UNH and UVM are very similar and both are quasi-private given the OOS makeup of both and demographics of each state. UNH is ranked higher academic wise and has more highly regarded programs in general (although I personally don’t view them that differently, just speaking to the general population in New England). Burlington has the edge on city, but UNH is 10-15 minutes away from Portsmouth, has an Amtrak station on campus and is an hour to both Boston and Portland, and is located literally on the Great Bay and very close to the Atlantic, with excellent skiing about 1.5 hours away.