whats great about UofR

Robotab
Tue, 09 Jan 2007 19:31:39 +0000

JHU is no doubt a great pre-med factory with a lot of pretige. However, my Dad went there and really regretted his decision. He said the professors didn’t care at all about the students-- they were there to pursue their own research and the teaching was just in the way. The students were overly competitive-- an unknown person scrapped an entire lab simply because he or she was not doing well even though the lab was nearing the end of 2 weeks worth of work. Also, people ripped pages out of textbooks in the library that they knew other people would need to study simply because it would help their own grade on the curve.

Basically, I ruled out JHU onl;y after strong deliberation. I knew that as a legacy, I would have a slightly easier time of admissions, and I knew that going there would pretty much ensure my success as a doctor so long as I did fairly well academically. However, I realized that the environment would not be right for me and that I wanted a place that would allow me to grow both academically and socially. This place was not JHU-- it was Rochester.

My Dad actually said that he would have chosen Wake Forest or Muhlenberg for me if he had the final say, which he doesn’t :). He liked that fact that I could get a great education at Muhlenberg and would most likely have an easy time with classes and rise to the top of my class, thus ensuring my future success. He loved the atmosphere of Wake Forest-- he’s very into the “collegiate” feel and Wake is so beautiful-- definitely a product of years of weath generated from the south’s tobacco crops. He actually would not have me go to Rochester-- too cold and too far away (6 hours). However, to him college was not centered about the social reltionships that he formed, which basically was the larger appeal of Rochester.

Without the students, I most likely would have chosen JHU, but a school id strongly defined by those who attend.

Consider how big of a factor everything plays in your decision-- academics, closeness to home, social life, etc, and choose the school that is the strongest in the areas that you find crucial to YOU specifically. If prestige is the largest factor, then you’ve already made your decision. Also, no one can deny that JHU is a pre-med factory-- you have a greater chance of being a doctor by attending JHU, though this is not a huge difference, and a good student will fare well many places.

Use studentsreview.com as a resource to help make your decision. Consider other schools as well if you’re not completely sure.