sciences (NAS), while Harvard has 0 in NAS. You can search that through the link below
National Academy of Sciences:.

In addition to that, Stanford's evironmental engineering program has been #1 for decades by US News graduate school rankings. See the rankings:

1 Stanford University Stanford, CA 4.6
2 University of California--Berkeley Berkeley, CA 4.5
3 University of Illinois--Urbana-Champaign Urbana, IL 4.3
4 University of Texas--Austin (Cockrell) Austin, TX 4.2
5 University of Michigan--Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI 4.1
6 Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA 4.0
Johns Hopkins University (Whiting) Baltimore, MD 4.0
8 California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA 3.9
Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA 3.9
10 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA 3.8
University of North Carolina--Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC 3.8
Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA 3.8

Environmental/Environmental Health - Engineering - Best Graduate Schools - Education - US News and World Report

collegealum314

Of course, stanford is the choice for environmental science. Their mascot is a tree, after all.

sparkle22

I agree that for engineering, Harvard really cannot compare to Stanford. But what about just environmental science? At Harvard I could double-major in environmental science and economics. Also, how is stanford's earth systems program, just in general?

icy9ff8

Are these two schools even accredited?

cc2

Stanford, of course. But consider this as well IOL: Warning: earthquake heading your way

sfkef2010

It really amazes me how terrified people from outside of California are about earthquakes. In truth, it's not that bad!! Earthquakes are very rare!! All of a sudden you just feel a lovely foot massage. haha.

I really think that location-wise, you'll have a lot of great opportunities in the San Francisco area. Mayor Gavin Newsom delivered a recent speech about how proud he was of the city's environmental policy. Does anyone know how the city of Boston compares to San Francisco in terms of environmental public policy?? I bring this up because internships will play a role in your college experience.

In terms of the feel of each of the colleges--and I have friends at both--it seems that Stanford kids are book-smart but less intellectual than Harvard kids. I'm only relaying what I've heard from friends at those two schools. Feel free to rebuff...

Hanna

"At Harvard I could double-major in environmental science and economics."

You don't have to double major. There's a combined major program all designed for you and ready to go.

ethanrt

Also, I was told that the Econ department isn't taking double concentrations (aka majors) any more. You can always get a secondary concentration (minor) at Harvard, but think about this:

Stanford is warm.

If I hadn't been rejected from Stanford, I would probably have made my decision by now :-p

Bay

Just so you know, while Stanford/Palo Alto is warmer than Cambridge, it is not like sunny Southern Cal. It is cold and rainy in the winter and it is not near the beach. (I lived in the area for 6 years). We even had to chip ice off our windshields on winter mornings. Some people are surprised to discover this fact.

cc2

>>It really amazes me how terrified people from outside of California are about earthquakes. In truth, it's not that bad!! Earthquakes are very rare!! All of a sudden you just feel a lovely foot massage. haha.<<
If you had been in the middle of a bad one, it won't be that funny any more.

sfkef2010

cc2:
I WAS in the middle of a bad one. I'm from San Francisco, and remember hiding under the table with my grandmother during the 1989 earthquake, as stuff fell off of the shelves. Keep in mind how few people died (72), considering the magnitude of that quake. Earthquakes like that don't even occur every 20 years! You can do the math--the odds are very unlikely. You're far more likely to die in a car accident! Little earthquakes are more frequent, and you shouldn't be scared of them; they do very little damage.

Sparkle22:
Maybe you could even do an ind. study on how man can actually cause earthquakes, through drilling oil and altering the natural environment. haha

Also, you should check out the study abroad options. My sense (from friends) is that Stanford has more science-y options. One of my best friends is actually a comp. lit major at Stanford, and sometimes she wishes that she had gone to a different school that wasn't so science-y.
Sparkle22, in the bay area, you can LIVE your major. Even much of our FOOD is is bio-ethical. (Check out Chez Panisse.)

Ailey

I'll chime in on the Stanford-Harvard debate as a mom who has 1 daughter at Harvard and one who has just decided on Stanford. We also live 10 miles from Stanford.

I don't think you could go wrong at either, given both colleges offer the concentration you want, but for applied science, Stanford has the stronger reputation by far. But at the undergraduate level, I am sure either would make you happy, so decide on some other criteria.

One comment - I would stay away from generalizations like "Stanford students are more book-smart but Harvard students are more intellectual". I know a lot of students at both, and I couldn't agree less. In both schools, there is a mix of abilities, talents, dedication to learning vs grades, and smarts vs intellecual depth.