<p>I normally don't go on these sorts of sites, but on the behest of a friend, I'm going to give it a try! This all seems really, really awesome and useful (yes, very articulate, I am). </p>
<p>So, I'm an international student, currently living in Beijing, China, who plans to attend university in the US as a psychology major (with a minor in music history if I can). These are the universities that I've been accepted to and that I'm considering: </p>
<p>University of Rochester (with 10,000USD/year scholarship)
Pitzer College
Boston University</p>
<p>I would like a place with, at least, some culture and the general 'friendly people and nice staff' jazz. </p>
<p>I really like all of these colleges and I don't want to rely too much on things like rankings or ratings on sites! </p>
<p>Could some awesome students of these three universities give me some tips? <3</p>
<p>U of Rochester is good esp. with the scholarship you got (wow!) but it’s waaay too cold for me up there. (I don’t know much about URoch so I don’t have much to say 0.0)</p>
<p>Boston is def. my favorite city in the US 'cuz it has an European feel to it–it’s nicer and more … I dunno, elegant? than some larger cities like LA and NYU, which are really big and messy cities. Boston has like, trees and parks and my impression of it was really good.</p>
<p>But I still vote Pitzer, just 'cuz it’s the Claremonts and you can take classes in any of the Claremonts. And that is a HUGE advantage. Plus if you like the Cali weather you’d be happy. And the Claremonts are reeeeally nice and small and friendly places. I went to visit and it gave off a happy vibe. The campus is small, and everyone there gets a lot of attention from faculty and stuff. Everyone knows everyone. It’s like an extension of our school, sort of. You’d fit right in and feel comfortable. People do stuff on and off campus but I think (if I remember correctly) that a lot of people prefer to stay on-campus? The Claremonts aren’t in any big city but there are a few small restaurants and hangout places you could chill at, like Europlaza or Pinnacle ;D But I think you could def. get to towns and bigger cities with good transportation.</p>
<p>On the other hand, if you wanna meet a lot of people and lead a busier life in a bigger city, then maybe not Claremonts. Boston and maybe Roch would suit that better.</p>
<p>Though I can’t speak to the strengths and weaknesses of the other institutions you have mentioned (though I know they are both reputable, and wonderful options), I can say that Rochester is a very diverse and welcoming place. </p>
<p>I attended a smaller liberal arts college that had a relatively homogenous student body, and I have been extremely impressed by the diversity of the Rochester student body with regard to geographic diversity, cultural/ethnic diversity, diversity of interests, etc. Approximately 90-100 countries and all 50 states are represented at Rochester.</p>
<p>I think you are smart to ask for the advice of current students. I can tell you all I know and observe, but I think a current student will have a more keen opinion on the pros and cons of Rochester… I’ll see what I can do about getting a student to post on here.</p>
<p>Rochester has a beautiful campus, and while it is cold, it’s not as cold as some people would have you believe. I took a quick look at weather.com, and at least for this month, the weather in Beijing is similar to the weather in Rochester. </p>
<p>BU has no campus. It’s a large collection of buildings along a main street in Boston. If you’re looking for a real “college feel”, BU doesn’t have it. Among your choices, you can’t beat Boston for culture, though - Boston Symphony, Boston Ballet, Pops, Gardner Museum, Museam of Fine Arts, etc.</p>
<p>Don’t know enough about Claremont to comment.</p>
<p>I know 2 reasonably well and something about Rochester. Pitzer is fine but they roll the streets up at night in that area. Seriously quiet part of SoCal. BU is an urban campus - about a mile from my house - in a great city. The weather isn’t that different from Beijing. Rochester gets more snow but it isn’t colder. </p>
<p>If you care about the number of Chinese in the school and area, BU has many and the area has many restaurants, though honestly the food of Beijing, Xian, etc. is not common in the US. We have a few but most of the best restaurants are Shanghai, Cantonese, Sichuan and Taiwanese. SoCal has a huge Chinese population but not so much around Pasadena and LA is beyond huge. </p>
<p>You should be able to do your program with the minor at any US school.</p>
<p>We live near Boston, and Boston University experiences a winter much like Rochester’s. In fact, over the last 3 winters, D has reported less snow than we’ve had near Boston.</p>
<p>So, you can’t claim UR’s weather as a disadvantage but not mention Boston’s winter!!</p>
<p>MADad… this is very true. Boston has in the last three years had more snow than Rochester. The biggest disadvantage to Rochester’s weather is that we have more cloudy days on average than Boston, but the snow and average temperatures are truly very manageable. As I always tell students - yes it snows, but you don’t have to shovel it.</p>
This is probably the biggest reason why my kids were so determined to move away from home for college! As it turns out, both have a strong preference for snow belt schools, so while they aren’t shoveling, they will still get to trudge in it!</p>