American Versus Boston University

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Yikes. I had a feeling that it would come down to these two, as they've been my favorites since I began the college application process. At this point, I'm kind of leaning towards Boston University because it has been my dream school for quite some time now, but I'm still not entirely sure. I was a true "late bloomer" in High School (I really started to care about school towards the end of Sophomore year), so my acceptance process has been quite bittersweet. I plan to visit both Universities for a second time before I make my decision, but here is where I stand:</p>

<p>American
-Accepted to Communications School for spring of 2007-</p>

<p>I was rather upset to not be accepted in the fall, but I appealed the decision and should hopefully be hearing back from American later in the week. If I am denied access to fall of 2006 once again, AU has a program for spring 2007 accepted students where they can take some courses and partake in an internship in D.C.</p>

<p>BU
-Accepted to College of General Studies-</p>

<p>Again, I was a little upset to not be accepted to the Communications School. I like the structure of the school, with its small class sizes, one-on-one approach to learning, and "get the necessary core credits out of the way" mythology. Plus the opportunity to study abroad in London during the fall semester of sophomore year is quite appealing.</p>

<hr>

<p>Both universities host my three potential majors (journalism, film and English), each with differing levels of strength. While American has a much better journalism program, its film department is nothing compared to BU’s. In terms of English, both universities at least seem parallel. With BU, I like the idea of getting my core curriculum out of the way during my first two years (1/4 of which would be spent in London!) and focusing upon my major the last two. On the other hand, I’d potentially be able to start my studies immediately at American, if they reconsider their decision.</p>

<p>Location is also a huge deciding factor for me. BU’s campus is located right in downtown Boston, while AU’s is about two miles away from downtown D.C. I’ve always said that I wanted to go to a school in a city, but D.C. is far more intense and fast-paced that Boston, so it might be nice to be very close, but not too close to the city; I do like AU’s collegiate atmosphere, though. BU is rather huge, almost intimidating at times, but I believe that I could handle it. </p>

<p>In terms of financial aid, I received more money from American, but still some from BU. In the end, though, money won’t play a large part in my decision. Then of course, the oh-so-artificial influence of the “name.” BU surely holds greater respect, but AU has a very good name as well, especially in the journalism field. Overall, though, BU definitely has “the name” between the two, but I don’t want to allow that to influence my decision too much, although it’s really hard not to, with the pressure of the US News, Princeton Review, etc.</p>

<p>So that’s my situation. Right now, I'm about 60% for BU and 40% for AU, but if accepted into the fall semester at AU, I'm sure I'll be at 50/50 again. If anyone could offer any advice or opinion, I would be incredibly grateful. Thanks!</p>

2

<p>It depends what you want to be "in a city" for. DC, while it has nightlife, opportunities, etc., is much less of a "college city" than Boston, so if you want a city for the nightclubs go to BU. If you want a city for the journalism internship opportunities though, why not go where the news is made?</p>

3

<p>I'm not interested in clubs at all. Hah, I'm pretty arty, so all I need are independent movie theaters, hole-in-the-wall restaurants, book stores, museums, etc.</p>

<p>My other concern with BU is the lack of respect shown towards the GSP students. On the BU boards, some say that a lot of BU students look down on the GSP students and are mad that they eventually acquire the same degree that they do. I don't want to go to a school where I am going to be looked down upon, especially since I've arrived at a point where I am confident in my abilities (after, well, not working for over half of high school).</p>

4

<p>Well, that does kind of suck that you didn't get into Comm, because BU's School of Comm is like the best on the East Coast, next to Syracuse anyways. BU is overall a better school but it's kind of a toss up...would you rather start in the spring at a pretty good school or start in the fall at a less-than-great program of a better school???</p>

5

<p>About a year ago, BU was my dream school because I desperately wanted to major in film/journalism (I'm what you might call a practical filmmaker?). I was also looking at other schools, like Syracuse and BU, which have some of the top programs in the nation. Eventually that wore off because I didn't feel the job prospects were good enough.</p>

<p>Anyways, I visited BU twice and American once, so I know a little about both schools. If money is not an issue, than go with BU unless you are sure about journalism at AU. American's film program focuses almost totally on political documentaries. According to a student there, it's like a split in the departments and the artsy students don't interact much with the political students. The school doesn't put a whole lot of resources to buying cameras most suited toward creative filmmaking. Lighting equipment isn't that easy to come by. </p>

<p>BU is a very very writing intensive school and the faculty puts extra emphasis on it. BU is also a great college town and you will definitely find little artsy independent movies, little shops, etc everywhere. BU's journalism program is also no slouch compared to American's program. If BU was located in DC, it's journalism program would easily be as good as American's. However, as you might expect, the journalism business is more dependent on networking than others for job placement, so AU will have a huge advantage. Emerson College in Boston also throws out a huge number of journalism majors that compete with the BU kids for interships in Boston. The administration in the Comm department is also very eager to see students succeed and are generally polite. So, if money were not an issue, I would choose BU because it seems more conducive to your personality and has good programs in all the areas that you want to study. The only issue is...</p>

<p>Yes, students do look down on the GSP kids. That's something you'll have to figure out. Our student guide sort of mocked them even while answering my question about them. I don't know about the process of transferring out of GSP if there is one. </p>

<p>That's my 2 cents. Hopefully, it helps.</p>

6

<p>"would you rather start in the spring at a pretty good school or start in the fall at a less-than-great program of a better school???"</p>

<p>That's exactly what I've been thinking lately. I'm hoping that my appeal to AU works and I'm accepted under the fall 2006 semester, in which case I think that I might lean towards AU. Not sure. Ugh.</p>

7

<p>If you are in CGS, do you enter the regular college after 2 years or something?</p>

8

<p>Yes. After the two-year program, you transfer into one of Boston University's other Colleges.</p>

9

<p>Then I would go to BU. You get the same degree as a "regular" BU student, and the Communications School on the whole is stronger - plus Boston is cooler than D.C.</p>

10

<p>i didn't know that a college could defer your enrollment for a semester. . .is American the only one that does that? I would say BU, because its in a better city, and you can always try to get into the commmunications school after a few semesters.</p>