<p>This is another good example of why it's important to make a campus visit to see what living conditions are really like.</p>
<p>Being thrown into the BC and Boston social scene can be a bit intimidating. The BC administration sees living on the Newton campus and the very short bus rides as opportunities for a lot of the freshmen to get to know each other in a low-pressure atmosphere.</p>
<p>Worcester has a horrendous social scene. I spent my freshman year at one of the Worcester colleges, and it was bad beyond belief. Holy Cross is a unique place, though, being an all-undergrad Jesuit college.</p>
<p>Worcester. the city of seven hills, is the second largest city in New England and is 50 miles west of Boston. Like the majority of cities in New England it is an old milltown, with three deckers and former brick factories, scars from the industrial revolution. However Worcester like most major cities is also very diverse city with sumptuous suburbs near Assumption College to poor inner city sections near Clark University. It is a working class city to be sure but there is a lot to do with 13 colleges there, the DCU Center, revitalized downtown, great restarants and the bestand most diners anywhere including a legendary one near Holy Cross called "Miss Worcester". Homepage</a> | Colleges of Worcester Consortium (COWC)</p>
<p>The "Miss Worcester" diner actually was the showcase diner for the Worcester Lunch Car Company that operated across the street from the diner and was in existence from 1906 to 1961. They were the dominant manufacturer of diners in New England building a total of 651 diners that were situated mostly in New England locations. Great historical book on the company: Amazon.com:</a> Worcester Lunch Car Company (MA) (Images of America): Books: Richard J. S. Gutman</p>
<p>Has the OP been accepted at both schools? If not, maybe s/he should apply to both, re-visit both later on, see how the finances look from each school and postpone a decision until April. (And hopefully, OP has more than 2 schools in mind.) They're both great schools, with probably equal shots at med school.</p>
<p>BC does not do very well on the "studentsreview" website. It could be, of course, that those responding were not even from the school or that the site attracted a disproportionate number of disgruntled students</p>
<p>Do others feel that "students review" paints an accurate picture of colleges?</p>
<p>Never heard of it, but upon checking it out, it doesn't look too reliable - lots of anonymous posters and some reviews sound totally fabricated. I guess BC wouldn't have 29,000 and more applicants every year, (and growing )if with wasn't such a great place to go to college. Living on Newton campus is not a big deal, my friends there love it. Is it sometimes a pain to take the Newton shuttle, yeah, but the community there and better food make up for it. BC is not for everyone though, and try to name a perfect college experience - you can't. This thread is getting a little annoying - are the HC people trying to compare Worcester to Boston - not possible. ("Miss Worcester" ???) Bottom line: you want to go to Catholic LAC in a decent suburb and need a great safety - go to HC - but if your academic/social plans include the city of Boston opportunities, top Catholic uni in the US (well ND probably deserves that, but we are close) D1 sports, nationally recognized academics and the name recognition, and great alumni network - BC is your choice. Both offer great prep for grad school - research your individual areas of study to determine which offer you the best opportunity. Both have beautiful campuses, but I prefer the size and architecture of BC.</p>
<p>You really can't go wrong at either HC or Boston College. But for the HC boosters to keep trolling here and putting down BC is not the point. Your own thread needs you from the looks of it.</p>
<p>im a freshman at BC and i live on newton. it is not living off campus at all. there are about 600 (i think) freshman living here so you are surrounded by your peers 24/7. i admit, the bus sucks when its raining/cold and i didnt request newton but i really do like it here. there is that "community feel" they always talk about because you recognize faces everywhere you go. plus, stuart, the dining hall, is much better than mcelroy.</p>
<p>BC vs HC is your choice.. but the possibility of living on newton is not a reason not to choose BC. and BC is awesome =D</p>
<p>Is the Newton Campus actually in a different town (Newton, MA) as compared to the main campus (Chesnut Hill, MA)? Do you have a different mailing address or is all the mail routed through the main campus? Where do you pick up your mail if you live at the Newton campus?</p>
<p>How big is the bus and is there ever any overcrowding issues? I would hate to be waiting for the bus and then not be able to get onto it. Is it a school bus?</p>
<p>There has to be a lot of busses since they are transporting 600 kids every day to the main campus.</p>
<p>The Newton Campus is in a different town, but it is just a few minutes down the street. There is a different mailing address for the Newton campus, and there is a full service mailroom right next to the dining hall, Stuart, where students on Newton have mailboxes and where packages can be picked up and mail sent out. </p>
<p>The Newton bus is not a school bus, it is more similar to a city bus or the T. There are seats around the perimeter and a lot of room to stand in the middle. Overcrowding is seldom an issue, the only time I've experienced a problem is after a big hockey game let out. They run school busses continuously on game days from Newton to main campus to accommodate the students as well as the alumni who park there. The bus runs extremely frequently around 8-9 when everyone is going to class, around every three minutes and goes straight from Newton to main gate of main and back. During other hours its more like 5-15 minutes and it makes several stops around the BC campus. BC runs a similar bus, the Commonwealth Ave bus, up and down Comm Ave to service many popular off-campus sites and apartments.</p>
<p>If someone has an 8:30 am class and then not another class until afternoon, do most people take the bus back to the dorm after the morning class and then return again in the afternoon or do they take all their books for the whole day and just stay on campus and return in the late afternoon? Can you eat at any dining hall? Just trying to figure out how this would work logistically.</p>
<p>How long is the bus trip in minutes from Newton to the Main gate including scheduled stops?</p>
<p>Never mind I re-read your message and it appears there is an express during morning rush hour which takes 3 minutes and the local at other times takes 5-15 minutes (I'm assuming the wide range depends on traffic and number of riders)</p>
<p>Lots of big universities (such as University of Michigan) have similar sophisticated shuttle systems to connect their disparate campuses.</p>
<p>If someone has an 8:30 am class and then not another class until afternoon, do most people take the bus back to the dorm after the morning class and then return again in the afternoon or do they take all their books for the whole day and just stay on campus and return in the late afternoon?
I personally go back to Newton and rest up before my next class, but a few people just stay on campus with their books and study until their next class.</p>
<p>Can you eat at any dining hall?
Yes you can, there are 3 dining halls, one in Newton, one on Lower, and one near Upper.</p>
<p>How long is the bus trip in minutes from Newton to the Main gate including scheduled stops?
The first stop after leaving Newton Campus is Main Gate, which takes anywhere from 8-15 minutes, depending on traffic and weather conditions.</p>
<p>Is the Newton Campus actually in a different town (Newton, MA) as compared to the main campus (Chesnut Hill, MA)? Do you have a different mailing address or is all the mail routed through the main campus? Where do you pick up your mail if you live at the Newton campus?
Technically, Chestnut Hill is part of Newton, but the distance between the two campuses is about 1.5 miles. Every student has a different mailing address sent to their respective mail rooms. If you live on Newton, you pick up your mail in the mailroom right next to the dining hall.</p>
<p>How big is the bus and is there ever any overcrowding issues? I would hate to be waiting for the bus and then not be able to get onto it. Is it a school bus?
There are overcrowding issues, usually from 8am-10am, when students are getting to classes and at 1,2,3,and 4, when students are returning from classes. The busses tend to get crowded wednesday nights (around 6:30) because students will be going to class for perspectives. </p>
<p>In the mornings (8-10) the busses usually run every 5-10 minutes. After those times, the bus runs about every 15 minutes. On weekends (without football games) they usually run every 30 minutes</p>
<p>Thank you very much. Found this interesting bit f history on Newton College of the Sacred Heart (now Newton Campus): Newton</a> College of the Sacred Heart - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
It was once an all girl's school. I believe that BC like Holy Cross was all male up until the 70s. Probably a lot of marriages between BC and Newton College grads!</p>
<p>Holy Cross has a similar free Shuttle System available that is run by the Worcester College Consortium that connects all the 13 colleges of Worcester. I would occassionally take it to go to study at Clark's library for a change of venue or to get somewhere in Worcester. Others sometimes took classes at WPI or Clark and used the shuttle.</p>
<p>==> There are overcrowding issues, usually from 8am-10am, when students are getting to classes and at 1,2,3,and 4,
How significant are the overcrowded bus issues? Mild annoyance or down right irritating? I would hate to be waiting for buses in the Boston winters and then not be able to get on. Is there a warm place to wait at all the stops?</p>