Brandeis vs. University of Rochester - Please help me decide!!!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>So guys the deadline to enroll is coming up, and I've narrowed it down to these two, but for the life of me I can't decide which one. Please help me figure out which school is right for me. Here's some background about me:</p>

<p>I'm from Maine, so I don't mind cold weather. I know Rochester is cold, but I don't think that would bother me.</p>

<p>My sister currently attends Brandeis, as a freshman. I don't think it would bother me that she's there, actually it might be nice, but I'm still not sure.</p>

<p>I'm headed pre-med, hoping to be an ophthalmologist, so very interested in optics and sciences. (I know Rochester has a great optics program) I also plan to study and likely minor in economics.</p>

<p>I'm jewish and I would like to be active in hillel and other programs. I know the jewish community at Brandeis is incredible, but how is Rochester's jewish life?</p>

<p>I'm plan to play varsity tennis, I know both teams are about equal in level, so that probably won't have much of an impact on my decision.</p>

<p>I've loved music all my life (trumpet + singing), and I'm hoping to play in the college orchestra, join a capella groups, etc.</p>

<p>I like Rochester's campus a lot more, it has a much nicer, traditional college feel to me.
Lastly, the financial aid from each was almost identical, Brandeis being just slightly better but not enough of a difference to have an impact on my decision.</p>

<p>Any input would be great, thanks!!</p>

2

<p>Just from reading your post it sounds to me that you like U Roc better. Since the cost is similar enough for you, go there. ;)</p>

<p>You can ask their Hillel question on their Class of 2017 Facebook page.</p>

3

<p>Rochester is cold and <em>snowy</em>, being right on Lake Erie they get a lot of that lake effect white stuff. I went to Syracuse right down the road and they get a lot of snow, too. Cold is one thing, slogging thru the snow to get to class day after day can get old fast.</p>

<p>That being said, Rochester has a lot to offer. You said you like music…with the Eastman School of music right there you should find a lot of like minded students and music groups to get involved with. Same is true for the medical school/facilities.</p>

<p>My H graduated from Rochester as an optical engineer. While he didn’t love the weather he values highly the education he received.</p>

4

<p>It sounds like you have done an excellent job of laying out the pros and cons of each of these schools.</p>

<p>This being said, based on your list, some people would choose Brandeis and other Rochester. Both are great schools, good luck for your choice.</p>

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<p>Jewish life: the magazine “Reform Judaism” publishes a list of the 60 colleges nationwide with the largest number of Jewish students (30 public, 30 private), and the 19 with the highest percentage of Jewish students. For 2012, Brandeis and Rochester were 14 and 26 on the list for number of Jewish students, and Brandeis was #4 for highest percentage (50%). Rochester has an active Hillel with an up to date website. </p>

<p>I agree that it sounds like you’d prefer Rochester.</p>

<p>[Reform</a> Judaism Magazine - College & Youth](<a href=“http://reformjudaismmag.org/browse/youth/]Reform”>http://reformjudaismmag.org/browse/youth/)</p>

6

<p>Thank you for your comments so far. I have, in fact, been leaning toward attending University of Rochester and I guess it showed in my description :slight_smile: More comments would still be great though!</p>

7

<p>Either one is fine for your career goals. I would give a slight nod to U.Rochester for being slightly better for science, and they also have engineering which Brandeis does not. Just provides a slightly richer environment for someone interested in science in general. Plus Rochester has its own medical school and there is a hospital right there.
Weather is a little worse though, more snow.
We liked it a lot when we visited, son almost applied.</p>

8

<p>About a year ago I found a statistic on “Bigfuture of the College Board”, in the section on where students go that listed the percentage of students that go on to study medicine within the next 5 years after graduation. That figure did include PA programs but not nursing programs. </p>

<p>Brandies was 17% and Rochester was 13%, both very high. </p>

<p>Now they changed what they report to within 1 year, Brandeis didn’t report last year, and Rochester reported 7%, which probably jibes with 13% after 5 years. </p>

<p>We visited both with my D, and we all thought Brandeis was pretty ugly and we all liked Rochester. </p>

<p>That said, when the leaves are off the trees, from November to March, most campuses would be rather ugly. Boston is a great city to go to college in or near. Rochester is not bad, but it’s not Boston. </p>

<p>So you have a nice choice to make.</p>

9

<p>Rochester. </p>

<p>But you don’t need me/us to tell you this. Think about it. You’ve made all the compelling arguments in its favor, not one to support Brandeis.</p>

<p>If you are looking for endorsements to insure this is a rational decision, I’ll add my voice to the chorus. Rochester seems like a great choice.</p>

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<p>Agreed I’ve pretty much made my choice at this point. Rochester just has more of what I’m looking in a college and fits more of my interests. I know being at college in a city like Boston would be nice, but I think I’m gonna have to go with University of Rochester!</p>

<p>Any other opinions would still be great - thanks to everyone who has commented thus far.</p>

11

<p>@sam
Rochester has a BIG jewish population. Infact you can call University of Rochester a defacto Jewish institution [in a good sense]. It is a good school, I do not know about Brandeis.
It does snow in Rochester but it is not very cold compared to Maine, VT etc. Rochester is used to snow, so they do a good job of cleaning the snow, that should be the least of your concerns.
If Jewish life is important, then Rochester is the place to go. [I do not know about Brandeis].
You will get good education in both places.</p>

12

<p>

Okay, that was a pretty funny comment to anyone who DOES know about Brandeis.</p>

<p>One of my S’s friends left Rochester because he found the weather too depressing (and he was a New Englander) and the area too boring. I agree that Brandeis has gotten pretty darn ugly in the years since I graduated–way too built up and a wild jumble of architectural styles–but it sure is nice to have all of Boston nearby.</p>

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<p>Agreed MommaJ :)</p>

<p>Tamtiger - Thank you. That is just what I wanted to hear. I am glad to know University of Rochester has such a great Jewish presence. Just so you know, Brandeis was founded by Jews and includes many wonderful Jewish ideals at its core. It is just under half Jewish, has over 60 courses in Judaic studies, and even dedicated half of its main dining hall to serving kosher food. Unless you want to go to Yeshiva U, Brandeis is pretty much the place to go if you really want a huge Jewish percentage. This I already knew about Brandeis, but I did not know quite as much about Jewish life Rochester, so I am happy to hear that Jews do have a large presence there. Coming from a very small Jewish community in rural Maine, one of my goals in applying to colleges was to find a place with a bigger Jewish population, and I just wanted to make sure I wouldn’t be missing out on that.</p>

14

<p>@momma and @sama
Thank you for the information. As I said, I do not know anything about Brandeis. I learned some thing today.
Regarding U of R, if you are expecting half the students to be Jewish, it will not happen. But there is a large Jewish community in Rochester. A lot of decision makers and Professors are Jewish at the University. But you have a very diverse community with a strong Jewish influence at U of R.
Hope this helps. [That is why you need to take what is said on this board with a pinch of “kosher salt” :), because the person giving you information may not even be as knowledgeable as you are…:)].
So let me revise my suggestion, if you want a lot of Jewish influence then I guess Brandeis, if you want to feel comfortable being a Jewish student and be in a society that is more diverse, with good education [both colleges], then consider U of R. Just my thoughts. </p>

<p>Good Luck.</p>

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<p>Another way to gauge Jewish life on campus is to contact the Hillel at U.Rochester.
[UR</a> Hillel - Home](<a href=“http://www.rochesterhillel.org/home.aspx]UR”>http://www.rochesterhillel.org/home.aspx)</p>

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<p>Educationally both are great schools with a pretty comparable student body. To give up the Boston area for dreary, small-town Rochester, you would have to have a compelling reason in my opinion. Good luck with your decision!</p>

17

<p>Yes the compelling reason will be “a much nicer, traditional college feel”, the OP’s interest in “optics and sciences”, and “likely minor in economics” - areas that Rochester, arguably, trumps Brandeis.</p>

<p>B77, you have a way of trashing other schools in your effort to promote Brandeis. It is actually very petty.</p>

18

<p>I clearly said both schools were excellent but that the town of Rochester was small and dreary compared to Boston. It was characterized similarly elsewhere on this post. No need for ad hominem attacks Zobasity.</p>