Harvey Mudd College (September 25, 2024)

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Harvey Mudd College

9.25.24 Campus Visit Report

Spencer Barr - Santa Barbara High


Harvey Mudd - https://www.hmc.edu/

ADMISSIONS

  • Don’t hold students to the intended major listed in application, but have to select something

  • Test optional for current year (no permanent decision for future yet)

  • What makes a good Harvey Mudd applicant:

    • Have to really like stem and appreciate liberal arts

    • Top students in class that notice the need to help others

    • Must have taken Calculus in high school


ACADEMIC

  • Every 1st year student must take multi-variable calculus

  • Core curriculum

  • Mission statement: seeks to create and ethical engineering

  • Computer Science is the most popular

  • Newest major Chem and Climate Change

  • 1st year classes are large and lecture based with a few other small classes

    • after 1st year, most courses are much smaller

  • Anyone at Mudd could potentially be a CS major. 

  • Don’t declare major until end of 2nd year

  • Some courses entirely done in pairs

  • Very broad-based education. But leads to jobs and grad schools alike

  • Lots of opportunities to do research during their time at Mudd

  • Not a single student graduates from Mudd without taking some classes at the other schools

  • First semester is pass/fail

  • Professors want everyone to pass, learn, and grow

  • Emphasize collaboration instead of competitiveness

  • Often students can really struggle with the rigor and balancing school and social


SOCIAL

  • Mudd students are social and will host socials just like other schools


CAMPUS

  • commitment to diversity and well being

  • 50-50 ratio in faculty and students

  • All 1st years will live with upper classmen. All dorms are all gender and all grade level. 

  • Dorm presidents in charge of the culture of their dorms

  • Dorms have their own traditions

  • Honor code: jury of peers to help settle cases throughout the year

    • Not meant to be punitive, but be fair and reasonable. 

  • Good luck to help keep the campus safe


INFO ABOUT ALL CLAREMONT SCHOOLS

  • Based loosely on Oxford/Cambridge system

  • About 6 thousand total student population between 5 schools

  • Heavily academic institutions

  • Cross registration is the norm

  • 2,700 classes available to take in the consortium

  • Academic deans work together

  • Same academic calendar

  • Strong benefit of being with students who would not normally have selected a certain college

  • Core requirements for all colleges, but will be different across the campuses 

  • Lived and social interactions

  • Share about 300 clubs and orgs

  • Share musics, dance, and speaker series. 

  • Shared health services and athletics

  • Division 3 athletics

    • 6th street rivalry

    • Pomona/Pitzer vs CMC/Harvey Mudd/Scripps

  • Access to alumni resources across all 5 schools

  • All offer ED options

  • Use CSS profile

  • All consortium schools within 1 square mile

  • Scooby doo analogy: 

    • Pomona is Scooby, 

    • Harvey Mudd is Velma, 

    • CMC is Fred, 

    • Scripps is Daphne, 

    • Pitzer is Shaggy

  • Strong relationship with City of Claremont (known as the city of trees and degrees)

  • Library shared amongst all schools

  • Career services, same as other schools

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