<p>So I was accepted to Georgetown University, University of California at Berkeley, University of Chicago, and Swarthmore College. I have more or less eliminated Georgetown and Swarthmore and am now trying to decide between Berkeley and Chicago.</p>
<p>Here is some information to help you understand my position:
-I'm a European citizen aiming to study in the states. Therefore, the proximity-to-family, etc. does not apply.
-I'm an international student.
-The finances I have available make differences in housing costs, tuition fees, etc. unimportant.
-I want to double or triple major as fast as possible in fields along the lines of English Literature and Language, Philosophy, and Political Science.
-I want to move on into graduate school, probably law
-Career aims are either to become a college professor or a lawyer. I want to write several books during/after college.
-I do care about prestige.
-I care strongly about intellectual rigour.
-I have little serious athletic interest.</p>
<p>I don't like hot weather very much. I have heard that Berkeley has a funding problem and it may take me longer than 4 years to graduate because I won't be able to get all the courses I need quickly enough. I have also heard that uChicago has "the ugliest girls in all of America." I really like the uChicago campus, but I haven't gotten enough information about the Berkeley campus to really make a well-educated decision.</p>
<p>Georgetown is not in the same class as U of Chicago. Berkeley is very good if you want to save on $$$ a bit, but I would go to Chicago. Chicago is an amazing city and U of Chicago is on par with the HYPS’s of the world.</p>
<p>PS: If you want a liberal arts experience - Swarthmore is a fine choice as well. Berkeley will give you the “Big University” experiences - big time sports, huge #'s of students, the Bay Area is GREAT, liberal/progressive politics (though not necessarily on campus). Swarthmore is nice because it does provide the smaller Liberal Arts College experience, smaller student body - more personal relationships, but it does lack any sort of privacy/anonymity for the most part. U of Chicago in my opinion combines both but is more like Swarthmore than Cal. I would eliminate Georgetown because you’re other academic options on stronger with the others.</p>
<p>I am in a very similar situation, choosing between northwestern Berkeley and Pomona. Personally, I think all of your choices are great and it just depends where you fit best and will be most successful. But I think your decision depends on what you want to do after graduation. For business, the bigger schools will provide more recruitment. For jd and phd programs, the smaller two will be better IMO.</p>
<p>Haha, if you’re really an INTJ, then you’ll fit in just perfectly here at Chicago. ;P</p>
<p>otherwise, Chicago has a great network for academia if you’re into that; the style of education here really grooms people for serious academic inquiry.</p>
<p>That’s what I heard, and it’s extremely appealing to me. I’m just trying to reconcile that against the benefits of the other colleges (which I am trying to find out).</p>
<p>*Berkeley is very good if you want to save on $$$ a bit, *</p>
<p>???</p>
<p>The cost is about the same for a non-resident.</p>
<p>I want to double or triple major as fast as possible in fields along the lines of English Literature and Language, Philosophy, and Political Science.
-I want to move on into graduate school, probably law</p>
<p>Then Georgetown would be fine for those goals.</p>
<p>*Chicago is an amazing city *</p>
<p>Uh…not really…and Wash DC beats it any day of the week.</p>
<p>Go to [Home</a> Page - Online Schedule Of Classes](<a href=“http://schedule.berkeley.edu%5DHome”>http://schedule.berkeley.edu) , look up the current (spring) semester and the departments you are interested in. Make note of how full the classes tend to be.</p>
<p>You can probably do something similar at most other universities.</p>
<p>As an International, you (correctly, IMO) narrowed down your choices to Cal and Chicago, both of which provide huge international prestige. Swat probably has the toughest grading policies, so its a more difficult road to Law School (where gpa is ~half the battle).</p>
<p>Chicago has a Core curriculum, which probably makes it more difficult to triple major. Cal & Chicago each have highly-ranked departments in your interest. Either would prepare you well as a future academic (as would Swat). Between the two, it comes down more to social fit, IMO.</p>
<p>While DC is a great town, I would disagree that it beats Chicago “hands down”. Chicago is a wonderful city. But yes, Georgetown easily beats Hyde Park.</p>
<p>Georgetown is good overall but its biggest claim to fame is its Foreign Service program, not arts and sciences. Chicago offers a more distinguished arts & science faculty, smaller classes, and far better facilities, including one of the best research library systems in the world. </p>
<p>Chicago does have many course requirements, which will make it hard for you to “double or triple major as fast as possible”. However, the Core courses and several major programs are very interdisciplinary. So you can get what amounts to a double or triple major but with much better integration. Examples: Cinema & Media Studies; Classical Studies; Fundamentals:Issues & Texts; Interdisciplinary Studies in the Humanities; Law, Letters, & Society; Medieval Studies; or the Languages and Civilizations programs (Near Eastern, Far Eastern, South Asian). There is even a program simply called “Big Problems”.</p>
<p>Picking a favorite city is of course a matter of taste. However, having lived in both Chicago and DC, I don’t understand how anyone can claim DC beats the city of Chicago “hands down”. I’m not sure I would even concede that Georgetown (the neighborhood) “easily” beats Hyde Park. </p>
<p>Georgetown = Jesuit education is a turn off. I don’t know if you’re into that thing, but not for me
UChicago is mid-Ivy level in perception and level of prestige. Academics are AWESOME. It’s second to HYPSM.
Berkeley is not. Normally its cost factor would be very tempting, but you’re OOS.
So UChicago > Berkeley. Pick UChicago.</p>
<p>Honestly, you seem like a perfect fit for Chicago. Don’t be intimidated by the “where fun comes to die” mantra, anywhere you go will have fun people to hang out/ drink with if that’s your thing. Sure, you might not have all night ragers like you might in the SEC, but you won’t find a better academic atmosphere possibly anywhere.</p>
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