Hi all! I was wondering if anybody could give me advice on whether I should attend Smith or BU. I am currently a first year at a public college and I applied to transfer for the fall of 2018. I got admitted to Smith and I put down my deposit for the school a few weeks ago. However, I recently heard back from BU this past week and got a great scholarship.
The price difference between Smith and BU is about $2,000 a year with BU being a bit more affordable. I love Smith, but now that I’ve been accepted to BU, I’m considering withdrawing from Smith and enrolling at BU because it would be a bit cheaper and I may have the opportunity to commute and save more money.
I am interested in majoring in political science or sociology. I currently go to a large public university and I feel like I would prefer a smaller school with a close-knit community. I love Smith because of its open curriculum, small class sizes, and the houses. I could really see myself grow there. However, I feel like I may be open to going to BU if it is more affordable.
I did not really consider BU up until now and would appreciate it if anybody could give me advice on the differences between these two schools academically. Overall, what are the main benefits of attending a small liberal arts college like Smith in comparison to a large university like BU?
Thank you all for help in advance! I would appreciate any advice on the differences between these two schools in terms of academic programs and whatnot!
How big a difference is this $2,000 each year for you? For some people that would be a make-or-break difference. For others it wouldn’t be. For example, if this difference would be covered by your summer job, or by maxing out your student loan instead of taking a partial student loan, then it might not be a problem at all. However if it would require more borrowing for someone, then it could be a big problem.
How easy would it be for you to commute to BU? Is it walking distance from your house? How do your parents feel about you living at home for the next two or three years so you can commute? Would your aid package change if you commute? Often they do if they are need-based.
If you were looking for a smaller community like Smith, how did BU end up on your application list in the first place? Because of the possibility of living at home and commuting? Because you just flat-out dislike your current university and anything at all would be better?
Do you have any other transfer applications still pending? Where do they stand in your preference list relative to Smith and BU?
@happymomof1 I have money saved up and I am working during the summer to help my parents pay for college. The price difference is not necessarily significant, although, I figured that if I were to perhaps commute during my last 2 years of school at BU, it would make a bigger difference. I do realize that aid often changes when you commute, so it may not be an option after all.
BU would be very accessible for me through public transportation. I e-mailed the financial aid office and they said that I would still be eligible for the award if I commuted, although, it wasn’t specific about whether my aid would change. I will probably reach out to someone in the financial aid office again to ensure that my aid does not change.
I chose to apply to BU because I wanted a wider range of options. I’ve come to realize now that I would definitely prefer a smaller school. Additionally, I really don’t like my current school and felt like anything would be better.
I’m also waiting on American. Smith and BU are definitely towards the top of my list.
Overall, I think I’m set on Smith at the moment, although I do want to ensure that I’m making the right decision by considering BU so that I don’t have any doubts about not going to BU, especially since I got good financial aid from them.
@TomSrOfBoston Thanks! That is what I have heard. I will probably not commute if aid changes. In that case, BU would be a bit more affordable by about $2000.
Based on what you are saying, you’ll enjoy Smith more. The advantages of a small liberal arts college is the intimacy of a small, select group - your classes are smaller, you’ll know your professors personally (if you want to), your dorms and dining facilities are smaller - you will see the same people daily, many people will know your name- there’s a sense of belonging and it’s easier to feel like a full community member. At a big school you are more anonymous, more of a number, there’s more impersonal bureaucracy and you can dissappear easier.
With the two schools you have options for the campus environment is totally different - BU is a city campus, very spread out and not particularly beautiful (sorry BU). Smith is a women’s college with beautiful old buildings, a lovely suburban campus and many old-style traditions.
Not everyone would enjoy Smith more than BU but based on what you’re saying, it’s much more what you want.
Seems you are set on Smith but BU may open more opportunities - it is a bigger school with lots of international students and has decent reputation globally
Thank you all! I appreciate all the advice. I feel like Smith has been the right choice all along. I may just re-visit BU and ask the financial aid office about commuting to feel more confident about my choice… but Smith just feels right academically and socially. I feel like I would definitely fit in there more compared to BU.
I am just a bit concerned about Smith not having the same reputation as a larger university, although prestige is not that important to me.
This two options seem very dissimilar. BU is very urban and the campus, at least from the highway, is not very attractive. At Smith you expect Angela Lansbury to wander out of one of the buildings. Northampton is also very different from Boston as well. Based on your own goals, Smith seems like an obvious choice for you. As a transfer, you only have <3 years left anyway. Wandering around the Smith campus for 3 years vs. expeditions on the Boston public transit system - that alone is a $2000 per year benefit in favor of Smith.
OP I think either school could be great, just that (as others have pointed out) they are very different. It depends on the kind of experience you want to have. As an alum of course I am happy it sounds like you will stick with Smith. It is a wonderful environment to grow into the woman you want to be. Too bad that Smith will be more expensive than BU, but only you and your family can know if the extra money is worth it / easily manageable.
If you feel that Smith is the right choice then I would go with Smith and not bother to follow up with BU. Don’t discount gut feeling as part of the equation. Smith has an outstanding reputation with anyone who matters (ex. grad schools, future employers etc.).
In Smith, you have gotten into a more selective school than you seem to have realized. By standardized scoring data, for example, Smith appeared in 56th place nationally compared to BU’s 96th in this analysis of a few years ago:
Yes, Smith has, in most areas, a stronger reputation than BU. (And I’m a BU alum, fwiw) Any perceived prominence of BU over Smith is because of BU’s graduate programs, not because the undergrad programs/departments are better.
And I don’t think that whole $2K difference would remain in you pocket. On a liberal arts campus like Smith (plus the other consortium campuses) so much of what you’ll do for fun is free. At BU, spending money in the city will be a constant temptation.
You’ll get far more individual attention at Smith, and their STEM graduates are incredibly successful. The only reason I’d say to choose BU would be if you clearly did NOT want the kind of college experience Smith offers. (Or if you wanted a specialty program that BU had and Smith did not.) But you sound like you DO want that kind of experience. So IMHO this should be a straightforward decision. Stick with Smith, and congrats!