The University of Notre Dame

Date: Jan 24 2004
Major: PreMed and Medical (This Major's Salary over time)
Although Notre Dame's prestige tilts more to its athletic programs, 99% of its students are not varsity athletes. Academically, Notre Dame provides one of the nation's best undergraduate education. In contrast to many graduate school-oriented ivy leagues, even the most prestigious professors teach undergraduates, providing insights and advices that inspire students to understand specific and overarching themes of each subject. I was one of those students. At Notre Dame, TAs are actually Teaching Assistants, not professors. In other words, TAs conduct review sessions after class, while professors actually teach every class, regardless of class size. Notre Dame's academic strengths are not limited to its top-rated science programs, but permeate to its relatively underrated music department as well. As a junior physics and math major puts it,

the hardest course I've ever taken here is Music Theory.

There is a difference in terms of prestige and the strength of a university's program. Although Notre Dame is considered to be academically elite, the prestige/tradition and success of its athletics programs often overshadow its academic rigor. Many times, important scientific discoveries in the university's history have been overshadowed by a series of extremely successful, nationally-televised football seasons.
To an outsider, Notre Dame is just another football school with pretty good academics. To me, ND football is quite enjoyable and even slightly addictive, but it is not the reason why I'm here.