<p>Interesting thread. Our D narrowed her list of acceptances to three: BC, UVA, and Northwestern. Each school is fabulous, and it was a tough decision. BC was the first to fall off the list. Why? Well, she would have been in their honors program, and she wasn’t crazy about the required humanities classes. Yes, she wouldn’t have to take as many as the regular BC student; however, she said, “I don’t really like history, English, or religion classes. I’ve killed myself in high school taking everything AP so I would have the opportunity to take more of the classes I enjoy.” She also wanted to be involved in a sorority, and the Jesuit schools don’t offer a Greek system. She, like you, loved Boston (southerner), but the perks of the other two schools outweighed the urban area. The last “con” about BC was the split campus. Lots of people love living on Newton, but she wasn’t thrilled at the idea of riding a bus every morning and didn’t want to live in honors housing on the main campus; she wanted to branch out of the bubble. </p>
<p>Both schools offer lots of school spirit and tradition, but UVA with the Jefferson/history influence, gets the edge. She loves the fact that everyone goes to the games, and most are warm enough to enjoy (unlike NU). She didn’t have to fulfill any humanities pre-reqs (Echols), but she had everything done through AP so even if she weren’t Echols, UVa gave her the flexibility the others didn’t. (BTW…I encouraged her to explore a variety of classes and give the humanities another chance – that’s what college is about after all. FWIW, she’s still pursuing med school (Human Bio major), but she also fell in love with her English and Religious Studies courses and will have a second major/minor.)</p>
<p>In the end, several people thought she was crazy turning down NU, but we supported her decision and said it’s got to be about fit. The cream always rises to the top, and you’ve got to be happy. I think you can’t go wrong with either school. Make a pro-con list and follow your heart. Good luck!</p>