<p>Hey guys, I need help choosing which one of these dreams would be better to apply to.(Also relying on which would work in my favor with my stats and the engineering major) </p>
<p>here are my avg stats: 9-11 UW is like 3.66,( If privates look at first sem of senior yr included gpa, about 3.7’s)
and SAT: 2170.( 710 math) </p>
<p>SAT 2’s:
math: 780
USH: 720
Physics: -</p>
<p>Math and sci course rigor lvl:
Bio Honors Geometry Honors
Chem regular Alg 2 reg
Physics reg Precalc
AP Physics AP calc AB</p>
<p>Yes, I know, im not a shoo in/strong candidate for either of these w/ my gpa and stats and am not looking to see which of these would be better for me, but I was advised to have at least one or two dream schools( CMU, and these). </p>
<p>I am simply looking to see which of these two dreams would be better to apply to in terms of which one, even if a little more than the other, might I have a bigger chance of getting accepted with my scores. Thankyou!!!</p>
<p>By all means apply to both but your chances at Rice are slim, given your stats. Olin is very selective as well. It sounds like you want a small engineering school. What about Bucknell, Lehigh, Lafayette, or Rensselaer?</p>
<p>lol, yes I know they are both superb schools for engineering, which is why I am applying to these dreams in the first place. which would be better for me in terms of my stats???(higher acceptance rate for students like me, even if only by a sliver or so).</p>
<p>^ yes jshain, these two are my dreams, I am also applying to matches/targets like renssealaer and bucknell. which of of these two do I even have a slightly higher chance of getting into .</p>
<p>The difference in acceptance rates between Rice and Olin is very close-- Rice is slightly lower, by a percentage point or two? I would encourage you to apply to both. If the application fee is a concern, see if you can get a waiver. If you only apply to one, regardless of outcome, you will be asking yourself “what if I had applied to both”?</p>
<p>We don’t know all the schools on your list, your financial situation, preferred region, or even your resume, etc. but I would look at including Rose-Hulman and Cooper-Union to your list of schools. If the west coast is an option, add Santa Clara University. Good luck.</p>
<p>Olin is a well thought of engineering school, though it is fairly new (founded 1997) and small (about 355 enrolled students). USNews has it ranked 4th for “Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs” at schools whose highest engineering degree offered is a bachelor’s or master’s. </p>
<p>The 25% admission test scores for Rice were 690/720/690. Olin was 700/730/680.<br>
CMU CIT is 670-760 / 740-800 / 680-780. It seems to me that 2170 is well in the range for either school and your SAT 2 scores are solid. GPA may be a problem at all these schools, but write a strong essay and one or more may work out.</p>
<p>That’s very different from being a superb school of engineering. </p>
<p>I just haven’t heard much about their graduates being successful and the one my company hired in another group fared poorly and didn’t accomplish much. I googled around and one of the students who made a lot of splash with a new startup that they founded in 2011 has already has it’s domain name abandoned. </p>
<p>I’m still looking for the evidence of superb engineering. I haven’t yet seen any Olin grads go on to MIT grad school, at least in EE and I scour the MIT resume books every year.</p>
<p>The class of 2013 included 76 seniors. Of that group, 7 (9%) went to grad school (6 in engineering). </p>
<p>Carnegie Mellon University Computer Science Ph.D.
MIT Electrical Engineering/Computer Science Ph.D.
Oregon State University Mechanical Engineering Ph.D.
Stanford Education M.S.
University of California - Berkeley Electrical Engineering/Computer Science Ph.D.
University of Michigan Electrical Engineering M.S.</p>
<p>“Three seniors … have also been accepted into Harvard Business School’s 2 + 2 MBA program. They plan to attend after working for two years.”</p>
<p>It’s not putting out that many grads, so I’m not surprise you’re not seeing a lot. Being “superb” is a relative item. Olin isn’t MIT, but I can see how it could be a good fit for some kids, the same kids that may also be looking at Rice.</p>
<p>Olin is such a small school with such a specific mission that it looks at a lot of things besides scores. If your scores and initial application qualify you, you then attend a weekend in late winter at the campus where they assign group tasks and see if you have the teamwork and business type skill potential they are looking for. </p>
<p>Do you fit the specific hands-on, entrepreneurial, cooperative atmosphere at Olin? Because if you don’t there’s not much point in applying. But if you do, you should probably go for it. (I may be just a little biased; it’s on the top of my list) </p>
<p>If you must choose, I think your choice should boil down to which school is a better “fit” for you rather than which you are numerically likely to get into, because of the amount that fit weighs into the admissions decision (at least at Olin)</p>
<p>@ClassicRockerDad I remember you told me that anecdote before lol; I don’t mean this as a cop-out, but one Olin student doesn’t equate to all Olin students. Though your point about excellent students vs. a superb school is certainly valid, there are a lot of other possible reasons why you haven’t heard much about Oliners being successful. Olin is hardly a decade old, while Rice, for instance, has been around for a century, so a lot more notable alumni could have sprung up during that time. </p>
<p>As for that 2011 startup - it is true that most startups at Olin fail, and quickly, but doesn’t that apply often in the real world as well? Yet very recently, three Olin students received $1 million for their own startup. The solar-powered recyling bin “BigBelly” was also made by Olin students.</p>
<p>Are there large percentages of students from other colleges that attend grad school at MIT, then? And what are your standards for a “superb” engineering college? Another bit about people making grad school at top-tier colleges - there’s that whole issue of space. The grad admission rate for MIT was about 15% for 2012 based off Mastadon’s link. That’s VERY selective, and that means that students who may be qualified may still not get a spot.</p>
<p>I think everyone agrees that Olin is not MIT, but I don’t think that Olin should be significantly downplayed.</p>
<p>So show me some who have been successful. Getting a million dollars for a startup isn’t that hard. Show me one company that is worth a billion or even one hundred million.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Yes there are. </p>
<p>
My concern is using degree of difficulty of getting in, or the SAT’s of the students as a proxy for the quality of the program. I question the quality of Olin’s engineering program. I question the quality of Olin’s faculty. I wonder if these great students get enough rigor to be able to solve the hard problems they will encounter as engineers. I have no question about the quality of their students, but are they getting short changed by the hype of a school that’s constantly patting itself on the back. Is the experiment a success? Where is the beef?</p>
<p>Cooper Union and Harvey Mudd do send students to top graduate programs and are extremely rigorous. I’m still waiting to see anything like that from Olin.</p>