Can't decide between two colleges...need help!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I got accepted into Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN & I also got into University of South Carolina- Columbia. </p>

<p>Vanderbilt is ranked by US News as the 17th top university in the nation. Pros: It is academically challenging but provides huge educational opportunities along with staff intimacy towards students. It is close to home (3 hour drive). Nashville is an awesome city with great weather and a conservative lifestyle. and scholarship opportunities are great. The Cons: I Don't know anyone there. I have to live on campus all four years. Sports teams aren't too great except for basketball. Greek life is big which im not into that much. They don't have my major</p>

<p>South Carolina
Pros: GPA would be a lot better as opposed to Vandy. Academics might not be as strong but social life would be great for me. I have tons of friends already there. I would be able to room with a close friend of mine off campus. Columbia is a pretty cool city to live in. Honors college is competitive and strong.I have a church I used to go to there. Sports traditions are huge and fun.They have my desired major.
Cons: 10 hours from home, its a research orientated university rather than education orientated like Vanderbilt, Academics not that amazing, student body is big on partying.</p>

<p>As you can see, both have strong attractions and have some significant disadvantages about them.</p>

2

<p>Seems like you’d rather go to USC. After reading the pros & cons, I’d rather go to SC honestly.</p>

3

<p>“They don’t have my major”</p>

<p>Then why, oh why is Vanderbilt still on your list at all?</p>

4

<p>Well see, they have Russian and European studies which is like my major though not the same. So it wouldn’t be a big change, but i understand what you are saying.</p>

5

<p>You say South Carolina is a research university compared to education oriented Vanderbilt? Vandy should be both. </p>

<p>And your choice of major might change, so don’t rule out Vandy just because they don’t have the specific major you want.</p>

6

<p>What about the money issue? Is one less expensive for you than the other?</p>

<p>Who is it who wants you to go to Vanderbilt rather than the honors program of the fine public university that you want to attend? Why do they want you to go there?</p>

<p>Can you take a quick road-trip to see both of these places?</p>

7

<p>Right, I am not ruling out Vandy because they don’t have my major. But it does matter that they don’t have my specific major right? Vanderbilt is a research institution but they are more concerned with teaching their students than the research they are doing where as USC is all about research.</p>

<p>Money is not an issue for me. My parents are covering all the costs. Both schools have advantages in this field though. USC offers in-state tuition for any out-of-state that gets a scholarship of any kind. Vanderbilt doesn’t offer loans but instead gives out grants and scholarships. I would also have a state scholarship since I also live in Tennessee. </p>

<p>My mom has always pushed me to go to a small private institution so her preference is Vanderbilt. She thinks its of “ivy league” quality. She also wants me to be a little closer to home and thinks I’ll get a better education there as opposed to the Honors College.</p>

<p>I’ve lived in South Carolina for 7 years so I know what Columbia is like. The campus is like a typical college campus I would say. I’ve seen vanderbilt and stayed on campus there for a few days. I am not thrilled with Vanderbilt’s campus because of how urban it is, but again, the education I would get there is unmatched compared to USC.</p>

<p>I should also mention that I am transferring. This isn’t my first time applying to colleges. One of the reasons I left my previous college was because of the lifestyle there. Many people there I didn’t connect well with because they orientated themselves around the greek lifestyle and hardcore partying. My first couple of weeks were brutal because I knew practically no one so making friends was a little tough. It was also really hard for me to get home because driving was just too much of a distance (2 days). Finally, I felt out of place there.</p>

8

<p>“It is close to home (3 hour drive). Nashville is an awesome city with great weather and a conservative lifestyle. and scholarship opportunities are great. The Cons: I Don’t know anyone there. I have to live on campus all four years. Sports teams aren’t too great except for basketball. Greek life is big which im not into that much. They don’t have my major”</p>

<p>It sounds to me as if Vanderbilt is a big win. Of course NO college you go to will possibly give you everything you want, just because I tend to feel that your needs/lifestyle/wants change so much when you go through college. You are a different person than when you started.</p>

<p>I wouldn’t let the “not knowing anyone” thing really get you down. Most people don’t really know anyone there, and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. You just need to get involved with clubs, jobs, and heck, talk to someone in class. I knew nobody upon coming to my current uni and now I can’t imagine living without the people I have met here.</p>

<p>Living on campus all four years isn’t horrible, unless your dorms/apartments are absolutely terrible, which I highly doubt. I live in an on campus apartment and find it quite convenient.</p>

<p>Are sports really that important to you? Like really?</p>

<p>I’m not into Greek life either, but I do belong to a professional co ed business fraternity. Just don’t get involved with the Greeks and they won’t get involved with you. Again, researching the clubs/groups that Vanderbilt has ahead of time could benefit you greatly if you are so worried about social aspects.</p>

<p>They don’t have your major. This COULD be an issue. If you want to be a graphic designer and your school doesn’t have graphic design, that’s an obvious choice. But you say that your major isn’t really cut and dry, which you need to take into consideration. Research your career path more deeply to see what others in the field did with their education in terms of degree name. If you really don’t think it matters that they don’t have your “major” then this could be a blessing! Explore academics and take classes you wouldn’t normally take, it’ll prepare you and make you well rounded. Getting internships/jobs are actually just as valuable as classroom experience, if not more.</p>

<p>I would say Vanderbilt given what you have told me, but I’m not you and I don’t know the whole story. Either way, I’m sure you would do great at both of these schools as college is what you make of it. Don’t get too caught up in the social aspects either, because you ARE there to learn.</p>

9

<p>If you are majoring in the liberal arts like Russian then you will probably go on to grad school. Look and see which school puts more students into top grad schools.</p>

<p>I see two things you have mentioned not liking about your current school - distance from home, no friends. Vandy solves the first one and USC solves the second one. Which is more important to you?</p>

<p>Will you really be able to achieve a higher GPA at USC? Is it that much easier than Vandy?</p>

<p>In general, I think Vandy would be a better choice for one reason - the caliber of student there. Both schools will have a good amount of partying, but at Vandy you will be able to find a larger non-party crowd. More of the students there will be there for the academics. IMO, that’s the main reason for choosing a higher ranked school - you get a student body that is more serious about academics and this is synergistic.</p>

10

<p>I think USC is a quality state school but having gone through a state school, I had no problems with my grades. My biggest problem I am having now is what I would feel like passing up an opportunity of going to a top ranked institution like Vanderbilt. At the same time I want to enjoy my college career with activities and friends and not be solely concentrated on academics. </p>

<p>I am worried that if i reject Vanderbilt that I won’t get in there for graduate school. Would rejecting Vanderbilt’s offer for undergraduate affect my future application for their graduate school?</p>

11

<p>So right now my biggest concern is how the dorms at Vanderbilt are, if their graduate school is hard to get into, and whether I can get into USC’s honors college or not. The dorms would require a visit which i planned later in the week. The graduate school would be something to look into further and the honors college option is something I should talk to when I go to orientation later this week at USC. What else could I do to solidify my decision process?</p>

12

<p>Isn’t Greek life and partying a big factor at USC? The greek participation rate is lower, to be sure, but it’s still a major part of campus life. Are you thinking that because you’ll be living off campus at USC and involved in your church, you’ll have a more independent life and the scene on campus won’t really matter?</p>

13

<p>Hanna, I think you just hit the nail on the head. I do want a more independent life and that’s probably what I’ve been trying to get at with my preferences. I think by living off campus and being involved with my church and friends who don’t go to USC would help me learn how to live on my own. When I was at my old university I certainly did not spend time with those who were in frats and sororities, but did things with my friends away from that stuff (minus a little partying).</p>

14

<p>“I am worried that if i reject Vanderbilt that I won’t get in there for graduate school. Would rejecting Vanderbilt’s offer for undergraduate affect my future application for their graduate school?”</p>

<p>No.</p>

15

<p>Okay awesome, I thought rejecting their offer would hurt my chances at their graduate school, but it doesn’t so thats a plus. </p>

<p>Now for another concern. Is prestige really worth it? I know the rankings out there have Vanderbilt in the top 25 schools, but is it really worth the 55k a year when I can go to USC for 30K? I really don’t want to regret having missed a huge opportunity with Vanderbilt. I want there to be a balance between academics and social activities while trying to live an independent lifestyle. I am afraid that I would be like the average college student at a state school that is “mediocre” for some if I attend USC. </p>

<p>You all have given me great advice and answers. I appreciate it. Yet, I still feel very conflicted about how I should handle making a decision. I still have more than a week left to decide and campus visits to attend, so maybe I’m trying to rush this a little bit. However, I cannot get it out of my mind for one minute. </p>

<p>My options laid out:
Vanderbilt- Great future career opportunities, quality education, close connections with professors and friends
USC- Amazing friendships, high GPA, independent living (more freedom), network of people already established</p>

<p>Seems like both offer a lot, and thats true for any college. I want both institutions, but that’s not going to happen. And finally, my mother would love to see me at Vanderbilt for the sole reason of her always feeling thats where I’ve belonged (in a small liberal-arts college) and putting that pressure on me has made me felt that rejecting Vanderbilt would crush my mother’s wishes. I should also say my father is currently working on getting a job outside the country after being employed for a year and a half and would spend 3-4 years over in the Middle East. My mother would eventually move over there but for maybe one to two years she would stay where we currently live, therefore the distance from home would matter to her also. </p>

<p>I know its my decision; but, with outside influences its hard to really make my “own” decision about this.</p>

16

<p>Bump 10chars</p>

17

<p>55k - 30k = 25k</p>

<p>Each and every year.</p>

<p>This is like a decent smaller car every single year. Or half the price of a starter home in many parts of the country.</p>

<p>What could you or your family do with that 25k x 4 = 100k?</p>

<p>Vanderbilt is your mom’s fantasy. Not necessarily yours. I say, go to the excellent, less expensive school. Your mom can spend part of the savings coming to check up on you every once in a while. Heck, with the savings from the first year, she could even buy herself a brand new car to drive there in.</p>

18

<p>I go to Vandy and I’m amazed that so many kids go here for full sticker price. If it weren’t for the fact that it’s cheaper for me to go to Vandy than UTexas, I’d go to UT. As happymomof1 pointed out, 25k is a pretty big difference and it’s probably in your best interest to pass on Vandy, especially if you’re thinking about grad school.</p>

19

<p>“I go to Vandy and I’m amazed that so many kids go here for full sticker price.”</p>

<p>Are there really that many people that go there who have to pay full tuition? I thought Vandy was well known at giving out financial aid and providing admitted students with packages that are very affordable.</p>

20

<p>According to one of the FA brochures I got last year, a little more than 60% of the students here receive aid from one or more sources. So then roughly a little bit less than 40% of the kids here are full pay.</p>