<p>Just weighing in as one whose S applied to Chicago, Brown, and Columbia. There are many other factors to weigh other than core vs. no core. The three schools have a similar undergraduate size and similar settings, with each one having a distinct (and beautiful, imo) campus in an urban setting. The open curriculum certainly puts Brown in its own fairly unique academic category, and not just compared to the other two. But for an intellectually curious student, all three schools provide the opportunity to explore a broad spectrum of subjects (albeit with more mindfulness when choosing courses at Brown in light of none being required). The 3 didn’t seem all that contradictory to my S, especially when those other non-academic factors are considered.</p>