Wellesley vs U Chicago for Economics?

[Anonymous]

It's hard to find a more renowned or influential economics department than Chicago. But fit is fit. Chicago and Wellesley are profoundly different schools. We never visited Wellesley, but my sense of Chicago is that students tend to be pretty passionate about what they study. It's always been a good nerd school, but I think its reputation as the place where fun goes to die is a bit antiquated. It seemed like a fairly happy campus to us. And a degree in econ from Chicago will certainly stand out - far more than one from Wellesley.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think U Chicago produces more Nobel prize winners. Wellesley can be easily confused with Wesleyan; their names sound similar.

Hahahaha! OMG. No, no one thinks Wellesley is anything but Wellesley.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If DD absolutely needs to be in a nurturing environment, then pick Wellesley. Otherwise, I would have her suck it up and attend the best Econ Dept. in the world, outside of the LSE. (studied @ both)

Beg to differ. MIT has the best econ department in the world

[Anonymous]

I didn’t get the sense Wellesley is nurturing?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I didn’t get the sense Wellesley is nurturing?

Compared to Chicago

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I didn’t get the sense Wellesley is nurturing?

It is a very different environment from larger schools with graduate offerings

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:U of Chicago is where fun goes to die. Everyone I know who went there for undergrad was v intense and humorless. Also Hyde Park isn’t a great area.

Eh. I went for law school. It’s not that bad. And one of the very funniest craziest (in a great way) people I know was a U of C undergrad.

[Anonymous]

My daughter was looking at Chicago until she read any article that said the student population was particularly depressed. No idea if this is true or not. A good friend who went to a women's college (not Wellesley) sent her daughter to U Chicago and it seems to be going well. I am a women's college graduate. They are special places. I also went to an Ivy for graduate school and I tell people I went to the women's college. It's a community that will help you in almost any situation, if you ask. Jobs, housing, internships, etc. Maybe U Chicago is that way as well, I don't know. Both campuses are beautiful and cold.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My daughter was looking at Chicago until she read any article that said the student population was particularly depressed. No idea if this is true or not. A good friend who went to a women's college (not Wellesley) sent her daughter to U Chicago and it seems to be going well. I am a women's college graduate. They are special places. I also went to an Ivy for graduate school and I tell people I went to the women's college. It's a community that will help you in almost any situation, if you ask. Jobs, housing, internships, etc. Maybe U Chicago is that way as well, I don't know. Both campuses are beautiful and cold.

Sorry for spelling mistakes! on my phone and without reading glasses!

[Anonymous]

Wellesley. She can always do Chicago and experience their vaunted economics department in grad scho.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC into both. I know that UChicago has a super stellar rep for economics. But, attention to undergrads is reportedly poor. Wellesley OTOH seems very strong in its pedagogy. Anyone with kids/experience in these schools able to offer any insight?

The above bolded sentence is total horse manure.

OP: This shouldn't be a hard decision as you either want to attend a small, single sex school or you don't.

The competition at U Chicago may be intense--certainly an academically more demanding environment than found at Wellesley College.

One source lists these universities as the Top 7 for economics & econometrics: MIT, Harvard, Stanford, Princeton, UC-Berkeley, LSE, & U Chicago, but not sure as to whether this ranking is for graduate programs or for undergraduate econ programs.

NICHE ranks the Top 10 undergrad econ programs as: Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Stanford, Vanderbilt, Northwestern, U Chicago, Michigan, Princeton, MIT. Wellesley College is ranked as #28 for undergraduate economics.

[Anonymous]

My DD is enjoying Wellesley College, but she knew she wanted a small liberal arts college. Wellesley College is *extremely* safe but at the same time they have free hourly access to the college town of the East, Boston. There is reportedly a huge gender gap in economics, but many successful financiers and economists graduate from Wellesley.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Given UChicago's status as THE DCUM SAFETY SCHOOL, you will get a lot of well-informed opinions on it. If your child goes to private school around here, they'll likely know several other people at Chicago too!
Does anyone have good knowledge of Wellesley? I'd be interested in hearing more too.

This status being more widespread is part of why UChicago's undergrad culture has changed in the last decade. There is way more partying and far more kids who really wanted to go to Harvard, Yale, and Stanford but were rejected or deferred. That has increased #s and is a positive for a lot of people who don't want an overly intense experience. It isn't the UChicago we would have applied to for those of us who are 30+.

Did you go there? I did, 20+ years ago, and didn't it to be intense or no fun at all. It depends on who you associate with, and I wasn't in econ, but the humanities/University Theater crowd I hang out with was plenty of fun.

[Anonymous]

Need to consider which school more likely to exist in 50 years. Lots of SLACs struggling.

[Anonymous]

OP, if it might be relevant for your student, at the moment Wellesley still requires the COVID vaccine. UChicago dropped that requirement back in summer 2022.