If a prospective student doesn't think MIT is "technological enough," then what are some universities that are more cutting-edge?

I don’t know, I think MIT is great. See here.

I want to meet the person for whom MIT isn’t good enough.
“Pffft, M.I.T., why don’t I just go to DeVry?”

To that student, I would say the following: “Are you serious?”

MIT is pretty cutting edge…but the student can always try Caltech. But seriously? “Not technological enough”? What does that even mean?

I think they should be treated for their delusions

I like alot of the stuff that I’ve seen coming out of GT.

What exactly is more technological than MIT except perhaps those who say CalTech (and then promptly get into a fight involving killer robots with the guys from MIT)

Don’t think CalTech, you DON’T want to live in anything Cal. I do, it’s horrible. I’m leaving as soon as my work is done.

@Captain_Fantasy You should sell that to DeVry as a new (secretly ironic) commercial for them to air at 3am on Nickelodeon.

@mrrich724 Yes, California is horrible. That’s why so few people live there – because everyone agrees with you.

Actually, if the student in question is more interested in research and actually studying at the front of the field, (s)he must understand undergraduate studies will not be the most satisfying journey, but nevertheless a necessary one. If that is indeed what he or she is looking for, I would tell him to pick MIT, hang in there for 4 years, and then go to graduate school for a Ph.D.

@papayalily

actually, i retract my statement that Cal sucks. It’s just LA that sucks really big ones. I’ve visited really really So Cal, up to Cen Cal and North Cal, it’s beautiful, picturesque. LA is just horrible. Unless you like paying 20% more for everything, spending ½ hour looking for a parking spot, breathing in smog, and “cruising” the highways at 35 mph. But once you get out of LA, it’s awesome. Thanks for catching me on that one.

Maybe they don’t want to admit that they can’t afford MIT. I’m sure its not inexpensive. Even with grants there can be a lot of things not covered. If they didn’t say who was the competition, it may be they just can’t attend for other reasons and feel embarressed to say the truth.

@mrrich724 I’m not familiar with L.A., but I would assume that like most metro cities, it has suburbs that are at least slightly less suckerific? Like living in Berkley instead of San Francisco.

Not sure. I work in Beverly Hills and live downtown LA. They are both REALLY inconvenient. Beverly Hills less so, but there is a HUGE price to pay for that in $ (as you can imagine). Hollywood (which is right in the middle of both) is inundated with tourists and “actors &actresses.” Go a little south to Downey area and there is alot more crime. All of this is divided with interspersed towns you DON’T want to go to (if you catch my drift, LA really is the gang capitol of the world)

I love San Diego, and a few little farm towns I’ve visted in Cen Cal. I have yet to find a place around LA that I actually like, LOL

OK, we HAVE to be done with this. We’re diluting the OP’s thread. Sooorry OP.

@mrrich724 San Diego is really nice, very laid back. I also love San Francisco. LA is hell.

Well, it’s that MIT was founded in 1861. I think that if an Institute of Tech was founded in the last 50 years, then it could be more cutting-edge than MIT is. I like newness in lots of stuff.

Though that link is kinda hard to argue, @Simone_De_Beauvoir.

@EgaoNoGenki Ya.

But… schools update. It’s not like MIT is still the same as it was in 1861.

I don’t want to sound like a bitch but, get accepted to a school before you put it down. ‘Cuz you’re going to feel kind of dumb if you carry on about MIT not being good enough and then they reject your ass. Just saying.

[Got waitlisted at MIT and am still bitter, sorry]

@Mariah Completely agree. It’s not like MIT just sits there. If anything, the age of the university means higher resources to support research, and a larger share of voice in academia to get the knowledge out.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir University of Toronto higher than University of Waterloo? I call shenanigans on that website.

MIT is outclassed by very few schools in almost any of its strongpoints. MIT isn’t just a technology school; the economics program is generally considered to be among the best, including the London School of Economics, University of Chicago, and Harvard.

There are some other schools that are nearly as prestigious if not more in certain fields. For example, in computer science there are some schools like Stanford, Berkeley, and Carnegie Mellon that are ranked better on many scales.

Carnegie Mellon has pioneered a lot of important fields in computer science today and represent most of the best faculty—machine learning, language programming, human-computer interaction, etc. The school of computer science has contributed many of the most significant contributions to the field over the past 50 years.

In all, how exactly is one school more “technological” than another? Doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.

@gggritso The University of Waterloo is excellent for engineering and computer science, but I have found few lists that don’t rank Toronto better.

It really depends on what kind of ‘technology’ you are talking about. Some are best in their own speciality. You might consider Virginia Polytech, or Stanford.

To my way of thinking, a University that has a long standing reputation is much more likely to be ahead in modernization, because of their valuable alumni base. It takes a lot of money to stay on top of the cutting edge.

MIT is a good school. I know people that have gone there. RIT is also good. Just because a school was founded two centuries ago does not mean it is outdated. Universities compete intensely to have the best facilities, and ivy leagues have their reputation to maintain. Where brilliant people are, big grants follow, which translates into state-of-the-art facilities and infrastructure. In selecting a college, you need to figure out what you want to study. It seems like a waste of money to attend MIT, e.g., if you want to be a dancer. I have no idea what you mean by “technology”, so I cannot recommend schools. Also, it helps to know what your career aspirations are. If you want to be an academic, your path will be much different from someone aiming for a career in private industry even though your specialty is the same.

you can start your own university? and if your rich you can teach yourself and do experiments….the only few better universities are prob in another star system… the commute is hell

Olin is very techy, small, and might be a good alternative.

I think this prospective student doesn’t have “technological enough” knowledge to be able to judge whether MIT is “technological enough”.