<p>whats his hs gpa take into account? my HS gpa was 5.5, but my uf GPA was probably a little bit south of 4.0, and my unweighted gpa was 3.3</p>
<p>Your son will get into UF and FSU Honors, granted his core GPA is at least above 4.0.</p>
<p>The choice will ultimately come down to which programs your son is interested in.</p>
<p>University of Florida is has the advantage in most programs in comparison to FSU. Florida State only has some key artistic programs, such as film, where they are actually ranked ahead of UF.</p>
<p>I would visit both campuses and see what you like.</p>
<p>Thanks I-Gator. We will be visiting UF this weekend. There is some special Hispanic Scholars’ tour taking place. Hopefully, my son will be able to take a close look at UF’s English department. I am pretty sure that he wants to major in English/Writing.</p>
<p>^^^For english/writting, FSU blows UF out of the water. Shouldn’t be a tough choice.</p>
<p>btw, FSU has more than “some key artistic programs” ranked above UF.</p>
<p>^</p>
<p>That is completely incorrect. UF has one of the top rated journalism programs in the country, whereas FSU is hardly ranked in many programs.</p>
<p>FSU throws up the facade that they excel in liberal arts just because they are so grossly behind inthe math and sceinces.</p>
<p>Please show me some rankings where FSU is ranked higher in comparable programs.</p>
<p>I don’t think that FSU has a Journalism program, but its Creative Writing program is highly ranked.</p>
<p>English:</p>
<p>FSU = 79th overall</p>
<p>UF = 46th overall</p>
<p>UM = 83rd overall</p>
<p>[‘The</a> Atlantic’ lists FSU’s Creative Writing Program among ‘Best of the Best’](<a href=“http://www.fsu.edu/news/2007/07/27/creative.writing/]'The”>'The Atlantic' lists FSU's Creative Writing Program among 'Best of the Best')</p>
<p>“And now, FSU’s “Best of the Best” Creative Writing Program rounds out a national top-10 list that includes premier universities such as Cornell University, Johns Hopkins, New York University and the University of Virginia.”</p>
<p>This definitely shows more and more the irrelevance of US News, doesn’t it?</p>
<p>Creative writing falls under the “artistic programs” I previously mentioned.</p>
<p>As a whole, the UF English department is better. Sure you could pull up obscure programs FSU is ranked higher in, but when it comes down to the important generalized programs, FSU falls short.</p>
<p>he’s got a point. english and creative writing aren’t the same thing.</p>
<p>UF leads FSU in more areas currently in US News ratings, but not necessairily in significant ways in the sciences. I made this comparison some time ago, but generally it shows how the programs match up today. Note that significant variability sometimes occurs in these programs:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/florida-state-university/174468-usnews-rankings-phd-fsu-vs-uf-vs-usf-vs-um.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/florida-state-university/174468-usnews-rankings-phd-fsu-vs-uf-vs-usf-vs-um.html</a></p>
<p>FSU just spent millions and millions on new science infrastructure so we’ll see how that affects ratings in periods to come. As in law, where the programs are neck and neck, I think we’ll see a closing of ratings. Such ratings are suspect in general in my mind.</p>
<p>FSU shows a listing of various rankings here: <a href=“http://fsu.edu/highlights/rankings.html[/url]”>http://fsu.edu/highlights/rankings.html</a></p>
<p>A broader listing from 1998 may be found here: <a href=“http://president.fsu.edu/98state/speech4.html[/url]”>http://president.fsu.edu/98state/speech4.html</a></p>
<p>In 1996 FSU even had a better graduation rate than UF: <a href=“http://web.archive.org/web/19970427090346/www.fsu.edu/~rsect/muppets/mup9604.html[/url]”>http://web.archive.org/web/19970427090346/www.fsu.edu/~rsect/muppets/mup9604.html</a></p>
<p>I am not sure why you would not consider Creative Writing as an important part of any respectable English department. Most English departments have two tracks: Literature and Writing. While the Lit tract attempts to interpret English Literature and understand the world at large, the Writing tract studies the English language, and its works, in order to produce Literature. </p>
<p>If this discussion is an attempt to minimize FSU (or any University) you can count me out. I have absolutely no allegiance to any Florida school. I only mentioned FSU’s Creative Writing program because my son wants to major in CW and possibly go on to study Film as a graduate student. I respectfully ask that any 'Gator v. 'Nole rivalry be left out of the discussion. </p>
<p>I put little or no stock in Magazine rankings. I know nothing about the Atlantic’s rankings and their methodology. However, if I were to “trust” a publication’s opinions about an English program, I would give the upper hand to the Atlantic over the USN&WR. </p>
<p>My son and I are very serious about his education. We are trying to find the best college for his skills and goals. And, I have come to these message boards to gain as much knowledge as possible.</p>
<p>Parent2noles posts are a living anachronism. Not only are they several years old, and hence outdated, but they fail to give side by side comparison in regards to programs, except for the 3 year old thread with no link.</p>
<p>Any legitimate sources would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Glad to see you are living in 1996, because in 2009 UF has a better yield rate, test scores, GPA, merit scholars, and several other facets when compared to FSU.</p>
<p>back and fourth threads like this do a lot of damage to the overall utility of this forum. quit the bickering, we all know that the age of the information is relevant.</p>
<p>regardless of where he goes he’s going to get a good education. the differences will be nominal. what he does at school is going to be far more important than which florida school he goes to. except for in specific/unique programs, the biggest differences between UF and FSU have to do with the environment and the kind of people who go there, not which school is more academically rigorous. the idea that the number of merit scholars that go to a school should somehow sway someone one way or another is ludicrous. they both offer a great deal of opportunity, and they are both well known.</p>
<p>etherdome
</p>
<p>Notice how your reply was purposefully ignored. I think your point is worth emphasizing, even if the discussion degenerates as usual into arbitrary statements by the usual posters.</p>
<p>Thank you MyOpinion. Hopefully, the discussion will turn more informative.</p>
<p>Statistically with a 3.8 UF GPA it is unlikely he even will be accepted into UF, so that will make the choice pretty easy.</p>
<p>Have fun at FSU.</p>
<p>UF is a wildcard. I’ve seen average joes get in and outstanding, well-rounded students get flat out rejected. I’m applying but I honestly don’t think I have a chance.</p>
<p>I feel that I must reiterate a previous statement.</p>
<p>UF, FSU, and Miami are all great institutions that provide different experiences. Basically it comes down to preferences and which one is the right fit for your son.</p>
<p>Also creative writing is very strong at FSU. They the best of the three in Fine Arts, Music, and Dance.</p>