WUSTL-16 K/YR
UNC - 20K/YR
Swarthmore - 13k/YR
Looking to study microbiology and possibly minor in music; at least to be able to perform in a University Orchestra. I live by NYC. Any suggestions on these school choices? Pros and cons?
Is cost a factor ( including travel)? Will your parents pay for all three? Will all three allow you to perform in a University Orchestra ( I am not familiar with this)? Do you want Greek Life? Sports? Small? Large? What kind of “vibe” are you looking for?
All three are excellent schools, but different. The first step is to sit down with your parents and see what they will pay for. If they will pay for all three then the next step is to decide what you are looking for in a school.
Congrats on three excellent choices!
My parents will pay 12/K, beyond that would be loans, although I have applied for many scholarships and feel I have a shot at some good $; but of course I’m not banking on it. They all have university orchestras, but being the only thing I’ve done is researched them online, I was looking for some insider info. Size isn’t a big deal to me, as I’ve visited some large and smaller colleges that I could see myself at, and neither is Greek life. However, I do like being closer to a big city, and that is a drawback for me for UNC, although their academics and opportunities are stellar, and plus I was offered an ExcelCarolina opportunity there. I plan on visiting all 3 in April, but was just looking for feedback from people in the know. Also, is there any that would substantially carry more weight or prepare me better for med. school?
Those are all amazing schools! I am sure you can get a great education and have a wonderful time at any of them. Have you visited or can you visit? Really, you can decide which environment suits you best and how much the difference in aid between 13K or 20K matters to your family. (You could also share UNC’s letter with one of the others, if you prefer one of the others, and ask them if they can match it.)
Individual preferences will vary. I am a fan of small liberal arts colleges, so I know which I would pick in your shoes (Swarthmore), but some people might prefer a larger school.
UNC-- how do you feel about a large college, with some big lecture classes, with southern ambience and lots of school pride and sports excitement?
Swarthmore-- how do you feel about a small intimate east coast college, with mostly small discussion-oriented classes, suburban arboretum campus with a short trip to Philly, and an intensely intellectual, hardworking student body?
Washington U- how do you feel about living in a city in the Midwest at a mid-sized school with a great reputation in the sciences and science research? How do you feel about their core and freshman programs? (Also, from a social ambience and size standpoint, this seems to the happy medium among the three schools.)
Three great options. Can’t go wrong! Congratulations.
I think academically you can not go wrong but socially you might. Those schools especially Swat and UNC have very different vibe. Make sure you look at social fit.
The word “eclectic” comes to my mind for UNC. If you want Greek life it’s there, and if you never want to see it and prefer to spend the evening doing something else, you can.
Let’s discuss cost- will your parents pay $12,000 a year? Are they planning to co-sign loans to make up the difference? What are the breakdowns in the FA packages? Grants, loans, etc?
Thank you. Great consideration points. I think I must’ve put the $ up wrong, though. Those are the amounts not covered by scholarships and grants, so Swarthmore is the least expensive. I am going to Swatty Days in April, and WUSTL is flying me in for a visit also. Just by re-reading my own comments on here, plus considering the factors you have both made, I am already shying away from UNC.
“However, I do like being closer to a big city, and that is a drawback for me for UNC”.
Actually, Chapel Hill and Raleigh (NC’s Capital) are only 30 minutes apart by car and is in the middle of the Raleigh-Durham-CC conurbation. Swarthmore is in a suburb of Philly and quite a ways away (from my memory when we were there last summer) from Centre City. I don’t think this detail would be a major issue in your decision?
Ok I misunderstood your cost. To be honest with you I can’t imagine loving both UNC and Swarthmore. What are you looking for in a school?
UNC is not in a city, but it does have a great college town and its in the Research Triangle, if that matters to you ( it may not). It is also pretty easy to get a research position on campus if you want one.
I think it would be hard to beat Swarthmore given the cost particularly as the airfare to SL or R-D airports are going to add up.
I guess it’s all going to come down to fit, and without going to them, it’s hard to judge. I was advised to pick a large state school to apply to as money was a big factor for my family, and after research I chose UNC because of reputation and research opportunities. But my own choosing led me to Swarthmore, which I was introduced to while participating in a program at MIT last summer, and to WUSTL. Swarthmore is a 25 minute train ride to Philly; that’s close enough for me. I’m not sure about access to Raleigh for students (I won’t have a car), and am not sure much about the culture of Raleigh, but I know I love Philadelphia, and I also know that St. Louis is a beautiful city with a great vibe (my mom is from the midwest).
Thank you all for your feedback! You’re making me think about things I hadn’t considered!
I will describe the culture at UNC and you could decide if it works for you. It’s a large school ( there are bigger schools) with a very active and involved campus. It is very common to walk around and see students running, playing volleyball, studying, eating outside, advertising their clubs, etc. Greek life is not huge ( 17%) and parties are off campus. If you are not into parties or Greek life you can keep very busy doing other things- clubs, sports, speakers, acapella groups, going into town, etc. It is common to socialize with others who are in school clubs with you- “cocktail” type parties ( you don’t have to drink) etc. it’s a very spirited school- you may like that and you may not. With the exception of the business school and nursing, there is no “pre-professional vibe.” They encourage students to explore a lot of different interests and not narrow down a career path- some love this, some don’t. UNC is very into community service and has a significant number of grads doing Peace Corps and similar work. It is pretty easy to spend your day as a “science nerd” and spend time with professors and projects in the lab. It is not unusual to be in town and run into professors. The community and school mesh together and there is a tremendous amount of school pride. Getting research positions and internships is not hard. It’s the kind of school where you could spend a Friday night eating dinner and discussing anthropology, or you can go to a party. Chapel Hill and the next town over- Carborro- are pretty liberal. Intro science classes are in lecture halls but many ( possibly most) are discussion based and not straight lecture. There are small classes freshman year - not all are big.
My guess, based on your comments, is that Swarthmore fits what you want. Congrats on three great choices! Unfortunately I can’t provide much input on your other two schools.
Okay, so this is null and void. My current quandary…PENN as a Benjamin Franklin Scholar, or Princeton?
^ Princeton, hands down…