Top 20 most academically rigorous colleges /universities in the United States

[Anonymous]

How many have actual first-hand experience of the relative rigor of more than 1 of these schools schools? I suspect the answer is very few. Even second hand (e.g., kids at 2 of these schools) is going to be through a filter and is probably going to be very dependent on the kid's major and how hard they specifically have to work (rather than the overall population).

[Anonymous]

Non-lab STEM majors tend to be the easiest in my experience, or at least easiest and least time consuming to my smartest peers.
Math and CS attract bright kids for a number of reasons but some can just cruise through the problem sets and tests.
Econ can also be the same way. I know a few picked this major to avoid reading time and please parents (CS too).
Unless you a very fast reader and writer, humanities and most social sciences are far from easy. I avoided several of these areas I wish I had taken classes in now because of the time commitment and difficulty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:MIT, Caltech, Berkeley, U Penn, CMU, Johns Hopkins, Rice, Cornell, Georgia Tech are academically most rigorous.

I’d add UVA

[Anonymous]

Swarthmore!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MIT, Caltech, Berkeley, U Penn, CMU, Johns Hopkins, Rice, Cornell, Georgia Tech are academically most rigorous.

I’d add UVA

Why? I have never heard that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MIT, Caltech, Berkeley, U Penn, CMU, Johns Hopkins, Rice, Cornell, Georgia Tech are academically most rigorous.

I’d add UVA

Why? I have never heard that.

It's ultra tough to get into and also the workload is intense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MIT, Caltech, Berkeley, U Penn, CMU, Johns Hopkins, Rice, Cornell, Georgia Tech are academically most rigorous.

I’d add UVA

Why? I have never heard that.

It's ultra tough to get into and also the workload is intense.

I'm not PP, but that was DC's experience

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MIT, Caltech, Berkeley, U Penn, CMU, Johns Hopkins, Rice, Cornell, Georgia Tech are academically most rigorous.

I’d add UVA

Of course you would!

[Anonymous]

Rigor would require some tough grading. Yet most highly selective privates have sky high average GPAs. Therein is a disconnect.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MIT, Caltech, Berkeley, U Penn, CMU, Johns Hopkins, Rice, Cornell, Georgia Tech are academically most rigorous.

I’d add UVA

Of course you would!

While possibly true, I had to laugh because someone on DCUM always adds UVA to any "select" college discussion here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That Bowdoin is at high as it is and that Caltech, Swarthmore, Williams, and Wellesley aren't there at all says it all

Caltech should undoubtedly be on that list. Also Harvey Mudd (obscene workload), Swarthmore and Grinnell (over Middlebury and Bowdoin), and Reed. Also WashU.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MIT, Caltech, Berkeley, U Penn, CMU, Johns Hopkins, Rice, Cornell, Georgia Tech are academically most rigorous.

I’d add UVA

UVA is known for grade inflation and easy As.

[Anonymous]

I attended Vanderbilt. It was not very rigorous. My time at U Mich was much more intense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MIT, Caltech, Berkeley, U Penn, CMU, Johns Hopkins, Rice, Cornell, Georgia Tech are academically most rigorous.

I’d add UVA

Of course you would!

While possibly true, I had to laugh because someone on DCUM always adds UVA to any "select" college discussion here.

Lol so true

[Anonymous]

*trying to sneak UVA into every top anything list