My son has been accepted in WVU and Pitt. Visited both places. Need help from recent experiences. Hearing WVU financial issues and if that might impact new students. Hearing PITT culture may be an issue. Any experiences and thoughts will be greatly appreciated
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Congratulations to him 
What do you mean by “Pitt culture”?
Is there a cost differential and if so, are you able to pay for it from income&savings (no parental loans)?
Did he get into the Honors college at either one?
Did he get into any other university ?
Since biology is low ROI, how easy is it to add a stats, computing/informatics, or data science minor at either university?
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The schools are close to each other but seem very different to me. I taught at Pitt for four years and loved it. Live in a rural area now but my son applied there. We visited last summer and he loved it.
We were in Pittsburgh in the fall and stopped by campus just to see it when school was in session and his view changed dramatically. It’s a total anthill. Just people everywhere all the time. It was just overwhelming to him.
He visited WVU this fall, in session, and just likes that a lot more. Roughly the same number of kids but the campus is more sprawling. Just a very different look and feel. I’d prefer Pitt if I were a college kid, but I’m not; he is.
I’d add that Pitt is higher ranked and more selective, if that matters.
Cost will depend a lot on stats and where you live.
My senior is off to Pitt this fall, but from what I’ve observed:
Pitt and WVU have a longstanding “Backyard Brawl” football game every year that sells out. During the game, when Pitt sings their song, WVU yells, “Eat 
, Pitt!”
There seems to be a city mouse/country mouse element to the rivalry. I would take someone’s impression of the “other” school with a huge grain of salt.
That said, my senior is a City Mouse. She is thrilled for Pitt, and would never consider WVU. I’m sure there are many students in the opposite situation, to the point where I have to imagine your son would have a clear preference.
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I was surprised when I asked my Pitt 2023 grad if he would apply to WVU med school as they were recently on a 60 Minutes episode and it is close to home. He said" heck no, I could never apply to WVU I’m a Panther." Umm, ok I said, lol.
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We need more details. Cost? Major? Honors? Preferences?
Not sure what Pitt culture is? Please elaborate.
Some similarities but the biggest difference is urban vs kind of rural. Morgantown has grown over the years.
Medical opportunities are great at Pitt. That said, WVU Health is an interesting case. They’re pretty much the default provider for WV and growing, even outside of WV.
What do you mean by Pitt culture?
I love Pitt. The city is great, very smart and serious students, wonderful opportunities etc.
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Cost is almost same - may be WVU is a bit less. Honors in WVU. Biology major.
Someone mentioned Pitt culture is too competitive vs collaborative ??
I think that “too competitive” vs “collaborative” is somewhat subjective…depending on the student.
I would reach out to current students and ask. You may get different opinions.
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Premeds are going to be competitive everywhere, as will Biology majors (because there’s an oversupply of them and not many Bio-specific jobs, they have to really hustle and compete for limited resources.)
That being said, because so many strong students attend Pitt for Health tracks, it is likely more competitive than WVU indeed.
WVU Honors will also alleviate that to a certain extent.
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I’m not aware of any indications that Pitt is more (or less) competitive than a typical prominent public research university. There will definitely be smart and ambitious kids who are trying to get good grades and get good internships and so on, but that is going to be true anywhere comparable.
As others are suggesting, I think one of the more unusual things about Pitt is just that it is in a relatively urban environment for a prominent public research university. This used to be mostly a negative, now it is mostly a positive, but it is really up to the individual kid.
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I think it would come down to fit. Urban vs not urban. Morgantown has grown and it has a teaching hospital on-campus.
Honors could tilt the decision. Not all honors programs are equal. They range from outstanding to poor. I would take a deeper dive into the benefits of WVU honors. Early registration is usually a perk at most places which is nice at a large school.
I would go with personal fit. Be sure to understand the benefits of the WVU honors program (benefits vary greatly from college to college).
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They have priority registration, an honors dorm, trips, dinners, 5 Honors courses per semester (rotating with new ones each year) that cover Gen eds, an Honors version of most “introduction to the major” courses, some “enriched” classes (number unspecified.) Seems worth it.
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Those benefits certainly sounds like a plus for WVU. Up to the OP to determine fit.
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