They definitely let you sit in on classes. My S15 spent a morning attending a few classes and ate in the cafeteria while making his decisions.
My son received the same brochure. To echo some other comments made, the “intellectually brutalized” reference is pretty clearly intended to be tongue-in-cheek humor. Here’s another quote from the same brochure, clearly not intended to be taken at face value:
“What do our civil engineering, computer engineering, electrical engineering, and mechanical engineering programs have in common? They‘re all ranked #1 by U.S. News & World Report. They ranked our chemical engineering program #2, but we’re pretty sure that’s a typo.”
Late to the thread, but this will be the case in any accredited engineering program: it is going to be tough. Would you want to drive over a bridge designed by someone who slid through?
My daughter is double-majoring at Rose in chemical engineering and math and really likes the place.
My S is finishing up freshman year. The BIG difference with Rose is that they want ALL the kids to succeed. Most other colleges have certain classes to weed out some of the freshman class. At Rose, they do the “weeding out” during the admissions process. They really believe that once you get there, you belong there. So yes it is very hard, but there is also more support for your kid because NO ONE wants them to fail. Students can help each other, they are not competing to stay in the program. And the teachers really are awesome; they not only are great instructors - they like the kids and get to know them. Compare retention figures at your college options and see how many don’t make it to Sophomore year. True, Rose is not a normal campus atmosphere; they expect you to work hard - and enjoy it. But they do have socializing, the arts, and group activities. Rock climbing, paint ball, movies, and they go out to dinner in town. If your kid doesn’t have a car, it is usually easy to find someone willing to take them into town. And most evenings, your kid will eat dinner with the same kids he/she lives with. Rose is not big, but big enough that the kids are not “cut from the same cloth” - there is variety. If your kid is happy with smart, honest, passionate, (and sometimes nerdy) kids of any type - then they will fit in well and find a group they like.
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