<p>I’ve narrowed my choices down to Harvey Mudd (I’m interested in their Engineering and sciences), Claremont McKenna (interested in joint science (esp neuroscience) and econ), and College of Creative Studies at UCSB (biochemistry). I am having difficulty choosing between the three, and I would really appreciate any responses/input regarding the questions below.</p>
<p>Harvey Mudd - love the research and experience it affords, I like that it seems to be a place that will challenge me academically for the next four years, I like the collaborative atmosphere. I am very concerned, however, that this school will only develop the academic side of me. There are several activites I want to pursue outside of academics, and I am worried that the heavy workload that I keep hearing references to will prevent me from doing this. How common is it for people to have to give up opportunities to participate in activities because of academics? I would really appreciate any input on this issue because it is a major concern of mine.</p>
<p>Claremont McKenna: I like that the school affords exposure to different fields of study and that students seem to be involved in a lot of activities. As someone interested in the sciences, I’m wondering how the sciences are at CMC? The gov and econ programs are what the school is associated with, so I’m wondering what the experience is like for science majors?</p>
<p>CCS at UCSB - love the independence and freedom of designing your own program and the access to upper division courses. not sure how easy it is to connect with other undergrads? Any extra information about the experience of this program would also be welcome.</p>
<p>I don’t know about CMC or UCSB. But I think you should eliminate Mudd, not because “this school will only develop the academic side of me” but because you don’t know what you want to do. If you go to Mudd, I think you could still have fun (at least I hope so, since my kid’s going!) but it’s quite difficult to major in anything non-Mudd. You’ve got four years - don’t decide by default by choosing a school that will choose for you.</p>
<p>My impression of Mudd is that because of the nature of the core curriculum it is quite feasible to expore different areas of study prior to committing. From what I can tell it is possible to connect different areas of study, and that this is encouraged (again, these are just my impressions). I would be happy to explore the areas offered at Mudd. My concern is that I wouldn’t be able to develop the non-academic areas of my life (i.e. orchestra, athletics, etc).</p>
<p>Mudd will allow you to explore different areas of study before committing. But it won’t allow you to commit to Econ unless you do an off-campus major. How are your stats compared to the average student at Mudd? If you’re at the top of the pool, I imagine you’d have time to do other stuff (although not many simultaneous other things). If you’re at the bottom of the pool, that might not leave you with much free time. Are you a senior admitted to all of them or younger and just thinking about them?</p>
<p>I grew up in coastal southern California, so I come to this discussion with this bias. UCSB is a large, beautiful school in a fabulous location. CCS is an amazing program, with lots of freedom, as you say. You will of course have contact with other undergrads, in the dorms, in your general ed classes. And, you will always be able to breathe. I mean this literally. The Pomona area is one of the smoggiest areas of the world. Especially all summer, but most definitely September, October, April, May and June are months full of extremely smoggy days. Where you really can not exercise at all. Honestly, I must admit that I don’t understand how people voluntarily live in the Claremont/Pomona area. These really must be excellent schools to be able to attract good students. But personally, I prefer not to have to drive for one hour in order to be able to take a deep breath! I don’t see any advantage to the Claremont Colleges over CCS at UCSB.</p>
<p>While the smog in Claremont certainly is more of an issue that it would be on the coast, it’s really not that bad at all. I also grew up on the coast, so I can certainly appreciate how wonderful it is there, but Claremont is a very pleasant location too.</p>
<p>As far as academics are concerned, there is no doubt that any of the Claremont Colleges provide a level of academic rigor and flexibility that are hard to beat anywhere, and certainly in the UC system (especially these days). Your concerns about the workload at HMC are valid, but many students there are able to strike a balance between academics and a couple other activities that are important to them. You would probably be able to pursue a few more activities at CMC, but if you pursue the sciences at CMC you will still have a heavier workload (thanks to labs) that many other CMC students. CMC’s science offerings are excellent. Different than HMC’s for sure, but a neuroscience/econ combo would be excellent.</p>
<p>If I were in your shoes, I would study in Claremont from September through May and find a nice coastal town to do research and/or internships over the summer. I think the undergraduate experience at the Claremont Colleges is as good as it gets, and it would be a shame if you passed up the opportunity. Of course, you’ve probably made your decision by now…</p>