Whats a better school?
<p>Both about equal i would say, it matters what spec. you are looking for</p>
<p>My S applied to both and I would say that both are great schools and held in about equal esteem. Vanderbilt is more of a “Southern” school. Emory has a huge student population that has gone south from the northeast. Also, there is a difference between Nashville and Atlanta. Vanderbilt is a little bit more downtown. Emory is very close to downtown geographically, but it is in more of a nice suburban area close to downtown.</p>
<p>Emory is not southern. Strong academics. Large Jewish population. Limited athletics. Not cheap.</p>
<p>nashville is a way nicer city than atlanta, IMO. the best thing about vanderbilt’s location is that on campus you would never be able to tell that there is an entire city around you, while still having the benefit of being very near to anything you need that’s not on campus.</p>
<p>in terms of academics, i think they’re pretty similar. the biggest difference, like dufus said, is the social atmosphere at each school. vanderbilt is one of the very few schools that is consistently ranked in the top 20 in the nation in terms of both academics and parties; how can you get better than that?</p>
<p>The comments are going against Emory…</p>
<p>Atlanta is typically thought a better college town than Nashville. In terms of college towns, Boston is #1 and then probably Atlanta. I have never thought of Vanderbilt as being a party school, but Emory’s culture is that of the self-motivated student. Emory does have a large population from the Northeast and NYC. Another good distinction is the presense or lack of Greek and Division 1 sports on campus. (Emory has a t-shirt saying that their football team is undefeated since 1852. They don’t have a football team.) However, intramurals are big and you don’t have to worry about the gym being overrun by the athletes. Whenever I mention Emory to people who should know, they often make a comment about Emory being like a country club. The facilities are outstanding and the school has one of the biggest endowments of any school. Emory is known as giving very good finanicial aid.</p>
<p>Vandy is ranked a top 25 party school at playboy.com The rest of the 24 are state colleges and ones in Florida, where pretty much is the lifestyle.</p>
<p>I haven’t attended either one. I think the postings are all fair. Saying that a college is a party school can be either a plus or minor. Greek is a plus or minus. Division 1 sports can be either a plus or minor. Being “Southern” can be either a plus or minor. Both are excellent schools, and the difference between them is more a matter of the campus culture.</p>
<p>A lot depends on what you want to do while you’re in school. Vandy does have a more party-type atmosphere than Emory. It has big -time sports and more rah-rah school spirit than Emory.</p>
<p>Emory has the Carter Center, the CDC, Yerkes Primate Center, and Emory Hospital on campus for research and job opportunites, as well as CNN and all kinds of companies in Atlanta for additional opportunities. Nashville has more southern charm; Atlanta is more cosmopolitan.</p>
<p>To be honest, my son looked at both, decided to take Vanderbilt off his list (too “southern” for him–kids dressed up too much for class, etc.) and applied ED to Emory–he’s a rising junior there and couldn’t be happier. He and his friends seem to work very hard–but then on the weekends there is always a lot to do, both on campus and in Atlanta. His classes have been very small (almost too small sometimes–it’s very, very hard to hide in a class of 6) and he has made close friendships with several of his professors. The Woodruff PE facility is fantastic and has just been renovated, and the facility at the Clairmont dorms for upperclassmen is fabulous.</p>
<p>Both are really good schools, it all depends on what is most important to you.</p>
<p>Emory just sold an AIDs drug for $525 million to two companies last night. Its research is literally starting to pay off.</p>
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<p>what about for PREMED</p>
<p>I guess in terms of</p>
<p>1.) grade inflation, curves, difficulty of obtaining a good GPA
2.) placement into med schools (acceptance %)
3.) toughest courses
4.) more research and medical opportunities</p>
<p>I would say that for the motivated student it does not matter which university you attend. From my experience, I’m an incoming sophomore at Vandy who’s doing research in CS while my girlfriend’s doing research in genetics. Neither of us are involved in Greek life, drink at all, dress up for class (heck I’ve seen a few girls in PJs), or are very Southern especially (I’m from California, even). We have a large group of friends who are pretty much like us, although I see what you’re saying about some of the students. There are research and medical opportunities at Vanderbilt, tough courses (premed always is), generally no grade inflation (but no deflation as well), and good acceptance to med school.</p>