I'm not sure when you visited Olin, but your post is inaccurate. I'm Class of '07, and I'm pretty sure that in the second or third year of the College's existence (i.e. the full Class of 2006 being enrolled) there was an option for a do-it-yourself style major (called "design your own" major).
For the record, the degrees we (Olin) are accredited for are: ECE (Electrical & Computer), ME, and E. Just to be technical, that last one isn't a 'General Engineering' degree but an 'Engineering' degree. The subtlety is beyond me. Given your stated interest in MatSci, I'd like to point out that at least three of my classmates graduated with E:Matsci degrees (that's Engineering with a concentration in Materials Science).
The admissions process does not conclude until May, though I believe it's earlier than May 15...I think the actual decisions are mailed around the 1st of May. As for why it takes that long, our admissions team spends a few months reading applications to narrow the pool down to 300 students or so (~75 will be admitted). Those 300 attend two "Candidates' weekends" where they are interviewed (in groups and individually), put into teams to create some kind of engineering project (tower - designed to be as tall as possible but collapse at 5lb of load, bridge - to combine span with load bearing, and aqueducts to move fluid), and given a chance to hang around campus and meet current students, faculty, and staff.
I'm also not sure why Olin would be a good choice for a Business Major. Not only is Olin more focused on entrepreneurship than on business (I personally think it should be a balance between the two), but the 'business' education opportunities at Olin mainly flow from classes taught jointly by Babson and Olin professors, or Babson courses. We wouldn't have needed a partnership with Babson for an M.S. in Technology Management (I believe that's the name) if we had adequate in-house business education.
Slashdot Mirror
I'm not sure when you visited Olin, but your post is inaccurate. I'm Class of '07, and I'm pretty sure that in the second or third year of the College's existence (i.e. the full Class of 2006 being enrolled) there was an option for a do-it-yourself style major (called "design your own" major).
For the record, the degrees we (Olin) are accredited for are: ECE (Electrical & Computer), ME, and E. Just to be technical, that last one isn't a 'General Engineering' degree but an 'Engineering' degree. The subtlety is beyond me. Given your stated interest in MatSci, I'd like to point out that at least three of my classmates graduated with E:Matsci degrees (that's Engineering with a concentration in Materials Science).
The admissions process does not conclude until May, though I believe it's earlier than May 15...I think the actual decisions are mailed around the 1st of May. As for why it takes that long, our admissions team spends a few months reading applications to narrow the pool down to 300 students or so (~75 will be admitted). Those 300 attend two "Candidates' weekends" where they are interviewed (in groups and individually), put into teams to create some kind of engineering project (tower - designed to be as tall as possible but collapse at 5lb of load, bridge - to combine span with load bearing, and aqueducts to move fluid), and given a chance to hang around campus and meet current students, faculty, and staff.
I'm also not sure why Olin would be a good choice for a Business Major. Not only is Olin more focused on entrepreneurship than on business (I personally think it should be a balance between the two), but the 'business' education opportunities at Olin mainly flow from classes taught jointly by Babson and Olin professors, or Babson courses. We wouldn't have needed a partnership with Babson for an M.S. in Technology Management (I believe that's the name) if we had adequate in-house business education.