CMU vs. Dartmouth

College Search & Lists
1

Hi - I was accepted into CMU CS and Dartmouth and I’m trying to decide between these two very, very different schools.

Thoughts so far:
CMU fits me really well career-wise; I’m interested in computer graphics and animation and that’s right up CMU’s alley. Dartmouth, comparatively, is nowhere close. But I like Dartmouth’s liberal arts education better, since I’m more of a collaborative worker and I like being flexible. CMU’s ultra-competitive and specialized environment kind of rubs me the wrong way, but I’m not sure if it’s like…a tear-each-others-throats-out kind of competition or a help-each-other-out-so-the-contest’s-even-better kind of thing, you know? Plus, the social scene at CMU kind of leaves something to be desired. On the other hand, CMU CS would almost guarantee a good salary and connections. Buuuut Dartmouth is an Ivy.

You can see the back and forth here. Help?

2

What do you think of fraternities and sororities? Most eligible undergraduates at Dartmouth join them.

Is CMU really that cutthroat?

You can look in the course catalogs to see what CS and other course offerings there are at each school. Schedules can let you know how often they are offered and how big they are.

3

I’m not too big on Greek life, but I’ve heard recently that a lot of sororities/frats are much more common interest-related than beer-related so I am open to them.
And about “cutthroat,” I’m hearing mixed reviews. CMU has a reputation for “high effort, high reward,” and it does have a lower grad rate than a lot of other colleges, which leads me to believe that the workload could turn a lot of people away.