<p>Re suburban. As a city-loving urbanite type (despite where I currently live LOL), I believe you should NOT rule out suburban. But you have asked exactly the right qx - how much do kids actually take advantage? EG, I went to Wellesley - definitely a wealthy suburb. Yet I spent TONS of time in Cambridge/Boston because that is my bent. I would not let people's views of a given suburb, or the suburb's demographics sway me, if I were you. It is more about whether and how the kids get around. Probably overnights are the best way to figure that out, but you can scope out school paper, what the website shows about in-city offerings/transportaiton; ask qx of as many students as possible when you are on campus, etc. I used both school-provided shuttle buses and public transportation.</p>
<p>I must second or third the Vanderbilt thing. We live very close to Vandy (~20 minutes away). Nashville has just about anything you could want. I find it very warm and friendly. Vanderbilt is a great school. We tried to convince DD to apply ... she refused ... it's too close to home. A friend of mine is a professor of neuroscience at Vandy. From what I've read on CC, Vandy is pretty good about scholarships. Good luck.</p>
<p>Much of Tufts is located in Somerville, the densest city in Massachusetts. Much of the housing stock is three-decker detached homes, built before the automobile. Somerville three deckers have virtually no yards, so streets present a wall of houses. Obviously, parking is very difficult. Medford has more single family homes and duplexes. There are virtually no single family homes right around the Tufts campus and both the Medford and Somerville areas near Tufts are urban, not suburan. I live in Winchester, about 5 miles from Tufts, and out here you see primarily single family homes on large lots.</p>
<p>Tufts is very close to Teele, Magoun and, especially, Davis Square in Somerville. These three spots provide restaurants, pharmacies, bakeries, laundries, dry cleaners, bookstores, clubs, movies and, at Davis Square, a subway station for low-cost access to Harvard Square, Cambridge and to Boston. To echo earlier posters, the area around Tufts is pretty safe with only the occasional town-gown problem.</p>
<p>BU, Emerson and Northeastern are all in the City of Boston. There are absolutely no single family homes anywhere around those schools. While Tufts is not as "urban" as these three schools, it cannot be called suburban. Wellesley College or BC, or even Brandeis, might be called suburban, but not Tufts.</p>
<p>While I agree that Tufts isn't urban in the sense of being right downtown, it's in what I would call an inner suburb. It's quite a contrast to schools like Bryn Mawr and Haverford, for example, which are in suburbs of Philadelphia but have a very different feel to them than Tufts. My city loving daughter liked Tufts, but thought that Bryn Mawr and Haverford looked almost rural in comparison.</p>
<p>We live in an urban setting and my son, also, wanted to attend an urban school. He is at McGill in Montreal-delightful city!
He isn't in the Sciences, however, rather he is majoring in Political Science. But as I understand it, McGill has many noteworthy faculties, Science included.</p>
<p>The differences between BC and Tufts location (holding all other things constant) are quite frankly, night and day, and have nothing to do with my interpretation or opinion of the respective locations. Whether that is important or not is up to the individual and prospective students should certainly visit. Just sayin'....</p>
<p>Washingon University in St. Louis is highly thought of in all of the areas you mention.</p>
<p>Thanks for all of the thoughtful responses. We are from the northeast and venturing to Nashville or Atlanta and being dependent on airlines might be a stretch. Although, we have learned that it's not so much the distance as it is the easy and close proximity to a major airport that can alleviate that situation.</p>
<p>I read carefully the debate of what is really considered urban/suburban. I believe that for our child, she would be happy if the access to the urban activities was readily available. She just doesn't want to be in the middle of a cow pasture.</p>
<p>Columbia and Brown would be great options but our school has not had much luck with acceptances there. Brown will most likely be her VERY HIGH REACH. We made the mistake with another child of having too many reaches and ended up on 3 waitlists. We hope to not repeat that.</p>
<p>Thanks in advance for any other thoughts.</p>
<p>lantern5, though BU is definitely a very urban campus, your description of its location is not accurate. BU is right on the edge of the city. Brookline encroaches on the campus considerably-- my dorm is technically in Brookline, but my mailing address is in Boston! It's just as fast and easy to find quiet neighborhoods with parks and schools near BU as it is to make your way downtown (also quite quick, even on foot) or into Allston or Cambridge.</p>
<p>Putting in another plug for Brandeis. Located in a suburb of Boston with easy walk to on campus commuter rail station--20 min. to Cambridge-Boston. College van also provides transport to city. Many students take advantage of this and can still enjoy the benefits of a self-contained vibrant campus community.</p>
<p>Fits your preference for Northeast.</p>
<p>Excellent-highly recognized biology department. Also noted contemporary art museum on campus.</p>
<p>Well within range of your stats for admission--financial aid based on need possible, maybe even merit ?</p>