Exploring CACHET (College Admissions Collaborative Highlighting Engineering & Technology)
Last Friday morning, Lisa and Stefanie attended a CACHET (College Admissions Collaborative Highlighting Engineering & Technology) mentor and counselor event at Rutgers University to learn more about STEM-focused programs throughout the country. We had informative, helpful, and personal conversations with admissions counselors from all 15 schools.
There are STEM opportunities for students at every level—hands-on experiences, preprofessional foci, a blended interdisciplinary approach to problem-solving and everything in between. Here is a breakdown of the schools that fit into each of the categories:
MODERATELY SELECT REGIONAL SCHOOLS WITH HANDS-ON/PREPROFESSIONAL FOCI
These schools offer great opportunities for students who thrive in project-based, hands-on environments and enjoy collaborative learning. They often offer co-op programs and/or guaranteed internships. These are largely regionally focused but do have on-campus living arrangements and communities mixed with commuters. Many students come from a 200-mile radius.
Wentworth Institute of Technology
Lawrence Technological University
Illinois Tech
Liberal Arts Colleges with Engineering
Students who have multiple interests—The Classics, dance, and engineering for example—would benefit from these strong smaller liberal arts colleges that have a generalized approach to engineering.
Tiny, Most Competitive Engineering Schools with Consortium Benefits
These schools are great for highly motivated, focused students who want to use engineering to solve problems and make change in the world. These students are among the most competitive—all of them have had calculus, physics, and chemistry at the highest level.
Olin School of Engineering (Part of the Wellesley College + Babson College Partnership)
Harvey Mudd College (Part of the Claremont Colleges Consortium: Pomona, Scripps, Claremont McKenna, + Pitzer)
Most Select Research Universities with Broad-based Offerings
These schools offer students a wide variety of subject matters outside of STEM but also boast a depth of STEM opportunities. These universities are approximately between 5,000-8,000 students. There are many interdisciplinary opportunities and research foci.
University of Chicago
Case Western University
Tufts University
Rice University
A Unique New York University Experience
Although NYU has almost 29,000 undergraduate students, the Tandon School of Engineering has an undergraduate size of about 2,900. This intimate program (relatively speaking) is based across the river, in Brooklyn, but students have access to all campus facilities and can live on the main campus in NYC after freshmen year.
NYU Tandon School of Engineering
New Jersey-Based Schools
This was hosted in Jersey after all. Rutgers offers STEM options in six of their seven colleges. It’s the flagship university of New Jersey with huge research and other opportunities at every turn.
The College of New Jersey has many offerings, too, but in a smaller, affordable environment. It’s public as well.
Rutgers
The College of New Jersey
Selective STEM-focused Universities
RPI is a great school for students who want a hands-on experience in state-of-the-art facilities. It’s located in Troy, New York, which is close to Albany, the state capital. There are numerous co-ops and research opportunities for students.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute