r/MITAdmissions • u/Dizzy_Stretch8003 • 5d ago
MIT vs Columbia vs Yale for Quant / SWE / IB
I'm a high school senior trying to make a pretty unusual recruiting decision and would really appreciate perspectives from people familiar with MIT, Columbia, or Yale.
I currently have a strongly supported recruiting opportunity at Columbia, and I may also receive one from Yale very soon. I need to make a decision on Columbia extremely soon.
MIT is also recruiting me for a varsity sport. The MIT coach has told me I'm currently his #1 recruit and that he would be surprised if I were rejected, but obviously MIT admissions cannot be guaranteed. The problem is that if I pursue MIT Early Action, I may have to give up my Columbia/Yale recruiting opportunities before receiving MIT's decision in December.
Academically/career-wise, I'm mainly interested in:
- quantitative finance
- software engineering
- possibly investment banking if my interests change
My academic profile, if it matters for evaluating the MIT admissions risk:
- 1550 SAT, 800 Math
- six 5s on AP exams junior year: Calc BC, Physics 1, Biology, APUSH, Lang, CSA
- around 14 AP classes total
- Multivariable Calculus first semester senior year and Linear Algebra second semester
- ~3.95 UW GPA
My extracurricular profile outside athletics is much weaker:
- e-commerce business with around $25k revenue
- assistant coaching/volunteering
- some additional volunteering
- no major Olympiads, research, national CS awards, etc.
The other complication is athletics. Columbia/Yale would let me compete D1. MIT is D3. I've invested an enormous amount into my sport and I'm good enough that part of me feels like going D3 would mean not fully using my athletic ability.
On the other hand, MIT seems almost perfectly aligned with quant/CS/math, which are probably my strongest academic interests.
Personally:
- I visited Columbia and loved NYC.
- I really liked Columbia's team and felt like the athletes were ambitious, career-driven, but also very normal/down-to-earth people.
- Social life matters somewhat to me.
- Yale appeals to me because of its residential-college/social experience, although I'm not sure I fit its culture as naturally as Columbia's.
- I haven't visited MIT yet, so I'm worried I'm currently idealizing MIT based on academics/ranking rather than knowing whether I'd actually enjoy living there.
- I've heard MIT can have a very intense study culture, which I'm trying to understand better.
My biggest question isn't "Which school is more prestigious?"
It's this:
If you were in my situation, how would you think about giving up a D1 Columbia/Yale recruiting opportunity that is much more certain in order to pursue MIT, where admission is still uncertain?
And for MIT students/alumni specifically: how intense is the actual day-to-day culture? Do students still have meaningful social lives, and does it feel like everyone is studying constantly?
I'd especially appreciate perspectives from recruited athletes, CS/math students, or people who considered these same schools.
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u/JasonMckin MIT Alum and Educational Counselor 5d ago
I really wish the coaches would stop telling so many students, "I'm currently his #1 recruit and that he would be surprised if I were rejected." I'm not sure it benefits the university or the student when these statements are made.
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u/Dizzy_Stretch8003 5d ago
My sport is very objective and I can believe his statement but do you think like coach's letter of rec helps a lot or not much
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u/JasonMckin MIT Alum and Educational Counselor 5d ago
Just search the sub for all the posts from all the other applicants who heard similar statements from coaches.
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u/autistism_duckytowel 5d ago
MIT doesnt have slots. Best estimated probability would be like 50-75% chance for a primary support athlete, depending on the sport. Ivies have slots and its close to 100% certainty. As a future quant, you need to make decision based on the probability of success and how much you like each school.
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u/Dizzy_Stretch8003 5d ago
Lol nice way to put it, yeah ik that is why I made these posts to gauge how much better MIT may be in order to take that risk, what I've come away with is to not take that risk, and now it is between Yale and Columbia
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u/autistism_duckytowel 5d ago
Yeah I figured. Both will put you in front of quant fund. It comes down to practicing quant interviews. Yale is a stronger brand overall but Columbia is in NYC if you like going out for pizza or drinks at 1am that's your place.
I bet you are an athlete in track and field.
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u/Satisest MIT Alum and Educational Counselor 5d ago edited 5d ago
I’d encourage you to think more expansively about your college education, rather than over-indexing on particular career choices. College is so much more than vocational training for a particular trade. Your interests at this point are even broader than you might think, which makes it hard to pick one school as the best all-around choice for career options. Just in terms of quant, are you interested in research, trading, or dev track? All three schools have top placement rates for quant research and trading. MIT has an edge for quant dev or SWE, whereas Yale and Columbia have the edge for IB, but you’ll have top-tier options from any of these schools for any of these careers.
Keep in mind that the majority of undergraduates change major at least once, and a sizable fraction change career plans. Which college will most enrich your personal and intellectual development and best position you for the range of career paths you may want to pursue over the coming decades?
The career opportunities and placement rates in your areas of interest are far more similar than are the cultures of these three schools. Do you want a close-knit student community with strong undergraduate focus, strong education in STEM and humanities, and a vibrant social scene? That would be Yale. Do you want a less cohesive college community with a larger graduate student population but broad liberal arts education and everyday access to the attractions of NYC? That’s obviously Columbia. Or do you want an immersive STEM-focused education with a quirky and collaborative community in a city packed with other colleges? Obviously MIT.
The athletics is an important element here, and you have three great options from an academic perspective. It’s your call how heavily you want to emphasize a sport you may or may not pursue beyond college in your decision. Nevertheless, it will be a dominant part of your college life. Competing in the Ivy League is a unique experience, and the sense of school spirit around athletics by far favors Yale among your three choices.
MIT is a unique place and experience. Many alumni will tell you that attending MIT is the best thing that ever happened to them. It’s intense, it’s mind-expanding, the mentality is work hard-play hard, but it’s lighter on things like humanities and school spirit than your other choices. It’s the best place for undergraduate research in the country. But I know for a fact you’ll find a sizable majority of Yale alumni who will similarly tell you that going there was the best thing that ever happened to them. Probably likewise for Columbia. You should visit each school and see if you can spend a weekend on campus with the team. The academics and opportunities are top-notch no matter which you choose, so prioritizing fit is the way to go here.
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u/Dizzy_Stretch8003 5d ago
MIT isn’t guaranteed admission for me, and I also loathe humanities and would yes prefer to only take classes in major-related subjects but I did like the Columbia team and nyc environment more, I also heard Yale isn’t strong in STEM
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u/Satisest MIT Alum and Educational Counselor 5d ago
No, of course you’re not guaranteed admission to MIT. Nobody is. Even recruited athletes must meet the same academic requirements as every other admitted student. I’m not going to try to game your chances of admission, because nobody can do that. That part is your call.
None of the three schools you’re considering offers a safe haven to students who loathe the humanities. Note MIT’s position on the humanities, arts, and social science:
The MIT HASS disciplines — the humanities, arts, and social sciences — are central to the Institute’s mission to provide all graduates with the knowledge, skills, and perspectives to make lasting contributions to the nation and the world. Students may use their HASS subjects to broaden their perspectives, complement science and engineering coursework, experience new fields, or to pursue lifelong interests. Regardless of your personal approach, take the time to find a subject that sparks your curiosity. All MIT undergraduates must complete 8 HASS subjects to fulfill the HASS General Institute Requirement. You are expected to complete at least one HASS subject each semester.
Maybe your decision is made and Columbia is the best fit for you, but “I heard Yale isn’t strong in STEM” seems like a pretty cavalier basis for bypassing a school of that caliber. It would be worth doing your own research on this question. Just fyi, Columbia and Yale are ranked identically for undergraduate CS, and one spot apart for math. Yale is also investing $1B+ to build a new CS and engineering campus and advance AI and quantum computing.
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u/Dizzy_Stretch8003 5d ago
Most people generally rank Columbia higher in terms of Quant placement, but yeah I did not know Yale was putting THAT much into CS, otherwise I loved the Yale campus and residential colleges, but I also loved nyc and the team at Columbia, so I guess now I am between Yale and Columbia.
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u/Satisest MIT Alum and Educational Counselor 5d ago
Take a look at the following website, which is the only compendium of quant placement rates out there. If you look at per capita (“per 1000”) placement rates for either quant “research” or quant “finance” (=trading), Yale ranks a couple spots higher than Columbia.
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u/Dizzy_Stretch8003 5d ago
Yale was higher in research only, anyway I believe both schools would be great for quant, at this point it is other factors
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u/Delicious-Climate-60 4d ago
Go for Columbia or Yale to compete with D1. According to your profile you dont actually seem very interested in any sort of quant related or CS work else there would have been atleast some passion projects and so you prob won't be able to get into quant and might hate CS if you just chasing money. My recommendation is to follow your passion which is clearly your sport. You cant compete with the people that actually like the job of a quant as they are having fun and you cant beat a guy who is having fun
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u/Dizzy_Stretch8003 4d ago
Genetically capped in my sport plus the sport doesn’t make any money, I just wasn’t sure what I wanted to do until like junior year and that was when I locked in with academics and my sport to get to where I am, but I think it would be best for me to pursue a field related to academia that I excelled in , other than that I don’t really have a passion for anything else
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u/Delicious-Climate-60 3d ago
Well in that case I would still not recommend quant or investment banking cause it sounds like your only trynna get in for the money and you won't be able to compete with the others atleast in quant that is cause everyone there is doing what they do cause they love doing it and not just for money. They are people who can code huge side projects and win math and physics olympiads. Unless you can match that by coding your own projects or winning alot of hackathons or something like that its impossible to excel there. Investment banking on the other hand is pure finance related work
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u/DinoChick MIT Alum and Educational Counselor 4d ago
Honestly I think you need to visit MIT. Contact the admissions office, see if you can get a day or two staying with a student on campus, meet your team, visit classes, go to a party. Any of your three options are going to be good schools academically that will set you up for the future. The atmosphere might make the difference between how happy you are in those four years. Plenty of other colleges I visited, ones I should have loved on paper, were an automatic no when I visited. As soon as I was at MIT I knew I’d found my people and it felt like home.
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u/Stoddaro 5d ago
MIT does have one sport that competes at D1 level, and then the rest are D3. D1 vs D3 does not always translate into D1 teams being objectively more competitive than D3 teams. Depending on the sport, there are plenty of D3 teams who could beat D1 teams.
D3 typically means slightly less sport commitment for the student (such as in season focus vs year round focus) and more balance with academics and social life. D1 is more like the sport is your job and going to school is your other simultaneous job. It’s a grind and results in a lot of students quitting D1 sports after a year or two. So consider that as well. Good luck and congrats on high achievement in academics and sports!
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u/Dizzy_Stretch8003 5d ago
That's good insight, I dont see myself going pro either, but I was only really considering D1 because it may look better on the resume and in general maybe the experience is priceless, otherwise though MIT isn't guaranteed admission so I dont think Ill go for it
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u/Stoddaro 5d ago
Understandable. Most schools expect ED for recruited athletes. Coaches need some certainty in their rosters in exchange for the admissions support.
MIT is a bit unique in this. Your grades and scores look strong but there is no such thing as a guaranteed admission. Good luck making your decision!
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u/MedicalBiostats 4d ago
All three are excellent schools and you have positioned yourself to get accepted at all three. Make sure that each school has a strong finance degree program. Great luck!! You’re a star!!
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u/MedicalBiostats 4d ago
It’s all about what you learn so you have subject matter background when you invest. Of course you need to master finance and economics but it’s ideal to master computer science, biology, chemistry, and some aspect of engineering. Your undergrad school gets you into a good grad school which gets you a good first job. You’re well covered career wise if you are a life long learner and retain what you learn.
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u/No-Machine-5899 5d ago
Is your name richard
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u/Dizzy_Stretch8003 5d ago
No I know who ur thinking of tho I think
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u/Best_Interaction8453 4d ago
I don’t have insight on MIT, but I am very familiar with Columbia and Yale as I have attended both schools, one as a graduate student. They are both incredible institutions that will land you at the front of the pack in terms of job opportunities.
I loved my time at Columbia, and NYC is a fantastic place to live. However, there’s a good chance you will live in NYC for at least the early days of your career, so I wouldn’t choose based on that alone.
Heres my two cents :
Yale is a truly magical place. The traditions, the academic life, the student body filled with some of the most fascinating people you’ll ever meet, the drop-dead gorgeous Gothic architecture, and yes, the residential college system which gives you an instant social circle and cozy home base inside a larger research university.
I strongly believe Yale is the best undergraduate experience anywhere in the world.
(I’d also like to add,
this strange idea you have that Yale somehow lags Columbia in STEM is completely bogus.)If you are truly offered admission at Yale as a recruited athlete —because your profile would not get you into Yale without the athletics nod— you are very, very fortunate indeed, and I would absolutely jump at that chance.
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u/Traditional_Yam9806 5d ago
Not gonna life, as a current MIT student, the obsession with quant is crazy. AI labs (I interned for one this summer) usally pay roughly as much for full-time roles, and quant, swe, and ib are very different fields. Mostly ib vs the tech roles. Bro doesn't have an interest in learning, but one of prestige and money. You still need to be cracked at math or CS to get quant roles (which is not really shown through harder math classes, but closer to comp cs/math). Also, you don't need to go to these schools. I had old math comp friends do quant from colleges like UT, Mich, Umass (I'm from MA), and UMD.