This week: Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Colorado
Colorado School of Mines, or Mines as it’s referred to, is a middle sized (4600 students) public engineering school in Colorado and one of the best, hands on, practical, and theoretical engineering programs in the United States. And it just happens to be in stunning Golden, Colorado at the foot of the Rocky Mountains.
Considered very selective by College Board, MInes accepts 38% of the applicants it gets and because it’s a state school it does have a certain number of instate folks it has to take first (not the case in Virginia all the time). But, that said, they are most interested in your academic record, GPA, rigor, and standardized test scores are pretty low on their list of interest.
Mines has a very specialized curriculum because it focuses entirely on, well, the kind of engineering you’d imagine people would need to have in the kinds of mines associated with the Rockies. But that’s one of the things that makes it a very different kind of engineering program. Instead of being a typical Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Applied Math kind of place, this is a place where you can do Hydrology, Geophysics, Metallurgy, and Humanitarian Engineering. There is a serious desire to make sure that engineering and responsible stewardship go hand in hand at Mines, and that students who leave Mines have the skills needed to create and maintain the structures and resources that the world will need to be free from harm, from pollution, and human impact. It is their belief at Mines that the world faces a crisis in balancing resource availability with environmental protection and Mines and its programs are central to the solution.
Students at Mines do participate in research with their professors, but like most places with a graduate school (which Mines has) it will be less than in a small school. That said, Colorado School of Mines has some of the coolest research opportunities in the whole country for those interested in things like earthquakes and resource management. They are home not just to the Colorado Geological Survey but also the US Geological survey. Mines also has a special Earthquake Center where they can simulate earthquakes. There is a Groundwater Modeling Center, a Geology Museum, and a simulated mine. To top it off they also have a partnership with the Petroleum Institute in Abu Dhabi. When they say hands on, they really do mean it.
The students at Mines are an interesting bunch. They are engineers of course, and they are environmentalists. But they are also highly creative, willing to think outside the box, try new solutions, and explore different paths. They are highly motivated and tend to be self starters. And they are passionate about what they do and what they will do to help make a difference in the future.
Mines has a reputation as a school where people work very hard (it’s an engineering school, folks, people work really hard at those kinds of schools). But at the same time, there is a lot to do. It’s an NCAA II school with sports from baseball and soccer, to track and basketball. But sports are not the only thing that keep people interested in Mines. From traditions (like climbing Mt. Zion as a freshman for the lighting of the M), to Greek Life (there are 7 frats and 3 sororities), to Student Government to Mines Little Theater, from the Belegarth Medieval Combat Society, to mountain biking, hiking, Tae Kwon Do, to Young Life, there is something for everyone’s interests at Mines. And if there isn’t something you want to do, of course you can start it yourself!
About 93% of freshmen live on campus (and freshmen can have a car). Only about 36% live on campus after freshman year. There are plenty of dorms and space, but like any college in an urban setting, it’s usually more affordable to live in the urb than the suburb. There is housing with the Frats and the Sororities, theme housing (think Vegetarian), Co-ed, and also Wellness.
Golden, Colorado itself is a beautiful western city with lots to do and see, especially if you are up for healthy outdoors type things. It’s a big place for cyclers (it’s on the USA Pro Cycling Challenge and also a part of the Ride the Rockies). There are plenty of trails to hike and mountains to explore. Buffalo Bill is buried there, and there are plenty of other “Western” themed sites to take advantage of. You can also do all of the super dangerous sports your parents will be having heart attacks over (parasailing, ziplines, climbing) there are plenty of things labeled “extreme” or “adrenaline. ”
Pros:
Colorado School of Mines, or Mines as it’s referred to, is a middle sized (4600 students) public engineering school in Colorado and one of the best, hands on, practical, and theoretical engineering programs in the United States. And it just happens to be in stunning Golden, Colorado at the foot of the Rocky Mountains.
Considered very selective by College Board, MInes accepts 38% of the applicants it gets and because it’s a state school it does have a certain number of instate folks it has to take first (not the case in Virginia all the time). But, that said, they are most interested in your academic record, GPA, rigor, and standardized test scores are pretty low on their list of interest.
Mines has a very specialized curriculum because it focuses entirely on, well, the kind of engineering you’d imagine people would need to have in the kinds of mines associated with the Rockies. But that’s one of the things that makes it a very different kind of engineering program. Instead of being a typical Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Applied Math kind of place, this is a place where you can do Hydrology, Geophysics, Metallurgy, and Humanitarian Engineering. There is a serious desire to make sure that engineering and responsible stewardship go hand in hand at Mines, and that students who leave Mines have the skills needed to create and maintain the structures and resources that the world will need to be free from harm, from pollution, and human impact. It is their belief at Mines that the world faces a crisis in balancing resource availability with environmental protection and Mines and its programs are central to the solution.
Students at Mines do participate in research with their professors, but like most places with a graduate school (which Mines has) it will be less than in a small school. That said, Colorado School of Mines has some of the coolest research opportunities in the whole country for those interested in things like earthquakes and resource management. They are home not just to the Colorado Geological Survey but also the US Geological survey. Mines also has a special Earthquake Center where they can simulate earthquakes. There is a Groundwater Modeling Center, a Geology Museum, and a simulated mine. To top it off they also have a partnership with the Petroleum Institute in Abu Dhabi. When they say hands on, they really do mean it.
The students at Mines are an interesting bunch. They are engineers of course, and they are environmentalists. But they are also highly creative, willing to think outside the box, try new solutions, and explore different paths. They are highly motivated and tend to be self starters. And they are passionate about what they do and what they will do to help make a difference in the future.
Mines has a reputation as a school where people work very hard (it’s an engineering school, folks, people work really hard at those kinds of schools). But at the same time, there is a lot to do. It’s an NCAA II school with sports from baseball and soccer, to track and basketball. But sports are not the only thing that keep people interested in Mines. From traditions (like climbing Mt. Zion as a freshman for the lighting of the M), to Greek Life (there are 7 frats and 3 sororities), to Student Government to Mines Little Theater, from the Belegarth Medieval Combat Society, to mountain biking, hiking, Tae Kwon Do, to Young Life, there is something for everyone’s interests at Mines. And if there isn’t something you want to do, of course you can start it yourself!
About 93% of freshmen live on campus (and freshmen can have a car). Only about 36% live on campus after freshman year. There are plenty of dorms and space, but like any college in an urban setting, it’s usually more affordable to live in the urb than the suburb. There is housing with the Frats and the Sororities, theme housing (think Vegetarian), Co-ed, and also Wellness.
Golden, Colorado itself is a beautiful western city with lots to do and see, especially if you are up for healthy outdoors type things. It’s a big place for cyclers (it’s on the USA Pro Cycling Challenge and also a part of the Ride the Rockies). There are plenty of trails to hike and mountains to explore. Buffalo Bill is buried there, and there are plenty of other “Western” themed sites to take advantage of. You can also do all of the super dangerous sports your parents will be having heart attacks over (parasailing, ziplines, climbing) there are plenty of things labeled “extreme” or “adrenaline. ”
Pros:
- It’s in an amazing place
- It’s the kind of school where you get a great degree and get to save the world
- It’s got some amazing research, hands on programming
- As a state school it’s still more affordable than private schools
- It’s incredibly hard work
- It’s not a typical engineering school
- It’s really far away from Virginia
- It’s really hard work