Columbia or Upenn?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
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<p>I play a sport and have been talking to the coaches at each school, sent them my test scores, etc. </p>

<p>Each coach has told me that I would be able to get into their school if I apply early decision.</p>

<p>These are my top 2 choices for college. I am not totally sure what I want to major in, but it will most likely be something around psychology/cognitive science/neuroscience. Again, I am not totally sure what I will major in.</p>

<p>Which school is overall "better" for undergrads? I will probably go to graduate school, so which school will set me up best for this?</p>

<p>I've seen both campuses and like Columbia a bit better, but I like Upenn's campus as well. I know Columbia is more prestigious, but which is really better?</p>

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<p>what sport are we talking about? Penn football had an awesome year last year (although Columbia didn’t fare so badly), Columbia has traditionally had an awesome fencing team (although last year wasn’t great).</p>

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<p>The sports part doesn’t really matter to me. Both schools have great teams and facilities for my sport.</p>

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<p>I noticed that the perspectives you are being exposed to on the Penn forum have been pretty negative in regards to Columbia’s atmosphere. </p>

<p>Admissionsgeek wrote this a short while back, I think it might help you to read why one student loves Columbia so much:</p>

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<p>Admissiongeek’s post came from the first page of this thread describing her perspectives on Columbia:</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/columbia-university/836242-down-wire-hard-sell-columbia.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/columbia-university/836242-down-wire-hard-sell-columbia.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>^^^^^^^Haha, says something about Penn students, doesn’t it? (I’m a Columbia ED hopeful :D)</p>

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<p>I don’t think Columbia is more prestigious than UPenn for specific colleges other than the nursing school, which has a relatively high selectivity. But that isn’t the point of this thread.</p>

<p>You should prioritize different aspects that you look for in a university and think about how much weight you would give each of them. Then see which university better caters to your priorities in a university.</p>

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<p>Personally, I’d prefer Columbia over Penn. But not because of the Orwellian double-speak as copied and pasted in post #4. Let’s try to make some sense of this gibberish, shall we?</p>

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<p>Substitute “Penn” (or pretty much any urban university) for “Columbia” and nobody would know the difference.</p>

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<p>Except for its Ivy League status and a nominal campus, how is Columbia any more “traditional” than NYU?</p>

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<p>No, this doesn’t set Columbia apart from any other traditional (or non-traditional) places. What schools aren’t about both the “community” and the “individual?”</p>

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<p>All of Columbia’s peer institutions have “A LOT” of opportunities out there. So what’s the big deal?</p>

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<p>Oh no? Philadelphia (or Boston or Chicago or LA) does not have pizza, ice cream and dumplings? Sure, they don’t have the Brooklyn bridge or Mott Street or Soho or East Village, but they have their own unique landmarks and neighborhoods. It’s kind of arrogant and provincial to say that “there is nothing that can match that diversity in terms of experience.”</p>

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<p>Where do college students “buy into the university as the sole harbinger of fun?”</p>

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<p>How is this Columbia-specific? Or even college-specific.</p>

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<p>I’m assuming that most high school graduates change their conceptions of “fun” when they go off to college. Again, this is not unique to Columbia.</p>

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<p>Like I said, you don’t have to go to only Columbia to find a “new gaggle of friends.”</p>

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<p>Yeah, this is all in your mind because basically nothing you’ve said is “special” to Columbia. At least nothing you can’t find in any generic cheesy college brochure. The only “duality” is your tired and cliched double-speak.</p>

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<p>@objobs – I copied over Admissionsgeek’s post in order to refute some of the negative comments that thestevebro received on her other thread, such as:</p>

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<p>While admissiongeek’s post may lack the specificity you hoped for, I think it conveys well that Columbia is not the “generally depressing, rigid place” described in the above quote. </p>

<p>Rather than decry another poster’s “gibberish” and “tired and cliched double-speak,” please answer the OP’s question to the best of your ability.</p>

<p>On all too many occasions, I have seen you question innocuous posts explaining why current students like Columbia, but I have scarcely seen you contribute your alleged reasons.</p>

<p>You might argue that it is important that the OP see why a certain post should be taken with a grain of salt, but there is no reason to belittle another poster with sarcasm (i.e. “Yeah, this is all in your mind because…”).</p>

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<p>To the OP - obviously these are 2 great schools. The differences between them probably come down to personal preferences or choices of what you want to study. </p>

<p>If I were you, I’d talk to the coaches at each school about the possibility of receiving a likely letter from admissions which indicates that you will be accepted, assuming that nothing in your record changes dramatically. Having a coach say this: “Each coach has told me that I would be able to get into their school if I apply early decision” is nice, but not a guarantee of admission. Every year we hear about athletes who think they are “in” a school based on conversations with coaches who end up disappointed. The likely letter is what you need to make sure that both of these are real options where you can count on being accepted. Good luck!</p>

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<p>It has a campus, not a block of buildings. Some people value that more than others.</p>