Don't come if you can't handle it: know what you're getting yourself into. Mudd destroys some people because it requires so much. You'll be averaging a bit more than 5 classes per semester during your time at Mudd which probably means that you'll take 6 or even 7 at one point. Also, these classes are difficult. There are a few easy ones, but most of the core requirements (90% of your classes for the first two years) are individually tough classes, and you'll be taking a lot of them at once. If you can't handle that, don't come to Mudd.

Don't come here if you don't like bullshit humanities!

Mudd Rock(et)s! But really, it seems so many people go on to do amazing things after Mudd...

WIBSTR, ask about it if you visit!

Downsides...I am probably not the person to ask. I couldn't imagine myself anywhere else. I know all my professors. If you want something you can usually make it happen. I suppose one downside is that I haven't had time to do theater, first semester I was getting four hours of sleep a night, and you really don't have very much free time. Mudders usually say there are three things: study, sleep, and social life...you can choose two. Also, you are probably a genius, but one downside for me is always just barely being average. Think about it. Harvey mudd is a school chalk full of national merit scholars, students in the top 10% of their graduating class, 1600 SAT scores (or whatever the highest is with the new one...2400?), and do you know what that means for a school with no grade inflation?? That means I am average! Just average... 3.0. It kind of sucks and is discouraging for me. If you are used to being the best at everything, this place will not feed your ego, or at least it doesn't for me. Now I also have it on good authority that if you want a college experience filled with lazy afternoons, a chance to spend lots of time in creative pursuits, and never feel like you have tons of work hanging over your head, then run away from Mudd as fast as you can! Only come here if you want to learn, and learn for all your worth! You will have time for relaxation, to be sure, but it is quite minimal, and you will always feel like there is something else you should be doing (unless you are very good at compartmentalization.) It pains me to say this, but I want to be honest with you.

A lot of people worry about failing classes here at Mudd. They shouldn't. The professors all know how hard it is here, and they are more than willing to work with you to ease up assignments/extend deadlines if that's what it takes. There are no weed out classes. Sick? Not a problem, just shoot them an e-mail. As long as all the work gets done, 99% of the students pass everything just fine. Didn't get into a class you really want to take? e-mail the professor and they'll make room for you.

Not many students are involved in athletics. Mudd has a large social budget for the great parties we throw. Also we have a activities club that will subsidize basically anything you want to do/go to(like movies, skiing, sporting events) as long as 8+ people sign up.

Students leave their doors open if the weather is nice.

There are few clubs at Harvey Mudd with regular meetings. Most use school funding to provide things (tools, games, baking goods, unicycles) to their members. Their are no fraternities or sororities either. Athletics are arranged through a three-college joint team. Mudders don't attend games unless they have a friend playing. Most of our social lives revolve around our dorms. There is a very serious survey that freshman take that is reviewed by a committee of students to decide where they live. People mostly meet their friends through classes, but it is a small enough campus that you manage to meet most people. The dorms all have their own social events and personalities. Most people leave their doors open, so you can just walk in and socialize. The party scene at Mudd is unusual. Alcohol is allowed on campus for everyone to consume. About half the students regularly attend parties. The parties are usually rather tame - enough so that many students expecting to not participate in the party scene (myself included) find them rather enjoyable. To give some sort of perspective, most parties officially end at 1am, but are often unofficially over up to an hour before that. They are often lavishly funded by the school, letting us buy such things as foam machines, mechanical bulls, batting cages and real snow. Many students at Mudd don't drink. There are all sorts of activities available on weekends that don't involve alcohol such as movies, ITR games (a weekly event involving what is essentially a massive game of tag in the school's extensive tunnels) and alcohol free get-togethers. Many non-drinkers also enjoy themselves at alcoholic parties as well. On weekdays, the school is essentially devoid of social events. You can hang out with your friends, watch a movie or play some frisbee, but the workload is prohibitive of major weekend events.

Essentially. People tend to take note of that which they think is strange or amusing; to this end, not even half of the Mudders are socially inept or obsessed with Star Wars. Though most do tend to be obsessed with video games :-)

The most frequent complaint is that there is too much work to do. But really it's all manageble. The gradings hard but also doable. First semester is pass fail which helps a lot. All of my professors know who I am. I think Harvey Mudd prides itself on how much Professor student contact there is. I go to lunch with some professors and do all of that kind of stuff.

To some degree. We do host the best parties on the 5 Claremont Colleges.

The best thing is the honor code. I would change the amount of actual class time we have. Since most people don't know anything about the school, the reaction is usually neutral but whenever someone does know the school, the reaction is always favorable. I spend most of my time in the dorm/ dorm room hanging out with people or studying.

The harvey mudd student body is definitely diverse. Each dorm has a stereotype, which generally fit the people that choose to live in it. Linde (my dorm) are the "slacker" "stoner" kids who are lazy and dirty, live at the end of campus. West dorm is messy, all the kdis their love burning things and causing trouble, the administration really dislikes them. Sontag is the apartment dorm, which is quiet, and seniors go to "retire". Atwood doesn't really have a personality, besides being the largest, and only 3 story dorm on campus. North (norf) is where the "jocks" of the school live. They play beer pong and play sports more than other dorms. East is where the strange unicycling, video game playing, smelly kids live. And south is for the really quiet kids who want singles. And lastly Case, kinda weird, nothing much to say about it, but it's pink. All types of students interact, a lot of classes are group project based. No matter what dorm you live in you learn to interact with different types of peopl. Most Mudd students are from california, but kids are from everywhere. Some students are politically active, some are not. Depends on the person. Students definitely talk about the amount of money they will someday make, everyone hopes going to this school will get them a good job.

Mudd has great parties, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. My knowlege of alcoholi parties is second-hand, but they're widely acknolwedged as top-notch events. The homework load is pretty severe, and certainly cuts into social life (or sleep) but I find myself with just enough time to do most things that I want to.

Harvey Mudd is very excepting of all. We don't have time for prejudices, and since we are all nerds we have a common ground. There is also the fact that we are all living through Harvey Mudd, which in itself is another thing to connect to. There are communities on campus for all types of people. LGBT people have a very strong organization supporting them and I have heard, feel very welcomed by the community. California is over represented in the student body, but not by all that much. Recently more students from the East (both north and south) have started coming here. Also Mudd is not racial diverse, so don't expect that.

Most Mudders participate in activities, but very few are Mudd based. The other schools have organizations which are open to everyone. The Christian group I am a part of is Mudd-Scripps together, the band and frisbee team are both all 5C's. Pretty much every weekend there is a party hosted by one of the Mudd Dorms. Theses are the best parties, and most people regard parties on other campuses as not even worth their time. It is really weird to hear people around the country who know about your parties. Mudd parties have even been featured in playboy as some of the best parties around. The social life you have revolves around the dorm you live in as all the dorms have a personality, and this creates an amazing dorm sense of community. As a freshman you take a 3 page survey that will place you in a dorm that works best with you as a person. The people who pick dorms and roommates generally do a very good job. Athletics are participated in, but no one really cares. Because Mudd is combined with Scripps and CMC (a jock school), our sports teams are actually decent. So if you were interested in that kind of thing, the situation is there.

The first one, that we are all nerds, is quite true. However going to Harvey Mudd really opens your mind to all the different types of nerds that exist. Some students don't even seem like nerds, until they open their mouths that is. The second stereotype is untrue. It's correct that Mudd does have a higher number students that have very few friends, and don't see the sun very often, but conversely their are many students who have very happening social lives, and are capable of carrying on a conversation with others.

Sleep, Study, Socialize. Pick two. (No, seriously.) Surprisingly, there are numerous clubs on campus. Dozens! There is so much variety I don't know where to start....so I won't. If you come here and there isn't already a club that tailors to your interest, you can start one! All of my closest friends are from upper-division classes I've taken. It is awesome going to class with your buddies and "lunching it" afterwards! Last weekend I went to a rocket launch at the desert roughly 1.2567 hours away. Six professors and six students were there for test flights of the experimental engineering rockets. When we came back, about 40 very successful (aero/aviation) alums at a conference at HMC asked us to talk a bit about the launch. They cheered as we walked into the Green Room dusty and exhausted from the desert... An amazing experience.