Okay, awesome. I'm going to Caltech. Yesssss... it was 77 degrees today. Okay, no, that's not why I chose it. But it just seems like a terrific way to spent the next four years of my life. I mean, I'm going to die, but I will enjoy dying.
Anyways, now that that craziness is done with I suppose I should justify my reasoning. In a school, I was looking for a place that I could graduate in four years with a BS in ChemE and be employable. I was looking for a school with really strong academics. I was looking for a school where the social scene was not dependent on alcohol, unless I was doing an orgo set. I was looking for a school where I could play bassoon. Caltech has all these things. I think I got too interested in the whole "majoring in bassoon" thing and really lost track of what my future held. I couldn't drop the idea.. I'm not really sure why. In the end, I realized that there was a decent chance that I would not be able to juggle the double degree with any amount of success and that future employers wouldn't get that I got a C in Thermo because my junior recital was the next day. At first, this felt like I was making a huge compromise, but I think I'm okay with it. I should have fun over the next four years and learn so much more than I have in high school. Plus, this means I don't have to take AP tests, which means that I can totally chill. That just made my May so much more awesome...
Anyways, life otherwise is pretty sweet. School is chilling out. And I have a date for my senior recital. EVERYONE SHOULD COME. May 11th at 7:30 in the auditorium. BE THERE.
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6 comments:
Awesome!
I'm really really happy for you! It'll be cool to have you here next year.
I still just want to caution you though, the music program here can barely be called a program. I know a lot of serious musicians here that are really sorely disappointed by the limited music opportunities. I know one guy who drives to piano lessons an hour away on the weekend -- he has a car, unlike most people here, and is a CS major meaning he doesn't have as much work as lots of other people. So don't count on playing bassoon on any level close to what you do now, especially if you're a chem E which is by far the most challenging / time consuming major here.
I would also still recommend going to CPW, just to make sure MIT isn't for you. I would have had no idea where to go if I hadn't gone, and there's no reason not to get as much information as possible about the options open to you. You can also just go for one night or a few events to get a feeling.
(MIT also has a real music department, and much less rigorous core requirements than Caltech, so music is actually a thing there.)
Don't get me wrong, it's awesome if you come to Caltech, I just want you to know what you're getting into.
On the other hand, sometimes its better for your hobbies to be less rigorous so they don't take time from your major.
For me, I play Ultimate and because CMU isn't the greatest at Ultimate, I am able to balance that with work.
Granted, I didn't think about any of that while making my decision, but looking back, it really makes a difference for me.
Also Marissa, CS and ECE majors have the most work out of everyone here (and maybe music majors). Some of my CS friends are in a course that essentially gives out USAMO-type problems every week. But I guess it makes sense. Our schools have different focuses (foci?).
The difference at Tech between majors isn't necessarily which ones have the hardest material (that would probably be math or physics), but the very very wide difference in required courses. CS is considered an easy major because you have a lot of freedom in which classes you can take and you never have to overload. Chem E on the other hand has a very strictly defined set of courses that you have to take -- you're basically completely scheduled for four years, and are pretty much forced to overload all three terms of sophomore year to get everything in. I like Chem as a major because it has a few required courses and then "100 units of advanced science electives" which means I can take physics or bio or whatever the heck else I want and still get my degree.
Math is interesting because it has the least requirements of any major, and is the easiest major if you're the correct sort of person to be a math major. It's probably the hardest major if it doesn't just come naturally to you.
HOORAY for deciding! (:
but do remind yourself that MIT has the stronger music program. but you're prioritizing your original major of engineering over your bassoon performance, so CalTech is probably the best choice.
and i'll be at your bassoon concert - in spirit.
Oh got it! That makes sense Marissa.
That's pretty interesting.
I'm required (for ECE) 1 intro, 4 core, 2 breadth, 1 depth, 1 ECE elective, and 1 design course.
And along with that, 7 math (AP counts for 2), 2 physics, 2 programming, and like 8 humantities, and 5-6 free electives.
It's not really packed at all compared to what you're describing. Also, pretty much all the non-ECE courses aren't hard at all.
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