Recent content by Michael73

  1. M

    Courses How much CS as a physics major does one need?

    My son hasn't actually decided which school he's going to yet...UW Madison announces admissions later today and Cornell comes on Tuesday. Either way, he's been admitted to Indiana University and Purdue University. This topic was raised in part because of a thread on FB for parents of admitted...
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    Courses How much CS as a physics major does one need?

    My son is a rising college freshman who is majoring in physics (and thinking about adding a second major in math). He also has an interest in computer science and programming. Through his own research he's discovered that a lot of the day-to-day work of academic and professional physicists...
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    Programs Is there a difference between undergrad physics programs?

    I too did my undergrad (in history) at a smaller liberal arts college in IL (it had about 4,500 undergrads). I chose the school precisely so I wasn't a nameless faceless person in large lectures. My experiences were mostly positive but I did find a few downsides including: fewer faculty in the...
  4. M

    Programs Is there a difference between undergrad physics programs?

    Point taken regarding Purdue. At Rose Hulman there isn't even a standalone physics department - it's the department of physics and optical engineering. I remember walking through building where the department was located and it appeared there weren't more 8-10 faculty which pretty much means you...
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    Programs Is there a difference between undergrad physics programs?

    Really? I could see this being true at small engineering-focused schools but do you really think that's the case at a large school like Purdue? We toured Purdue before the pandemic and made it a point to see the physics building and a couple of labs. It certainly seems like the physics...
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    Programs Is there a difference between undergrad physics programs?

    We looked at Rose...last year during fall break we stopped for a formal tour and info on our way to WashU in St. Louis. My son thought it was way too small, didn't think he'd be happy in Terre Haute but generally wasn't impressed with the physics program there. It's very small and his comment...
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    Programs Is there a difference between undergrad physics programs?

    Thanks everyone for taking the time to reply. We live in Indiana so the two in state schools are Indiana University and Purdue University both rank the same for their physics program but Purdue has significantly better rankings for its math and comp sci departments. The other public is...
  8. M

    Programs Is there a difference between undergrad physics programs?

    Good points. I think class size is a fairly easy metric to obtain...though my guess is that the number drops drastically by the time you get to 300 and 400-level classes. So, does this make a meaningful difference after your sophomore year-level classes? Quality of teaching would be somewhat...
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    Programs Is there a difference between undergrad physics programs?

    My son is a high school senior applying to a mix of large public (two in-state and one out-of-state) universities, a couple mid-size selective private universities and one Ivy-league university. His intended major is physics (doesn't know what specialty although he visited Fermi Labs and is...
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