| hope you decided on MIT... : )
there are two things that made me dismiss columbia as a valid choice.
first, i went to visit their campus and saw strong political activism on campus (on their front lawn, to be exact). i am a bit conservative on the political scale and such liberal activism (some anti-China, which is one of the few things that i try to avoid being bound to for the next four years) just turned my stomach.
second, their financial aid didn't turn out to be what their new policy promised. my family's income is quite a bit lower than their 60k mark, yet their package still requires me to pay. it's about the same amount as i would have to pay MIT, even after columbia eliminated my first year work-study (for some scholar program). i think the package would improve had i called in, but i just didnt bother after two disappointments.
besides, MIT's people rock! |