Deciding...with only 12 days left!!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Please help me!!</p>

<p>So i've been accepted to a bunch of schools and waitlisted at a few and i need your opinions... [note: my parents make slightly too much money to qualify for finaid, but be aware that they can only afford max. $35,000 a year, so the rest I have to take out in loans]</p>

<p>Accepted to:</p>

<p>-URI 6-yr Pharm.D. Program ($3,000/year scholarship [instate resident])
-American University ($22,000/year scholarship)
-Worcester Polytechnic Institute 5-yr masters program ($20,000/year scholarship)
-Tulane University ($15,000/year scholarship)
-Fordham University @ Lincoln Center ($14,000/year scholarship)
-Oberlin College ($3,000/year scholarship)
-Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute ($10,000/year scholarship)
-Brandeis University (no money, but it's my favorite)
-George Washington University ($20,000/year scholarship)
-McGill University (no scholarship, but their tuition is cheaper)</p>

<p>Waitlisted at: (accepted positions on the waitlists to all of them)</p>

<p>-Carnegie Mellon University
-Boston College
-Emory University</p>

<p>I feel like my favorites so far are GWU, Brandeis, and McGill, but money's obviously an issue. Please help, I'm so confused!!</p>

2

<p>Seems GWU is your best bet, with the great merit aid money. Assuming your parents abide by their word for $35k annually, you should not have to borrow any money yourself. Waitlists and needing fin aid/merit aid is a crapshoot also.</p>

3

<p>I personally like American better than GWU, but that’s because I iked the campus better. I don’t know the programs. GWU is great too, just to enjoy being in DC. I’d go for either of these.</p>

4

<p>Think about what you look for in school such as:
-Diversity
-Transportation
-Surrounding city
-Social factors
-Academics
-Size(Big school vs small school)</p>

<p>and you can think of some more things.</p>

<p>But ultimately no one can make that decision for you but you. No one has to attend these institutions except you.</p>

5

<p>You have some very good options! From a strict academic point of view you won’t go wrong with several of your choices. McGill is an intriguing option, especially if you have a strong interest in French language and literature. But if not, I don’t think it stands out academically.</p>

<p>If your ‘top’ choice independent of cost was a college that stood above all the others academically, and in addition had a great urban location (since you appear to want this from your list of colleges), then you have a tough decision weighting academics and cost. My sense is that you don’t have such a dilemma, having several academic equals. Brandeis, while close to Boston is in a suburban setting.</p>

<p>What would I pick? From among the colleges with good financial support.</p>

6

<p>But for the financial issue, the clear choice for me in terms of academics, opportunities and location would be Brandeis. Its only peer on your list academically would be Emory or CMU, but I would choose Brandeis over either of them as well.</p>

<p>Brandeis combines a nurturing, small liberal arts college and world-class research university-with the smallest undergraduate student body I believe—approx 3000 students–of any top tier national research university. The total student body, including graduate students, is around 5000. And that small student body is matched with high-powered professors who actually teach in small classes (this recent Newsweek article featuring a Brandeis professor, William Flesch is an example of a great professor who can positively change the lives of undergrads is one example: [Four</a> Great College Professors - Newsweek.com](<a href=“http://www.newsweek.com/id/210908]Four”>Four Great College Professors). </p>

<p>As you can imagine, given this size advantage, the research opportunities are tremendous. Plus Brandeis is quite close to Boston, which is the world’s best college town, but on its own suburban campus full of activity–really the best of both worlds.</p>

<p>As I’ve mentioned to others on CC, for undergraduate students, Brandeis is truly amazing. Its intellectual environment is comparable in many ways to its University Athletic Association sister school, U Chicago (perhaps no coincidence that the President of U Chicago is a Brandeis alum). Yet its students are down-to-earth, friendly and non-competitive with one another. In a recent Forbes national college rankings survey, Brandeis was ranked among the top 15 research universities and 30th overall among all private univerities and LAC’s–a testament to its focus on undergraduate education. Larger schools, including some Ivies.</p>

<p>Despite Brandeis’s small size and relative youth, Brandeis’ alumni are very distinguished–to name just a few: Nobel Prize winner for chemistry Rod Mackinnon, Fields Medal winning physicist Edward Witten (often called “Einstein’s successor”), 3-time Pulitzer Prize winner Tom Friedman of the NY Times, The Earth is Flat etc; Mitch Albom of Tuesday’s with Morrie (about his Brandeis professor), the Creators/Producers of Friends; actress Debra Messing; Robert FX Sillerman (billionaire businessman–currently owner of American Idol and Graceland), Jeff Lurie, billionaire owner of the Philadelphia Eagles football team and Christy Hefner, former CEO of Playboy). Also, if you’re into theater/music/art or social justice, it’s a very exciting place to be (FYI Angela Davis and Abbie Hoffman are alumni as well).</p>

7

<p>lol Mcgill is not academically intruiging other than in French and literature? That’s a joke… do you even know anything about Mcgill… Once again, CCers need to understand that just because a school is relatively easy to get into does not mean it is academically weak. Mcgill is academically the best university you got into. I am not taking into account your waitlists.</p>

8

<p>I have to agree McGill is the strongest of the lot.</p>

9

<p>Hey, I am a student from China and have been accepted by Fordham,American,GWU, and Brandeis too! We are pretty similar. I am realy struggling about my decisions too. AU and GWU give me some scholarship(not as much as yours). Anyway, given the high COA of GWU, GWU is 10,000 annually more expensive for me than AU after subtracting the scholarship.
GWU is more respected than AU, but I really do not know what the real academic atmosphere is since I do not have a chance to visit.</p>

<p>Anyway, Good luck!</p>

10

<p>What is your projected major going to be? I feel like it depends on you major, unless you’re purely going for the prestige of the school.</p>

11

<p>Sorry guys i haven’t been on CC for a bit because i was visiting mcgill. I want to do pre-med (@mcgill, it’s called life sciences, but its kind of different everywhere i go). Thanks to everyone for their insights! </p>

<p>I’m not too interested in the French Language or Literature, as I’ve never taken french, but I’d love to learn it!! </p>

<p>To B77, i loved brandeis so much when i visited, but i didn’t get any financial support…i sent an appeal letter in but i’m still waiting…</p>

12

<p>I like RPI the best out of all of these schools, but there’s no reason for that other than personal preference :). It’s great for engineering, but I don’t know that much about its pre-med program.</p>

13

<p>haha thanks…but how’s the surrounding area? i visited once and wasn’t impressed by troy, NY. and yeah, engineering is good, but i had applied for the 7 year BS-MD program and was rejected but accepted to the school of science so yeah.</p>

14

<p>bumpbumpbump?</p>

15

<p>Yeah, I know what you mean about Troy. I visited there twice, and thought the area was… okay.</p>

16

<p>yeah, environment is pretty important for me. most of the schools i liked were in cities.</p>

17

<p>bumpbumpbump?? please guys, i’m torn!! & i have to know by this fridayy:(</p>

18

<p>I think you should show your out-of-pocket costs rather than what you were given in scholarship and aid monies. That’s what really matters. </p>

<p>My guess is that McGill is cheaper than GW even with the scholarship offer.</p>

19

<p>If its the same URI I’m thinking of ot may be best pick, especially for med. Not sure if the pharm prgm is good ideal if you want to attend medical school.</p>

20

<p>How did you like McGill?</p>