Georgia Institute of Technology

Georgia Institute of Technology is a public institution that was founded in 1885. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 13,948, its setting is urban, and the campus size is 400 acres. It utilizes a semester-based academic calendar. Georgia Institute of Technology's ranking in the 2013 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 36. Its in-state tuition and fees are $10,098 (2012-13); out-of-state tuition and fees are $29,402 (2012-13).


Georgia Tech, located in the heart of Atlanta, offers a wide range of student activities. The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, an NCAA Division I team, compete in the Atlantic Coast Conference and have a fierce rivalry with the University of Georgia. Since 1961, the football team has been led onto the field at home games by the Ramblin’ Wreck, a restored 1930 Model A Ford Sport Coupe. Georgia Tech has a small but vibrant Greek community. Freshmen are offered housing, but aren’t required to live on campus. In addition to its campuses in Atlanta and Savannah, Georgia Tech has campuses in France, Ireland, Costa Rica, Singapore, and Shanghai.

Georgia Tech has six colleges. Its highly ranked graduate schools include the College of Engineering and College of Management. Georgia Tech is classified by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching as a university with very high research activity. Famous alumni include comedian Jeff Foxworthy, founder of The Masters golf tournament Bobby Jones, and baseball player Nomar Garciaparra. John Heisman was Georgia Tech’s first full-time football coach, and the Heisman Memorial Trophy was named in his honor. The school's newspaper for faculty and staff, "The Whistle," is named for the steam whistle in the Tech Tower that blows every hour and each time the Yellow Jackets score a touchdown.

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Lehigh University

Lehigh University is a private institution that was founded in 1865. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 4,869, its setting is city, and the campus size is 1,600 acres. It utilizes a semester-based academic calendar. Lehigh University's ranking in the 2013 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 38. Its tuition and fees are $42,220 (2012-13).

Lehigh University is located in Bethlehem, Pa., 50 miles north of Philadelphia and 75 miles west of New York City. The Lehigh Mountain Hawks are members of the Patriot League, and compete in 25 NCAA Division I sports. Their biggest athletic rivalry is Lafayette College, located less than 20 miles away. A third of the student body is involved in fraternities and sororities. All freshmen are required to live on campus, and sophomores are also required to live on campus in a residence hall or Greek housing. Lehigh’s main campus is located on the wooded slope of South Mountain, and half of the campus is preserved as open space.

Lehigh University has four colleges, with numerous undergraduate and graduate majors. Its well-regarded graduate programs include the College of Education and the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science. The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act originated at Lehigh, requiring colleges to reveal crimes on campus. Lehigh folklore says the school colors of brown and white originated when a woman wearing brown and white stockings passed by a group of men discussing school colors, and the rest is history. Notable alumni include Jesse W. Reno, the inventor of the escalator; and Howard McClintic and Charles Marshall, whose construction company helped build the Golden Gate Bridge, the George Washington Bridge, the Panama Canal, and New York’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.

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Northwestern University

Northwestern University is a private institution that was founded in 1851. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 8,475, its setting is suburban, and the campus size is 231 acres. It utilizes a quarter-based academic calendar. Northwestern University's ranking in the 2013 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 12. Its tuition and fees are $43,779 (2012-13).

What began as farmland and swampland in the 1850s became the Northwestern campus and the city of Evanston, Ill. Northwestern University is a Division I school in the Big Ten athletic conference. Northwestern's women's lacrosse team has won multiple NCAA national championships. The school has approximately 250 campus organizations fulfill students' varied interests. Freshmen are guaranteed on-campus housing if requested in their applications. The school's 11 residential colleges offer thematic living quarters for social and academic programming. Northwestern's main campuses are located along Lake Michigan in Evanston and Chicago. In 2008, Northwestern opened a third branch in Doha, Qatar.

Of Northwestern’s dozen schools, nine offer undergraduate programs and 10 offer graduate and professional programs. Northwestern’s highly-ranked graduate schools include the Kellogg School of Management, the School of Education and Social Policy, the School of Law, the Feinberg School of Medicine, the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and the Interdepartmental Biological Sciences Program. Northwestern’s Medill School is known for its strong journalism graduate program. Northwestern’s Dance Marathon, created in 1975, is one of the largest student-run philanthropies in the country and has raised nearly $9 million for Chicago-area charities. Notable alumni include President Obama’s Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel; U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens; actor, writer and director Zach Braff; comedian Stephen Colbert; and Tony Award-winning actress Heather Headley.

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California Institute of Technology

California Institute of Technology is a private institution that was founded in 1891.Caltech, which focuses on science and engineering, is located in Pasadena, Calif., approximately 11 miles northeast of Los Angeles. Social and academic life at Caltech centers on the eight student houses, which the school describes as "self-governing living groups." Student houses incorporate an admired Caltech tradition: dinners served by student waiters. 

Only freshmen are required to live on campus, but around 80 percent of students remain in their house for all four years. The Caltech Beavers have a number of NCAA Division III teams that compete in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Integral to student life is the Honor Code, which dictates that "No member of the Caltech community shall take unfair advantage of any other member of the Caltech community."

In addition to its undergraduate studies, Caltech offers top graduate programs in engineering, biology, chemistry, computer science, earth sciences, mathematics, and physics. Caltech participates in a significant amount of research, receiving grants from institutions such as NASA, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Health and Human Services, among others. Caltech maintains a strong tradition of pranking with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, another top-ranked science and technology university. Companies such as Intel, Compaq, and Hotmail were founded by Caltech alumni. Famous film director Frank Capra also graduated from Caltech. Source : usnews

University of California--San Diego

University of California--San Diego is a public institution that was founded in 1960. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 23,046, its setting is urban, and the campus size is 1,976 acres. It utilizes a quarter-based academic calendar. University of California--San Diego's ranking in the 2013 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 38. Its in-state tuition and fees are $12,128 (2011-12); out-of-state tuition and fees are $35,006 (2011-12).

University of California—San Diego lies alongside the Pacific Ocean in the La Jolla community of San Diego. The UCSD Tritons compete in 23 NCAA Division II sports, mainly in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. The school has more than 400 student clubs and organizations, and many students are active in Greek life on campus. All freshmen are guaranteed on-campus housing but are not required to live on campus. The campus has an aquarium, public museum, and the Large High Performance Outdoor Shake Table, which is one of the largest facilities in the country that tests structures’ ability to withstand simulated earthquakes.

UCSD includes six undergraduate colleges and six graduate and professional schools. Its School of Medicine and Jacobs School of Engineering are highly ranked. UCSD is designated as a university with very high research activity by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. An annual event unique to UCSD is the Sun God Festival, which began in 1983, featuring daylong concerts by popular musicians, carnival activities, vendors, and student booths. UCSD is also known for its International House, wherein approximately 260 students from more than 30 countries live and learn together as a community. Notable UCSD alumni include Guy Tribble and Bill Atkinson, who created the first Apple Macintosh computer, and Mike Judge, a writer/director/producer who createdthe film Office Space and the TV series King of the Hill.

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