<p>The differences between the two schools’ undergraduate programs and cultures are so significant that I personally wouldn’t need a department by department comparison to make a decision. Nonetheless,to name two additional ones you mentioned, in Psychology, Brandeis not only is the historical home of world-renowned psychologists Abraham Maslow (professor) and Eliot Aronson (alumnus), among others, its current department is very strong. You can do your own research on the current faculty and program. As for polysci/IR, Bob Art and others on its faculty are renowned (I believe Art also teaches IR at Harvard and MIT as well but spends most of his time at Brandeis). They IR faculty have trained illustrious Brandeis alumni in the IR field (e.g. Robert Galluci, longtime head of the Georgetown School of Foreign Service and the new President of the MacArthur Foundation). FYI, the new U.S. ambassador to Israel is a relatively young Brandeis alum.</p>