<p>Hello! I am an international student. My interested area is physics/ other areas of physical science.
Which one of the following colleges offers better education and college experience?
(I consider academic reputation and campus life as the most important factors.)</p>
<p>I am admitted to the following colleges:
1.Penn State—University Park(for summer 2013)
2.University of Denver
3.Drexel University
4.University of the Pacific
5.University of Kansas</p>
<p>If you can afford the extra summer session for PSU, then it’s Penn State.</p>
<p>University of Pacific, Drexel, PSU are all great universities and they are equal academically. Both Drexel and University of Pacific are private so they are more expensive. Even if you did the summer season, they will cost more. Post the cost of attendance for all. </p>
<p>I give slight edge to University of Pacific just because its in california.</p>
<p>Thank you for all of your responses! I love the campus of U of Denver very much.
However, I think the science/engineering program offered by Drexel/PSU is better than the rest of them. What is your opinions? :)</p>
<p>@Etuck24 you really aren’t helpful at all.
@XtremePower Kudos to you for actually making an effort to help the OP</p>
<p>@changhengphysics
I’m only familiar with PSU and Drexel so I can not comment on the other universities. I think you should thoroughly investigate the academic offerings at each school and see how much they align with your interests. I don’t know if any one person can tell you which school offers a better education. Despite what the national rankings say, it all depends on what you’re looking for.</p>
<p>I think Drexel and PSU have different strengths. I like the fact that Drexel incorporates co-op/internships into their academic program. I believe you have the option to do 5 years with 3 co-ops that last 3-6 months a piece. This is an excellent way to build up your resume as well as make money to offset the high cost of a private university. Because of the built in co-ops Drexel kind of establishes their curriculum differently. For starters they are on the quarter system as opposed to the semester system. It is also my understanding that they try to have you take many relevant courses to your major in your first year to prepare you for your first co-op. At PSU you could very well spend your first year taking a lot of fluff courses (gen-ed’s) and not see much of your major courses until your third and fourth year. </p>
<p>As for college experience, once again it depends on what your looking for. Penn State offers a more traditional college experience. It is located in central Pennsylvania which is predominantly rural. It’s a college town so pretty much everything there is centered around the university. It is much safer than Drexel’s campus and I do believe they have more to offer students in terms of activities and events. However, Drexel is located in a major U.S. city, Philadelphia. While Drexel doesn’t have as much to offer on campus there is so much you can do off campus. I heard that from time to time they give out tickets to events happening around the city like the Phillies baseball games. Drexel is located in University City with two other universities so even if you don’t get along with the Drexel kids you can certainly meet students from other schools. There is a lot more diversity and as an international student this may be of great importance to you. So between the two if you want more of a city/urban experience Drexel is definitely the way to go but if you’re looking for a more traditional college experience then PSU is a good option.</p>
<p>Are Drexel and PSU the same academically?
I have investigated the physics programs offered by these two colleges.
I am more impressed by the physics department of PSU and its offering than that of Drexel.
Anyway, thanks for your advice. 
I am glad that you know both schools well!</p>
<p>A degree from PSU is very well respected. Plus, PSU has an alumni networking system that is helpful in obtaining internships and job placement. Their science program is strong.</p>
<p>To Fly Me to The Moon:
Thanks for your advice! PSU says that they have the larges alumni networking in the world lol. I want to talk something out of the topic. Do you like the song, ‘Fly me to the moon’ very much??</p>
<p>Penn state is a great choice, all my high school friends love it</p>
<p>“Are Drexel and PSU the same academically?”</p>
<p>I wish I could say definitively yes or no but I have never attended classes at Drexel. From what I know, as XtremePower said, they are pretty equal. If you feel PSU has more to offer you academically then that’s probably the school you should go with. Definitely try to visit if you have not already. Speak with faculty members and students in the department as well. Best of luck!</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I am not able to visit the campus because I live in Macau.
Since I am accepted for summer 2013 at penn state up, I must arrive the campus in late June if I decide to attend. It seems that I do not have so much time…</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>First of all, can you afford the summer season at PSU ? Can you afford the other expensive private colleges you listed easily ? Looks like University of Kansas is the cheapest option here. </p>
<p>
University of Denver is well known and everything but it isn’t that great for your major. Its mostly for Business. So, I can’t say its on the same academic level as Pacific, Drexel and PSU.</p>
<p>@Yupper he said his main factors are reputation and campus life. Out of those listed, I feel like PSU wins out. Its not like your post was the most informative thing ever, about 10 minutes of research could yield that information.</p>
<p>I’ve heard that someone has successfully changed his admission offer to PSU from summer session to fall semester. I am about to do so. I think I will attend PSU even the admission offer cannot be changed. Thank you for all of your responses!:)</p>