<p>Compare/Contrast....</p>
<p>campus
types of majors
cost
prestige
scholarships</p>
<p>focusing in on Boston College in chestnut hill, as a safety app…until yesterday combing over four college info books at Barnes and Nobles for nine hours spied B.C.'s Core: one year of THEOLOGY mandatory. What is that? it’s a roman catholic college, jesuit. my son is certainly not a christian and why he blew off his four congressional nominations Christian rabid West Point and Annapolis and USAFA.</p>
<p>a study of World religions he could handle but not immersion in Christianity and certainly not the one he despises equally to Mormanism. it would be a set up for him to apply it appears. any one completed a year of theology.</p>
<p>sheesh, now i better check the core for georgetown, it too is Jesuit (who BTW have offered some the most premier educations in the world for centuries and why we were attracted to BC as well, but not to do Catechism in college.</p>
<p>Cornelia - Did you look more closely at the two required courses to see if they were about global perspectives on religions or history of religions versus what you call “Catechism in college”? I think not. Look a little more closely at the school’s website. Ditto for Georgetown.</p>
<p>Perhaps you could also post your concerns on the BC and Georgetown forums, where currents students and alumni could share their experiences.</p>
<p>You are surprised that a religious school has a required theology course? And if he “despises” Catholicism why was he looking into Georgetown and BC in the first place?</p>
<p>Cornelia—If you son “despises” Roman Catholics, why would he even consider Boston College? Your post comes across as a tad hateful.</p>
<p>This comparison is falling under the misconception that BC and BU are even somewhat equal. They are not. BC is far more selective and academically profound. Dumb comparison.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>There are no courses of indoctrination, if that is what you are worried about. (btw: one of the excellent theology teachers is Jewish.) The theology core can be fulfilled in several ways, including reading about other religions. But reading the Bible will be part of the deal. No getting around it.</p>
<p>That being said, the following gives me an indication that your post is a ■■■■■. (I know several that have attended the military academies, and the term “Christian-rabid” is not something that ever came to mind.)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>
When did the OP ever stated that they are equal in prestige? Maybe they are being compared because the OP wants to attend a school in Boston? They may not be equal, but I still think BU is well respected (and should be). It sounds like you are just looking for a way to knock BU, instead of giving an honest contrast/comparison.</p>
<p>Some quick comparisons:</p>
<p>Campus
BU is downtown, BC is right on the border of the Boston city limits in Chestnut Hill. (Part of the campus is actually in Boston). BU is more urban, BC is in a more residential area. BU has a much larger student body, about double the total students, including graduate.</p>
<p>Types of Majors
BC has four schools including a business school, general school of arts and sciences, a school of education, a school of nursing. BU has a school of arts and sciences, school of communication, school of engineering, school of fine arts, school of education, school of business, school of hospitality (might have missed one?). These are all of their undergraduate offerings, each university also has extra graduate schools.</p>
<p>Cost
BU total billed expenses (including room & board) $56,184
BC total billed expenses (including room & board) $56,486</p>
<p>Prestige
(Disclaimer, I’m a current BC student)
BC is generally considered the more prestigious university. In pretty much every ranking BC is higher than BU by a decent margin. BU’s acceptance rate is also about 20% higher than BC’s. </p>
<p>Scholarships
This is a more in-depth topic and I don’t personally know much about BU’s financial aid, but more information can be found here: [Scholarships</a> & Merit Awards Undergraduate Admissions | Boston University](<a href=“http://www.bu.edu/admissions/apply/costs-aid-scholarships/scholarships/]Scholarships”>Scholarships & Financial Aid | Admissions)
As for BC’s financial aid, BC is need-blind in admissions and guarantees meeting 100% of demonstrated financial need, depending on the university’s calculation of need. There are no merit scholarships except for the Presidential Scholarship that’s awarded to the very, very top of applicants that apply Early Action. </p>
<p>There’s tons more information to be found for both schools on all these topics, this is just a brief rundown.</p>
<p>Also, Sucks to BU.</p>
<p>It is a shame when an OP asks a reasonable question and someone hijacks the thread with strangely hostile comments. </p>
<p>Perhaps the OP could go on the college forums to get more information. If the OP could visit the schools, it would help. We visited both schools and found them to be remarkably different. My son actually did not like either of them, but many kids love both, so they are worth a visit. Good luck.</p>
<p>Ortsac is right on in his/her comparison. I’ll add that, of late, BC is getting a reputation of being cheap with the scholarship money, but obviously individual mileage may vary.</p>
<p>Cornelia,</p>
<p>You spent 9 whole hours at Barnes & Noble researching colleges!!! Wow, it’s hard to see how having done that much work you’d miss that Georgetown and BC are Jesuit colleges with a core requirement. Good thing you spent all that time, that would have been an embarrassing oops for your child.</p>
<p>I agree, it would be dumb for an individual coming from a close-minded, religiously bigoted environment to consider going to a college with a religious affiliation. It would be almost as stupid as say, rejecting 4 congressional nominations to the service academies (yeah right).</p>
<p>It’s snowing, time to crawl back under your rock little ■■■■■.</p>
<p>Both schools are big research U’s where an undergrad can get lost in the crowd. You might want to compare as well their honors colleges [BC = A&S Honors, BU = Kilachand] where you have available advantages of a liberal arts program and close work with faculty within the resources of a larger U.</p>
<p>^To simply categorize both as “large” doesn’t paint the contrast accurately. BC has 9,000+ undergrads (15k total students) whereas BU has ~16,000 undergrads (30k total students).</p>
<p>Campus
Boston College has a gothic style campus that is typically ranked in the top ten in the country. The main campus sits atop chestnut hill in Newton MA. </p>
<p>Boston University has an urban campus, which most people think means no campus at all. However, similar to NYU, it is merely integrated into the 1960s style buildings along Commonwealth Ave. It isn’t impressive, but what it lacks in beauty and college atmosphere it gains in being located in a thriving part of Boston.</p>
<p>Types of Majors
Boston College has a liberal arts focus, but it offers science and technology programs as well. It is considered one of the top universities in the country. Every major or program it provides is ranked highly.</p>
<p>Boston University offers a greater variety of majors, but none that standout when compared to its peers. If you are looking for a hard science degree, BU might be a better choice than BC merely for the fact that the degree is offered by BU, although you could also get into nearby Tufts or Northeastern and obtain a better degree for the same cost. </p>
<p>Cost
Both of these schools are very expensive. They cost around the same to attend, with BU possibly being slightly more expensive merely due to its location in the city (car, rent, etc. are going to be more expensive around BU).</p>
<p>Prestige
Boston College, known as the Jesuit Ivy for those who like such monikers, offers a fair amount of prestige, primarily in the northeast (NYC and Boston in particular). It is a household name and well regarded.</p>
<p>Boston University, while not as prestigious as other schools in Boston, is still part of the Big 4 (Harvard, BC, and Northeastern being the other three). Boston University offers a great education in a great city, although it lacks luster in name recognition and reputation. </p>
<p>Scholarships
Boston College is notoriously skimpy on scholarships. Locals often attribute this as an attempt to keep its student body aristocratic. And it may be true, as the students at Boston College are typically from the 1%. </p>
<p>Boston University offers more in terms of scholarships, but it is not a state school. You’ll have to apply for individual scholarships and likely have to keep a minimum GPA to maintain it. This is notoriously difficult at BU due to what is known as “Grade Deflation”. Without going into the problems with grade deflation at BU, you can do some google searching to see that it is difficult to maintain a high GPA at BU (which in turn hurts both scholarships and, more importantly, graduate school applications down he road).</p>
<p>While Boston College is the better school, both schools offer a good education and are well regarded. Good luck.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>And even that is in the eye of the beholder. BC only offers a ~15 PhD programs. BU offers ~2x that amount. In contrast, our local public Uni – which definitely qualifies as a “big research U,” offers ~35.</p>
<p>@CollegiateDreams - I am not trying to put BU down. In fact, I am applying to both schools. I’m just being realistic. One cannot accurately compare BU and BC because they’re too different things completely - regardless of location. BU v. Northeastern is a much more accurate comparison. Stop making idiot insinuations for the sake of argument. BU is a great school but not on BC’s level. When did I even say the word “prestige?” Obviously, you’re an idiot who equates academic profoundness with prestige. Why not just compare Princeton with Rutgers - I mean they’re in the same state, right?!</p>
<p>informative’s views are certainly interesting. Obviously from a BC-booster point of view. 
I thought I’d heard everything, but in all of my years of college admissions junkiedom, this is the very first time I’ve heard BC called the “Jesuit Ivy.” </p>
<p>Sorry but BC is NOT a household name. Nor is its campus “typically” ranked among the top 10 in the country. (Maybe if the sample group is limited to Catholic schools and Catholic HS students.)</p>
<p>Also, nice job identifying a mythical “big four” and leaving out MIT, not to mention Tufts and Wellesley, all of which outrank BU and BC in terms of academic selectivity. And then there’s Brandeis…</p>
<p>BC is a solid school. It doesn’t need this kind of silliness.</p>
<p>^I agree. Jesuit Ivy? What the hell type of BS is that? Big 4? No such thing. </p>
<p>To the mom concerned about “Theology courses.” You’re literally the most ignorant person on here. You’re son is equally as stupid. Who cares… Just take the damn class and some whining. It’s not like they force upon you conversion to Catholicism.</p>
<p>ram, I think it is fairly clear that was a ■■■■■. Although I think it is perfectly reasonable for a person to not wish to attend a religiously-affiliated school or be required to take a year of theology.</p>