Which school has a better academic reputation overall?
NYU
Why
Two very different (both excellent) schools… major area of study will definitely play in here. Also, culture/atmosphere/fit are very different and very important! I might post this question on both the Oberlin and NYU forums!
Very different schools. What is your proposed major and plan after undergrad? That could affect the answer.
Rather than looking at rep, these schools should be compared based on their features. Based on personal preference and cost, it will be pretty clear which is the better choice:
Oberlin: Small, rural, pretty campus
NYU: Urban, concrete, almost no campus
Oberlin: Small-town setting/night life
NYU: New York City
Oberlin: Smaller classes and more direct correspondence with profs
NYU: More majors
Oberlin: Strong need-based aid
NYU: Weak need-based aid
Oberlin: Generally known for being outstanding in the humanities and solid elsewhere. The conservatory is world-renowned.
NYU: Generally known for Stern and Tisch, but solid elsewhere as well.
etc.
Generally, Oberlin is regarded as a top-25 LAC and NYU as a top-50 U, so both enjoy strong reputations. If deciding between them, jettison rep as a variable and choose based on how they fit your preferences. These two schools are quite different, so that should not be terribly difficult – it’s not like you’re choosing between UChicago and Columbia or Middlebury and Williams.
More people have likely heard of NYU; Oberlin is ranked higher. It really depends what you plan to study, if you need financial aid, prefer a suburb to a huge city and a lot more. As prezbucky said they are SO different.
Unlike USNWR, Forbes ranks universities and LACs together in a single list. FWIW, they rank these 2 schools almost exactly the same. NYU is #52, Oberlin #53.
NYU, beyond Stern and Tisch, also has one of the top ranked Philosophy departments (like 1-3) in the country. Not meaningful to a lot of folks, but is an exceptionally strong program as compared to other humanities departments at both Oberlin and NYU.
Also fwiw, in the below analysis they place at 56 (Oberlin) and 60 (NYU) by standardized scoring profiles (again, nearly exactly the same):
http://www.businessinsider.com/the-610-smartest-colleges-in-america-2015-9