BC, Brandeis or GWU?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Boston College
1

<p>I am admitted to Boston College,Brandeis University and George Washington University, but cannot yet decide which one to go to.</p>

<p>I know BC and Brandeis are quite similar in many ways, considering the location and size. But as an international student, I actually know so little about the colleges, especially about BC, because the AOs of the college seldom answers my requesting while those of Brandeis seem very nice and efficient. </p>

<p>GWU, well, is rather expensive but I was told that it offered more opportunities for future development as it is located in D.C. It is a big, extensive, typical university, unlike BC and Brandeis. </p>

<p>So i am not sure. These colleges seem to be very different.
Would you guys give me some advice please?
I really appreciate your help.</p>

2

<p>Do you know what you intend to study, what concentration?</p>

3

<p>Without knowing the details of what subject you want to pursue it’s hard to give an intelligent answer. </p>

<p>That said, some of your facts need adjusting. BC and GW are probably closer in size and expense than you realize. If you are looking for a career in politics then GW is better due to its Washington DC location, (though BC has a very rigorous political science department). BC has the higher rated business school but lacks an engineering school which GW has. Brandeis is the smallest of the three with a good local reputation for business and pre-law.</p>

4

<p>In DC, both Brandeis and BC have better reputations than GW. If you want to get into politics, GW well allow you to intern at a national level while in school, but that’s really the only advantage. You could also easily intern for a summer in DC coming from either Boston school.</p>

5

<p>go to brandeis</p>

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<p>i think that the fact that admission staff members at Brandeis are nice and helpful is very reflective of Brandeis’ warm campus culture. while i’d like to know more about your interests, i would definitely go with brandeis. it’s the most prestigious of the three and, i believe, the best campus community</p>

7

<p>Go to Brandeis- there are three thousand qualified eagle fans on the wait-list. </p>

<p>Oh and sulsk- Brandeis is actually the least prestigious of the 3. </p>

<p>Lol.</p>

8

<p>go to brandeis or GWU</p>

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<p>It seems that i gets into accounting or economics, but I am more interested in social science, so i may convert my majors later. And i intend to go to graduate school.</p>

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<p>brandeis is still in huge financial trouble after investing a large portion of their endowment with mr. madoff. i’m not sure if that is any deterrent, but they have to pay off debt over the next six years (which might/probably mean cuts in programming)</p>

11

<p>With due respect, GLMERS information is incorrect. Brandeis did not have any of its endowment invested with Madoff, unlike Tufts and some others that lost tens of millions of dollars with him–although a major Brandeis supporter did lose funds. Brandeis is suffering from the same economic downturn that all major universites are experiencing–even the wealthiest like Harvard have been forced to make budget cuts. Contrary to the post, Brandeis has pledged to maintain financial aid and maintain, or improve, its world-class education by resisting the type of budget cuts that could undermine its core mission. The well-pubicized proposal potentially to sell some paintings from Brandeis’ world-renowned Rose Art Museum is just one way it is considering to fund that pledge. In other words, it’s prioritizing students over things. See my post in the Brandeis forum addressing zhouxy’s original question about her school choices: </p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/brandeis-university/682759-brandeis-bc-gwu.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/brandeis-university/682759-brandeis-bc-gwu.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Zen, you are wrong. [National</a> Universities Rankings - Best Colleges - Education - US News and World Report](<a href=“http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/college/national-search/page+3]National”>http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/college/national-search/page+3)</p>

<p>Yes, they may be flawed, but the US News and World Report rankings are the definitive guide to america’s best schools and Brandeis is the highest rank of the three.
31. Brandeis
34. BC
53. GWU</p>

13

<p>^^
You’ve got to be kidding me-I don’t know if I should laugh or cry.</p>

14

<p>^^</p>

<p>Nope, That report is true and it puts Northeastern and WPI as “tier 1” schools the same level as Harvard, MIT. BC (gasp)</p>

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<p>Aside from rankings, not many people know what/where Brandeis is.</p>

<p>I’d go with BC unless you absolutely love the DC area. Boston > DC, imo.</p>

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<p>“Aside from rankings, not many people know what/where Brandeis is.”</p>

<p>Right on the nail.</p>

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<p>Folks, the “many people” that know BC, know about its Div 1 basketball and football teams. These are the same people that know about 'Ole Miss and other schools with big-time sports programs that may or may not have elite educational programs. And I bet these folks don’t know about Amherst, Williams or Swarthmore either-- or U Chicago or Wash U, each of which is a specific peer institution of Brandeis and in its athletic conference (Div. II but very strong). </p>

<p>The folks who know about prestigious academic programs, are well aware of Brandeis. The remarkable acceptance rates of Brandeis students into the best med schools, law schools and other graduate program confirms this. Also, FYI in a recent Forbes national college rankings survey, Brandeis was ranked 15th among research universities and 30th overall among all private univerities and LAC’s–a testament to its focus on undergraduate education. Larger schools, including some Ivies, were ranked much lower. BTW, I believe BC’s undergraduate enrollment is about three times that of Brandeis’. Brandeis is a combination of small liberal arts college and world-class research university-with the smallest student body I believe (less than 800 in a class) of any top tier national research university matched with high-powered professors who actually teach in small classes. So, the research opportunities are tremendous. But, sorry, no football team.</p>

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<p>B77 - I could not disagree more with your connotation of why people know Boston College. Are you suggesting that Boston College is only renowned for its athletics and may not have an excellent academic program? There’s a father on this board who’s son got accepted to Williams and to Boston College and chose Boston College. Obviously, Boston College’s academics are in high standing. I think it is simply wrong of you to characterize the advocates of Boston College as people who only watch their football and basketball games.</p>

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<p>Dear B77 and GLMERS : While I do not know if the reference provided by GLMERS was intended for yours truly, the reference certainly fits. My oldest child was accepted into Williams, Amherst, Georgetown, Boston College, Cornell and others while waitlisted/rejected from the usual Ivy League suspects. In the end game, the oldest chose Boston College.</p>

<p>My youngest child (second child) has just completed the process. This child was accepted to Lehigh, Holy Cross, Swarthmore, Boston College, and others while waitlisted/rejected from the usual Ivy League suspects. Again, in the end game, the youngest chose Boston College.</p>

<p>So you can say that my family has played the game twice - from Ivy League chases, to all of the top east coast LACs, to the emergent “New Ivies”. We have spent a substantial amount of time at HYP, Penn, Cornell, Williams, Amherst, Swarthmore, Lehigh Valley, and a host of others. As a former university professor and sports coach, I am probably reasonably qualified to discuss all of these schools from many angles.</p>

<p>To B77’s point regarding Boston College’s name being known on the back of the sports programs, this would be one view you might get through the prism of the “ACC Game of the Week”, national ABC/ESPN coverage, or local newspapers covering the Boston sports scene. Boston College’s academic reputation is extremely strong on Wall Street, in laboratories, in the classroom, in hospitals, and amongst graduate schools regarding the level of students attracted and produced through the various schools.</p>

<p>Now, for the discussion of Boston College versus Brandeis : One of our soccer players was recruited to play for Brandeis so I gained a famliarity with the campus and its programs. As with BC, under graduate credentials are recognized from Brandeis at the graduate and post-graduate levels.</p>

<p>In essence, you are trying to provide arguments why one school is just clearly better than the other - in fact, the difference comes down to the individual student, how well he or she applies him/herself in their academic pursuits, and their desired post graduate direction. Discussions on US N&WR rankings are just pointless since the ranking system could change overnight and nothing would be actually different about the schools themselves.</p>

20

<p>^^^^</p>

<p>Amen.</p>