<p>Just got the news in email this morning that I got accepted off the waitlist at Penn. I am absolutely happy about it, but also now have a choice to make. I'm in the (admittedly enviable) position of having to decide if I want to break my commitment to Boston College, which was a decision that took some long hard effort over a couple of week sin April. Money is the same between the two schools, aside from some more $$ it will cost me to travel to/from Penn; I'm planning to be a pure math major. One of the things that attracted me to BC was the high level of school spirit -- and I'm not talking school pride (whcih most all colleges have) but also the "rah rah" thing that lacks at most Ivies, but i think Penn may have some of that. Penn is one of the schools i never got a chance to visit, so I have no frame of reference, which is making my decision hard.</p>
<p>I know the obvious angle on this ("Dude, it's an Ivy, are you crazy?", etc) but if this was April 1st, the decision would more of a slam dunk. Being that I'm emotionally "at" BC already, I'm hoping for some unobvious data from folks in the know who can help me to decide.</p>
<p>Anybody have any anonymous internet suggestions for someone you never met who finds himself in this position?</p>
<p>An emotional commitment of a month and a half is nothing compared to four years of college (and a lifetime of memories ). Go to where you think you’ll be happiest in the long run.</p>
<p>I can’t agree more with 45. I wouldn’t let a month or so of attachment affect the rest of your life. I know few people who prefer BC to Penn so it’s worth exploring Penn a little. If you still can’t wrap your mind around not going to BC, then you’ll at least be sure that you’re going to the right school.</p>
<p>My suggestion is to hop on a train today and visit Penn. It is an amazing campus. I am a native New Englander that always held BC in high regard but when we went to Penn to visit , what a difference. BC is a very nice campus but it is split between upper and lower, Penn is bunched together and there won’t be bus riding to class. You also have to weigh the religious component of BC, if that is important to you. How important is it to be close to home? Penn is only 5 hours from Boston. The weather is milder in Philadelphia.<br>
I know how hard it can be to leave New England, it is quaint, safe, beautiful and will always have a small town feel, however there is a whole other world out there to explore. I think you can be exposed to a broader demographic at Penn. Penn has many internationals and students from all over the world, you will make connections in that enviroment that can’t be beat.<br>
Just a thought for you, my family left the Boston area just before my daughter’s junior year of high school for a move to the Mid Atlantic region, and she left all her friends back there and guess what, she decided that ther opportunities in this area were better. Unemployment is lower and weather is definately better. You would be 2 hours from NYC, 2 1/2 hours from DC, 2 hours from Baltimore, the opportunies are endless. Her two closest friends are going to BC, however it fell way down on her list. I think mostly because compared to the other schools she was looking at it was too homogenous.<br>
Sorry to ramble, but you have been given the opportunity of a lifetime and just because you have been mental at BC for a month and a half your whole life is ahead of you. ALso remember, no decision is ever final you could always transfer. Good Luck and I am sure you will be happy at either school.</p>
<p>Thanks to all who have replied. Thanks for the good wishes Sugar Magnolia – knew I’d find a fellow Deadhead to help me out. And thanks citylights: My folks and I are scrambling to figure out how to do just what you mention (get down to Penn). I have until a week from today to decide, but I still have school until Tuesday PM and the thought of trying to get there over Memorial weekend is unnerving. We’re looking at doing a quick-turnaround maybe Tue/Wed. I dunno. Too frenetic !</p>
<p>But I agree with you that I can’t be parochial about this and need to have all the info I need to make up my mind. Thanks for giving me some insight into your daughter’s experiences… </p>
<p>It’s amazing that 2 years of planning and fretting and writing essays and making decision matrices to whittle down the options, now all comes down to one week of coint tossing and trying to envision 4 years in one place vs 4 in another. You’re right about N.E. – it is a nice quaint insular world that feels comfortable. but life sometimes requires stepping out of the cocoon. </p>
<p>Argh. I feel blessed to have the choice before me, no doubt. But lots to think about over this weekend.</p>
<p>You’re planning to be a pure math major. At Penn you have the opportunity (if you plan it correctly) to get a Masters degree in 4 years. Keep that in mind.</p>
<p>Also, I have a ton of friends from the Boston area and New England here at Penn. You’ll fit right in. One of my friends managed to go back to Boston on the Bolt Bus every other weekend this past semester for different things (job interviews mostly), so if you ever get home sick, it is possible to go back home if you ever really want to.</p>
<p>If you want the rah rah in sports go to an Eagles game. They get pretty riled up.</p>
<p>Remember, if money is the same at both places, it’s easier to transfer to BC from Penn if you decide you made the wrong decision compared to transferring to Penn from BC.</p>
<p>You have received solid advice above. I just want to relate a story that stuck with me because I found it hard to believe (I really don’t know either school)…A friend of mine went to Penn. I asked him if he could have gone anywhere, would he make the same choice. He told me if he could do it over, he would have gone to BC (where his two younger brothers ended up going). This won’t help you make a decision but from reputation alone, you really can’t go wrong either way. Best of luck.</p>
<p>This decision isn’t even close. You’re going to go to Penn, and we all know it. People may try to refute this claim, but I am 99% sure you’re not going to pass up Penn for BC.</p>
<p>I thought math wasn’t one of Penn’s strong points? I would still choose Penn, but i’m not sure how highly regarded that particular department is. Gl</p>
<p>In terms of math undergraduate programs, Gourman ranks Penn as 18th, but BC isn’t on the list at all. </p>
<p>Gourman Report ranking for undergrad math:</p>
<p>Princeton
UC Berkeley
Harvard
MIT
U Chicago
Stanford
NYU
Yale
Wisconsin Madison
Columbia
Michigan Ann Arbor
Brown
Cornell
UCLA
Illinois Urbana Champaign
Caltech
Minnesota
U Penn
Notre Dame
Georgia Tech
U washington
Purdue WL
Rutgers NB
Indiana U Bloomington
U Maryland College Park
Rice
UC San Diego
Northwestern
Texas Austin
carnegie Mellon
Johns Hopkins
Washington U St Louis
Ohio State
SUNY Stony Brook
Penn State
UVA
RPI
Illinois Chicago
U Colorado Boulder
U Kentucky
UNC Chapel Hill
Dartmouth
U Rochester
U Utah
SUNY Buffalo
Tulane
USC
UC Santa Barbara
U Massachusetts AMherst
U Oregon
Duke
Louisiana State Baton Rouge
U Arizona
case Western
Michigan State
U Pittsburgh
Brandeis
US Air Force Academy</p>
<p>Ah, someone who can fully appreciate/understand my username? You are way too cool for the Catholic playpen that we call BC. Actually, it’s not a bad school at all and it probably gives me a bad taste in my mouth just because of how absolutely dreadful the BC rep who came to my high school was, but still. UPenn!</p>
). Go to where you think you’ll be happiest in the long run.</p>