Son has narrowed his college choice to UMass Amherst and Pitt for undergrad business. OOS both. Pitt slightly more expensive but not a huge difference. Realize the two schools are very different but liked aspects of each. Think social life will be better at UMass and like how most people live on campus first two years. Also impressed by Isenberg program. Liked Pitt’s connection to local business community and opportunity for internships but concerned about social life with people living throughout city after first year. And though he liked Pitt normally not a city kid. Only a couple days left to decide. Appreciate anyone’s thoughts. Thanks!
I can’t comment on the business schools, but as mom to two Pitt grads I can comment on your social life concerns. Yes, many students move off campus but they are not scattered throughout the city. Most student apartments are only a block or two away from campus. In fact, much of the social life takes place in these off campus apartments, which again, are only like a block away. I don’t think this should be a concern at all.
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Like you said, 2 different schools at roughly the same cost… IMO you’ve come to the point where you let your son decide between them.
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Thanks. That is helpful. Couple questions - do people have the opportunity to live on campus at Pitt after the first year if they choose? If so, how many stay on campus after the first year? And if you are going to live off campus after the first year, how early do you have to start looking for an apartment (and roommates)? Thanks again.
Pitt guarantees housing for three years. My oldest stayed for three and then moved off for one. The youngest only lived in campus housing for one year and then moved off. Neither had a particularly hard time finding housing and neither looked really early but it does seem there is some serendipity involved. It’s been awhile now since they looked so things may have changed. My youngest graduated two years ago and spent all three off campus years in the same apartment so his search was 5 years ago.
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UMass has been ranked #1 campus for food by Princeton Review for 8 consecutive years. That’s not an important criterion for a decision to me, but it was a very high priority for my GS when he chose UMass last year. Approaching the end of his first year, he’s very happy with his decision.
Amherst is IMO simply a fabulous college town. Campus Advisor ranked it top ten among best college towns. The Northampton/Amherst area is the #2 booking venue in New England after Boston. Great live music scene. And the college runs a shuttle around the area that operates 7 days a week. Also, there is easy access to lots of outdoor recreation opportunities.
Academically, Isenberg is very strong, as you’ve seen, and hard to get into. What UMass has that very few other colleges have, is the bonus of access to some of the best liberal arts colleges in the country, including Amherst College, ranked #2 among liberal arts colleges by US News. Their Economics Dept is top 50 in US News among all colleges big & small. Access to Amherst & other colleges in the 5 college consortium means access to top professors in small classes and seminars. A student at UMass can take 2 classes per semester at any of these colleges. Amherst College is just up the street from the UMass campus, minutes away by shuttle or bike ride.
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If he’d only gotten into one of these schools, he’d still be in great shape - both are terrific!
It sounds as if he could be very happy with either, but on most measures the needle tilts slightly toward UMass. He isn’t one of the (many!) students we see who would be disappointed not to be in a city; he would probably like the UMass environment incrementally better. UMass is also slightly cheaper. I’m really not clear whether there’s a clear winner, reputationally, between the two business programs, but I’m pretty sure Pitt doesn’t have a measurably stronger reputation than Isenberg. And Isenberg students don’t lack for internship and co-op opportunities. (Both schools also use the Parker-Dewey platform for “micro-internships,” though I have no firsthand knowledge about this.)
As noted already, UMass is also the clear winner on food!
The way your post reads to me, he’s already leaning UMass but you’re wanting to do your due diligence and make sure you aren’t missing anything that would tip the decision the other way. While both are great, if his gut says UMass I see no reason to second-guess that.
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I sometimes describe the East End of Pittsburgh, where Pitt and CMU and some other universities are located, as feeling like an overgrown college town. And then it is embedded in a fun, full-size city.
And some kids love that vision, but it sounds like maybe not so much your kid? Like they would prefer their college town to just BE a college town, and not embedded in a city.
If so, I see no problem picking UMass. Certainly these colleges are well within the range that what happens next after college will not be determined by which college your kid chooses, but rather what they do in college. And generally happy, comfortable people tend to do better in college, so it makes a lot of sense to pick the college where you are most confident you will be happy and comfortable, absent a big cost difference at least.
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