<p>i was accepted into brandeis!
i am planning to attend the open house in April, but after reading some of the posts i am feeling a bit skeptical, especially about the campus, because many said it was bare and not very aesthetic. Not that this is my number one concern, but i would like to go to a campus that is lively and pleasant to live in.</p>
<p>Congratulations on your acceptance to Brandeis, applications shot up this year so its getting much more competitive to get in! First, Brandeis is certainly not ugly and the way a campus looks should not make question everything else the university has to offer. I'm a current freshman at Brandeis so I know first hand about the campus. The buildings are not pretty in the way they are at other campuses, with old birck buildings and ivy growing up the side. But the university is only 50-some years old. What do you expect? It is beautiful in many other ways though. There are many large open spaces, lots of trees which are gorgeous in the fall, and even a few ponds around campus where students like to sit, study, and look at the ducks. From my dorm right now I see beautiful snow covered trees, other people have great views of Boston. Also, Brandeis is changing every year, adding new buildings, open spaces, and structures (this winter they added a skating rink) in response to what students want. In the past 3 years they've added new academic buildings, a new student center, a new lounge and a new dorm. How many other universities can you say did that?
In response to what you said about a campus that is lively and pleasant to live in, the way the buildings look do not effect how active and fun Brandeis is. It is full of interesting people who care about their school and their education. This makes Brandeis a wonderful place to live.</p>
<p>I'd suggest that, unless money is going to be a problem (in which case you should contact Brandeis and see if they'll help you out), you should definitely go and make your own impressions, rather than let yourself be totally influenced by a bunch of cc-er's opinions. And even if the campus does end up not agreeing with you, you'll probably still have a great time meeting cool people and doing cool things. Personally, I'm going to re-visit all of the schools I get accepted to just to ensure that, come May, I'll be able to make the right decision.</p>