Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 20:06     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Since there appears to be a high school student on the thread, I'll address the OP directly. Although my comment on the CogSci programs of URochester and Case Western was based largely on knowledge of these schools, this site may be of interest:

https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/best-colleges-for-cognitive-science/

For the undergraduate study of cognitive science, it ranks URochester 12th nationally and Case Western Reserve 26th.

It’s hard to take seriously a list where Swarthmore is ranked in the top 20 and it has a program, not a department, in cognitive science with very few members of the program dedicated to cognitive science. At some point, the disingenuous nature of these posts needs to be called out.

Here’s an accurate source that is about scholarly production and impact in academia, not just some nonsensical parent list: https://scholargps.com/specialties/35745424963533/cognitive-neuroscience

You’ll note that there’s many programs that are far superior to Rochester and Case Western.


An opaque ranking system that puts San Diego State University (an R2 if I'm not mistaken) over Michigan is worthless. SDSU barely has a functional webpage for its Cog Sci department and the faculty are relatively obscure. Rochester on the other hand has a good sized Brain and Cog. Sci department and many of the faculty both national and international leaders in their fields. Case is borderline - very few core faculty.

Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:45     Subject: Re:Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

OP back--wow, thank you for all these comments! I haven't yet clicked on the links but will check them out. Honestly my kids is pretty unsure about major but cognitive science is one he's keen on. I think he likes how it blends philosophy and neuroscience to a degree, along with AI for students interested in that. He kind of leans STEM but isn't hard STEM, if that makes sense.

I know that when considering schools of any category it's important to assess their strength in majors of interest, which is why I mentioned these two possibilities. Pitt is definitely on our list. Isn't BU more of a reach? I know that Tufts is. He would probably not be applying to any of his targets ED but will show lots of demonstrated interest for the schools that value that. He is really resisting smaller schools though I know there could be many strong options here, but he isn't interested.

Additional ideas are welcome!
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:37     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I have a "strong standard" boy (junior) who is trying to flesh out his college list a bit. We are looking for target-ish schools that might be a good fit. He's most interested in mid-size to medium-large schools in the East Coast, Mid-Atlantic, or Midwest. Really likes William & Mary. We're also considering Case and U Rochester but I don't know as much about them and we haven't visited yet (planning to). Are there others to consider that are roughly in this category of percentage admitted and average stats for admitted students? He's not sure what he wants to do after college right now, but considering law school.


Case and Rochester both give merit, so the COA will be lower. Sometimes Case gives as much as 50K merit.
You probably are not interested in LACs, but Grinnell and Macalester also give generous merit to high stats kids.

Mentions two colleges that have nothing to do with the conversation and do not have majors in cognitive science. The boosters are getting worse.

Of course they do!
https://case.edu/artsci/cognitivescience/
https://www.sas.rochester.edu/bcs/

Why are you not mentioning Grinnell and macalester- which was what was commented on?


Cognitive science is nothing special. In a liberal arts college setting, you can usually take whatever courses you need to cover the same material. It is basically an interdisciplinary mix of psychology, neuroscience, and computer science. A cognitive science major just packages those courses under one umbrella. That’s it.

So none of that really answered the question. There are many colleges who do support cognitive science and have departments with faculty dedicated to it. Why would you recommend two schools where that isn’t true? A mix of psychology, neuro, and cog sci doesn’t mean much if your course isn’t actually integrating those into the field that is cognitive science.


OP is going to law school, not a PhD in cognitive science. Psychology, cognitive science, or neuroscience will do just fine. Interdisciplinary is also fine. The primary issue is a lower COA.

So you mentioned 2 arbitrary schools that OP showed no interest in and don’t have their major? Seems a bit nonsensical.
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:35     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I have a "strong standard" boy (junior) who is trying to flesh out his college list a bit. We are looking for target-ish schools that might be a good fit. He's most interested in mid-size to medium-large schools in the East Coast, Mid-Atlantic, or Midwest. Really likes William & Mary. We're also considering Case and U Rochester but I don't know as much about them and we haven't visited yet (planning to). Are there others to consider that are roughly in this category of percentage admitted and average stats for admitted students? He's not sure what he wants to do after college right now, but considering law school.


Case and Rochester both give merit, so the COA will be lower. Sometimes Case gives as much as 50K merit.
You probably are not interested in LACs, but Grinnell and Macalester also give generous merit to high stats kids.

Mentions two colleges that have nothing to do with the conversation and do not have majors in cognitive science. The boosters are getting worse.

Of course they do!
https://case.edu/artsci/cognitivescience/
https://www.sas.rochester.edu/bcs/

Why are you not mentioning Grinnell and macalester- which was what was commented on?


Cognitive science is nothing special. In a liberal arts college setting, you can usually take whatever courses you need to cover the same material. It is basically an interdisciplinary mix of psychology, neuroscience, and computer science. A cognitive science major just packages those courses under one umbrella. That’s it.

So none of that really answered the question. There are many colleges who do support cognitive science and have departments with faculty dedicated to it. Why would you recommend two schools where that isn’t true? A mix of psychology, neuro, and cog sci doesn’t mean much if your course isn’t actually integrating those into the field that is cognitive science.


OP is going to law school, not a PhD in cognitive science. Psychology, cognitive science, or neuroscience will do just fine. Interdisciplinary is also fine. The primary issue is a lower COA.

Why not suggest colleges that have OPs major? These boosters that try to force their schools on others is so weird. There’s a field named cognitive science and other schools have the major. It’d be nonsensical to make your path more difficult by going to a school that doesn’t support your interests.
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:34     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:Tufts
BC
Wake
Lehigh
Pitt
Northeastern
Bucknell


Not Tufts. That’s harder. Lafayette, GWU
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:30     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I have a "strong standard" boy (junior) who is trying to flesh out his college list a bit. We are looking for target-ish schools that might be a good fit. He's most interested in mid-size to medium-large schools in the East Coast, Mid-Atlantic, or Midwest. Really likes William & Mary. We're also considering Case and U Rochester but I don't know as much about them and we haven't visited yet (planning to). Are there others to consider that are roughly in this category of percentage admitted and average stats for admitted students? He's not sure what he wants to do after college right now, but considering law school.


Case and Rochester both give merit, so the COA will be lower. Sometimes Case gives as much as 50K merit.
You probably are not interested in LACs, but Grinnell and Macalester also give generous merit to high stats kids.

Mentions two colleges that have nothing to do with the conversation and do not have majors in cognitive science. The boosters are getting worse.

Of course they do!
https://case.edu/artsci/cognitivescience/
https://www.sas.rochester.edu/bcs/

Why are you not mentioning Grinnell and macalester- which was what was commented on?


Cognitive science is nothing special. In a liberal arts college setting, you can usually take whatever courses you need to cover the same material. It is basically an interdisciplinary mix of psychology, neuroscience, and computer science. A cognitive science major just packages those courses under one umbrella. That’s it.


Just shut up. No need to hijack this thread by commenting on the major choice and showing how big of an idiot you are.
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:30     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I have a "strong standard" boy (junior) who is trying to flesh out his college list a bit. We are looking for target-ish schools that might be a good fit. He's most interested in mid-size to medium-large schools in the East Coast, Mid-Atlantic, or Midwest. Really likes William & Mary. We're also considering Case and U Rochester but I don't know as much about them and we haven't visited yet (planning to). Are there others to consider that are roughly in this category of percentage admitted and average stats for admitted students? He's not sure what he wants to do after college right now, but considering law school.


Case and Rochester both give merit, so the COA will be lower. Sometimes Case gives as much as 50K merit.
You probably are not interested in LACs, but Grinnell and Macalester also give generous merit to high stats kids.

Mentions two colleges that have nothing to do with the conversation and do not have majors in cognitive science. The boosters are getting worse.

Of course they do!
https://case.edu/artsci/cognitivescience/
https://www.sas.rochester.edu/bcs/

Why are you not mentioning Grinnell and macalester- which was what was commented on?


Cognitive science is nothing special. In a liberal arts college setting, you can usually take whatever courses you need to cover the same material. It is basically an interdisciplinary mix of psychology, neuroscience, and computer science. A cognitive science major just packages those courses under one umbrella. That’s it.

So none of that really answered the question. There are many colleges who do support cognitive science and have departments with faculty dedicated to it. Why would you recommend two schools where that isn’t true? A mix of psychology, neuro, and cog sci doesn’t mean much if your course isn’t actually integrating those into the field that is cognitive science.


OP is going to law school, not a PhD in cognitive science. Psychology, cognitive science, or neuroscience will do just fine. Interdisciplinary is also fine. The primary issue is a lower COA.
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:25     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I have a "strong standard" boy (junior) who is trying to flesh out his college list a bit. We are looking for target-ish schools that might be a good fit. He's most interested in mid-size to medium-large schools in the East Coast, Mid-Atlantic, or Midwest. Really likes William & Mary. We're also considering Case and U Rochester but I don't know as much about them and we haven't visited yet (planning to). Are there others to consider that are roughly in this category of percentage admitted and average stats for admitted students? He's not sure what he wants to do after college right now, but considering law school.


Case and Rochester both give merit, so the COA will be lower. Sometimes Case gives as much as 50K merit.
You probably are not interested in LACs, but Grinnell and Macalester also give generous merit to high stats kids.

Mentions two colleges that have nothing to do with the conversation and do not have majors in cognitive science. The boosters are getting worse.

Of course they do!
https://case.edu/artsci/cognitivescience/
https://www.sas.rochester.edu/bcs/

Why are you not mentioning Grinnell and macalester- which was what was commented on?


Cognitive science is nothing special. In a liberal arts college setting, you can usually take whatever courses you need to cover the same material. It is basically an interdisciplinary mix of psychology, neuroscience, and computer science. A cognitive science major just packages those courses under one umbrella. That’s it.

Going to a college that doesn’t have your major is pretty stupid. No reason to go through the steps of trying to select the right courses when you can have a department that supports your goals
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:24     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:Tufts
BC
Wake
Lehigh
Pitt
Northeastern
Bucknell


+100
Add Case; BU
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:24     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Miami of Ohio
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:23     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I have a "strong standard" boy (junior) who is trying to flesh out his college list a bit. We are looking for target-ish schools that might be a good fit. He's most interested in mid-size to medium-large schools in the East Coast, Mid-Atlantic, or Midwest. Really likes William & Mary. We're also considering Case and U Rochester but I don't know as much about them and we haven't visited yet (planning to). Are there others to consider that are roughly in this category of percentage admitted and average stats for admitted students? He's not sure what he wants to do after college right now, but considering law school.


Case and Rochester both give merit, so the COA will be lower. Sometimes Case gives as much as 50K merit.
You probably are not interested in LACs, but Grinnell and Macalester also give generous merit to high stats kids.

Mentions two colleges that have nothing to do with the conversation and do not have majors in cognitive science. The boosters are getting worse.

Of course they do!
https://case.edu/artsci/cognitivescience/
https://www.sas.rochester.edu/bcs/

Why are you not mentioning Grinnell and macalester- which was what was commented on?


Cognitive science is nothing special. In a liberal arts college setting, you can usually take whatever courses you need to cover the same material. It is basically an interdisciplinary mix of psychology, neuroscience, and computer science. A cognitive science major just packages those courses under one umbrella. That’s it.

So none of that really answered the question. There are many colleges who do support cognitive science and have departments with faculty dedicated to it. Why would you recommend two schools where that isn’t true? A mix of psychology, neuro, and cog sci doesn’t mean much if your course isn’t actually integrating those into the field that is cognitive science.
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:21     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

GMU
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:21     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I have a "strong standard" boy (junior) who is trying to flesh out his college list a bit. We are looking for target-ish schools that might be a good fit. He's most interested in mid-size to medium-large schools in the East Coast, Mid-Atlantic, or Midwest. Really likes William & Mary. We're also considering Case and U Rochester but I don't know as much about them and we haven't visited yet (planning to). Are there others to consider that are roughly in this category of percentage admitted and average stats for admitted students? He's not sure what he wants to do after college right now, but considering law school.


Case and Rochester both give merit, so the COA will be lower. Sometimes Case gives as much as 50K merit.
You probably are not interested in LACs, but Grinnell and Macalester also give generous merit to high stats kids.

Mentions two colleges that have nothing to do with the conversation and do not have majors in cognitive science. The boosters are getting worse.

Of course they do!
https://case.edu/artsci/cognitivescience/
https://www.sas.rochester.edu/bcs/

Why are you not mentioning Grinnell and macalester- which was what was commented on?


Cognitive science is nothing special. In a liberal arts college setting, you can usually take whatever courses you need to cover the same material. It is basically an interdisciplinary mix of psychology, neuroscience, and computer science. A cognitive science major just packages those courses under one umbrella. That’s it.
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:19     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Since there appears to be a high school student on the thread, I'll address the OP directly. Although my comment on the CogSci programs of URochester and Case Western was based largely on knowledge of these schools, this site may be of interest:

https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/best-colleges-for-cognitive-science/

For the undergraduate study of cognitive science, it ranks URochester 12th nationally and Case Western Reserve 26th.

College transitions Methodology is not about academic quality. It’s a ranking of graduation rates and salary, which is mostly locale and choices, not having much at all to do with the college itself. I wish people stopped posting this poor source as fact.

As I said, there appears to be a high school student on the thread. Those who spend just a few minutes will see that College Transitions considers aspects such as major emphasis, major share, academic rating and peer assessment.

we analyzed institution- and program-level data collected by the National Center for Education Statistics as reported by IPEDS, salary and other outcomes collected by PayScale and College Scorecard.

That is not what you just said. Can you explain this disparity?

See, "Click here for a further breakdown of our methodology." You can do it. You don't have to mean it or anything.
Anonymous
Post 05/10/2026 19:16     Subject: Targets for "strong standard" kid interested in economics or cognitive science

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Since there appears to be a high school student on the thread, I'll address the OP directly. Although my comment on the CogSci programs of URochester and Case Western was based largely on knowledge of these schools, this site may be of interest:

https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/best-colleges-for-cognitive-science/

For the undergraduate study of cognitive science, it ranks URochester 12th nationally and Case Western Reserve 26th.

College transitions Methodology is not about academic quality. It’s a ranking of graduation rates and salary, which is mostly locale and choices, not having much at all to do with the college itself. I wish people stopped posting this poor source as fact.

As I said, there appears to be a high school student on the thread. Those who spend just a few minutes will see that College Transitions considers aspects such as major emphasis, major share, academic rating and peer assessment.

Can you explain what these 3 terms mean? None of them sound like they’re objective or things you can rank. What is a “major share?”