Case Western Reserve University vs. University of Connecticut vs. Loyola University New Orleans

College Search & Selection
1

Unfortunately, the deadline to choose a university is quickly approaching (May 1st) and I have yet to send my deposit. I am down to these three schools and need some advice on which one to pick. I will be majoring in Environmental Studies/Anthropology with a minor in French. Basically, the big issue between choosing is the cost of attendance.

I received quite a lot of aid from Case, however, it is about 6k (a year) more expensive than my state university, UConn. I am not very interested in Loyola but I am in love with New Orleans and it is the cheapest option (6k less than UConn each year). Case is located in a city (Cleveland) and as a someone who has only lived in extremely small towns, I would really enjoy the perks of a city life (internship opportunities, more things to explore, museums, diversity ect) UConn is literally in the middle of NOWHERE, in the small town of Storrs (which actually is bigger than the town I’m actually from - which tells you something) Loyola is within a city environment, New Orleans, not to mention a city that has an immense amount of internships dealing with environmental emergency management. Overall, Case is ranked the highest out of the three at #37 (I know I shouldn’t base my choice off of this, but it is something to keep in mind) UConn is ranked #57, and Loyola isn’t even included in the National University listing on the U.S.News and Report ranking list.

Soooo I need some help guys… I need to make a decision soon and I am still completely lost. Thank you for your help!

2

How much can you afford?

How would you pay for the higher-cost options?

3

I would be able to afford the most expensive option (Case) but

  1. I don’t know if its worth it in the end, as I plan on attending graduate school.
  2. Even though I can afford it, picking a cheaper is the most economically logical choice (I don’t know what is the most logical in terms of getting the most out of the academics/experience)
4

What do you want to major in?

5

I think this might be a situation where you should do very careful comparative research on the structure of each of the major departments/programs. See what courses are offered, what is required for each major, who the faculty are, what are their research interests, etc. For some majors there won’t be much difference between the requirements at different universities. For other majors there can be huge differences in the focus, strengths, and priorities of the program. In the case of Anthropology and Environmental Studies there can be huge differences, and if other aspects of this choice are feeling hard to compare, this is one area where careful research may make the decision clearer.