Was just talking with my brother-in-law about his college and grad school decisions and this may resonate with your daughter (depending on her interests, etc.) For undergrad he chose Harvard over Caltech because although he wanted to study math/physics, he also loved music and wanted to be around smart people who did things other than STEM.
He basically made the same choice in grad school – chose Stanford over Caltech b/c they had a better orchestra and, again, was hoping for some academic diversity. Those choices served him well (he’s now a theoretical astrophysicist but he’s got much better social skills than he did in high school. )
Hope that admitted students days can give her more surety in her choice and that you can get better aid from Yale so that money isn’t the swing vote.
I think this makes a lot of sense, but - for some people, being around the Caltech gang leads to better social skills. I’m not sure why it is, but I saw it over and over. People who might BE the Caltech gang in their high school, see it in more extreme form and develop a bit more social awareness. Also, Caltech is even more “special” than MIT, having been at both.
If maintaining flexibility is important, Yale. Ohe of the last 2 kids I knew who went to Yale planning to major in physics ended up majoring in English! Took quite a bit of math and physics, but was really excited by literature in a way she had not been in high school – when everything and everyone she knew was about STEM.
The other stayed truer to plan and chose the school for its LGBTQ community.
My hunch is that the admitted student days will help clarify which of these 2 excellent options is best for you.
Yeah, my husband and sister both went to Caltech and I’d concur. It’s a jewel of a school for the right kid (and I think it would/should be harder to turn down for undergrad than MIT or Harvard.)
IMO MIT >>>> Yale for Math and CS. The peer cohort will be far better and Yale is not in the same league as MIT - in terms of academics, reputation, and outcomes. Unless Yale is a free ride, MIT is the way to go in my book.
My DS20 told me that if you considered the MIT Ultimate Frisbee team its own university, that this “university” would have a higher team Putnam score than any other college except MIT itself.
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