From my understanding Brandeis is the superior school, especially in the majors I am interested in; however, Brandeis is also the more expensive school for me. I want to determine if Brandeis is still worthwhile in spite of the expenses. I really like the small community feeling, as well as the idea of being closer to professors and engaging in undergrad research. I also like Brandeis’ intellectual atmosphere, and additionally Brandeis grads’ admissions to great graduate programs. Could anyone speak to what extent these features in Brandeis appear at BU? BU is also a great school, but I want to be reassured that I can still get a community feeling/make the school feel “smaller”, easily access and get to know professors, engage in undergrad research/internships, be surrounded by intellectual peers who also love learning and being challenged, and get an excellent education that will also prepare me for a top graduate school.
(I know I’ve already started threads like this, sorry for being redundant! But thanks in advance!)
Brandeis historically was a much more selective school, but recently BU has become extremely selective. They had 60,000 applicants this year. How can they NOT end up with a great student body ? It will be more diverse in terms of interests, since they have so many colleges (Fine Arts, Comm, Engineering, School of Ed, Physical Therapy, business, hotel management etc). You’ll meet a much more diverse set of interests, and yes many who are more career oriented. But their arts and sciences are great too, that’s where I graduated, and it has only gotten better since I graduated. They had fantastic profs when I was there many years ago, and the campus has gotten better and better since I graduated. I wish I could attend again !
BU certainly offers the opportunity to do undergrad research, to get to know professors, get career internships, and meet great peers. I am a bit biased since I graduated from BU, but I will say that each department feels like it’s own smaller school within the university. I know most of the students and profs in my own major. Many profs knew me if I chose to participate and excel in their classes. I found GREAT internships and had multiple offers when I graduated. I don’t think BU is in any way at all a step below Brandeis. If BU is more affordable I would say go for it. Most people have the opposite problem, they want to go to BU but cannot afford it. You are very very lucky to have this opportunity.
What do you intend to study that you think is better at Brandeis ?
Not knocking Brandeis at all, I know some really smart and successful graduates of Brandeis.
But you are definitely not fully appreciative of the great opportunity you have at BU.
I’m no expert, but I definitely find BU to be the superior school, not the other way around!
I was in the same spot debating between Brandeis and Boston. I am planning to major in neuroscience and I officially committed to Boston last week. Speaking to some current Brandeis students, there is a lack of social life around campus. I chose Boston despite being offered nearly a full ride to Brandeis for academics because BU has gained such a good reputation the last few years. Good luck and keep us updated!
The great thing about BU is that regardless of how many students there are on campus you can find your tight knit community within it.
I have never heard anyone say Brandeis is the better school (I’m not knocking it, I hear it’s good but this is the first time I’ve heard it’s “superior”).
It’s not hard to find your own niche, and depending on your school/major it may be very easy to get to know people/professors. In larger departments and programs, you’ll have to spend more time going to office hours to get to know them, but it’s not difficult. There are also TONS of research opportunities, but you need to be prepared to reach out to the labs you are interested in working in. It’s highly unlikely they’ll reach out to you (I started in a lab about a month into my freshman year, with no prior experience). If BU is cheaper, I’d say go for it.
But it would help to know your intended major. BU is fairly strong all around, but if for some reason your major is something that Brandeis is specifically known for, that could change your decision.
I think Brandeis and BU are peers, so those choosing between them should do so based solely on fit and cost. Some fit variables to consider are academics (majors offered, distribution requirements, class sizes, research opportunities…), environment, social/sports/political vibe, and dorms/food.