BC or NOTRE DAME

<p>Hey guys,</p>

<p>I am planning to apply EA to UMichigan and either BC or UND and ED to Duke, just in case I may get deferred. But regarding BC and UND, I understand they are both different environments but also great institutions where I would be happy to cultivate my academic growth. I know this is a Boston Coll thread and without bias, can you guys comment on:</p>

<p>1.) Premed success rate/ life
2.) General Social life and Environment
3.) Difficult of getting in early action- (I am Asian Indian, Hindu, Born in India/ I hear UND is 85% Catholic, so several UND students say I may be a underrep. minority, a useful hook)
4.) I guess sort of the Catholic/Religious predominance in judging lifestyle
5.) Grade Inflation?
6.) City Life, I guess nothing beats Boston
7.) Really Important- Financial Aid, I hear Boston is really expensive, but I am curious to the past fin aid packages.</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

<p>Probably better if someone who is already at BC answers this but here’s my opinion. Can't say much about Note Dame since I'm not applying there and only have second hand knowledge of the school.</p>

<p>1.) I don't know what the percentages are, but I'm sure BC does very well for pre-med since some of the best hospitals in the country are right there (so better name recognition and better opportunities for summer research). BC's alumni network is supposed to be extremely strong which I bet helps out too.</p>

<p>2.) No comparison. BC has the best of both worlds with a strong campus life and a great city right next door. Notre Dame is in the middle of no where. If you're into football and drinking, great. Otherwise probably not.</p>

<p>3.) EA is supposed to be tougher at BC than rd.</p>

<p>4.) BC is very diverse religiously. When I visited last spring, my host was actually Hindu. I'm Episcopalian and I was impressed that there was even an Episcopal group on campus (which is rare). About 60% is estimated to be Catholic according to someone I spoke to from admissions (no official stat exists on this since they don’t ask). I also got the sense that Catholicism at BC manifests itself more in "liberal" causes (gay rights, anti-war, etc) rather than "conservative" ones (going to mass, anti-abortion, etc) that I (wrongly?) associate with Notre Dame. </p>

<p>5.) No idea on this.</p>

<p>6.) I agree 100%. Comparing Boston with South Bend is like comparing apples with ... raisin seeds.</p>

<p>7.) This is a big deal for me too. Not so much financial aid since I probably won't qualify for much, but just the fact that BC is so expensive!!!</p>