I’m stumped. From personal research, Holy Cross beats Dickinson in name recognition and reputation. However, after visiting both campuses and reading everything there was to offer from both schools, I found that I was much more comfortable and felt more interested/attached to Dickinson. I feel that the rankings and whatnot should be reason enough for me to pick Holy Cross, BUT I DON’T KNOW… PLEASE HELLLPPP
I also got a pretty good merit scholarship from Dickinson and I also plan on doing Econ… Policy dual major with something else.
It doesn’t matter how famous the college is if you don’t feel like it’s a good fit. If there’s no financial benefits to attending Holy Cross, you should pick Dickinson.
Seriously, you like Dickinson better, and it is a much better deal financially. I think that it is pretty clear the Dickinson is a better place for you. The differences in name recognition are pretty small, and are far less important than fit and affordability.
Sorry if I sound very ignorant here ( and I probably will), but I am worried that I will be missing out of a better education from Holy Cross. I have read that Dickinson College’s education is “what you put into it is what you get out of it,” but I believe that should probably go the same for any college.
For some reason I keep putting the scenario in my head that my job application or whatever will be overlooked because of the name reputation. If you could provide some comforting words that would be great, lol…
In comparing your choices, the faculty at Holy Cross may offer you a deeper level of understanding in the field of economics: https://ideas.repec.org/top/top.uslacecon.html. Nonetheless, strongly consider Dickinson if it appeals to you more based on its general characteristics. As one aspect of note, Dickinson offers a very strong political science department (and compares to Holy Cross in this area).
Dickinson is an excellent college with strong name recognition. I don’t think you should worry about quality or prestige at either school.
You are going to college to get an education. The key question is which of the two is a place where you are more likely to flourish? At which of thee two are you likely to be more successful? From everything you’ve said, that’s Dickinson. And you save money to boot! Go forward and don’t look back.
It seems to me that this should be an easy decision. But it’s apparently not for you. You’re having doubts. I assume that you still have time to decide or you wouldn’t be posting this on May 3rd. Most Admissions Offices seem to be putting applicants like you in contact with some current students for conversation and Q&A. My DD has been doing this for weeks. That might help you feel more comfortablewith one of these over the other.
Dickinson will have virtual info sessions next week and one of them (tomorrow at 5 PM, I believe) is about internships, career advising/placement, etc. Even though you’re an accepted student, maybe attending this would help you make a decision.
As a parent, sounds like the OP is overthinking this – Dickinson is well respected, as is Holy Cross. Holy Cross is not some other category of excellence from Dickinson. To my mind, the meaningful distinctions would be Holy Cross Catholic vs. Dickinson not religious, Dickinson with greek life (though non-dominant) vs. Holy Cross no greek life, ease of transportation to each school, and of course, cost.
Thank you so much to everyone who contributed on this thread. I am excited to announce that I have committed to Dickinson. I picked it over Kenyon and Holy Cross. What really pushed me the edge for some reason was when my dad asked me why I would pick HC and Kenyon over Dickinson, in which he said “you want the prettier girlfriend?” At end of the day, although Holy Cross and Kenyon may have better recognition, the admissions officers at Dickinson were like no other. I am looking forward to my next 4 years!
Congratulations! Dickinson is on my D21s list for next year and I’d be happy for her to go there.
As you are probably aware, Dickinson is considered very strong in its global focus, which I think would pair well with economics. since you’re considering a double-major, maybe you’d like their international business management or international studies program along with economics!
I’ll make sure to check in and tell you how the everything is going next year! Hopefully that will help influence your daughter’s decision in a positive way!
Congratulations! As an HC alum, I of course would have been personally biased towards Holy Cross, but I agree with the sentiment that if Dickinson struck a chord for you, you should trust your gut. Dickinson too is a wonderful school. I am reminded of a woman from my high school, two years older than me, who chose Holy Cross over Harvard? Why? Because she connected with it. She had a wonderful experience and outcome and I’m sure you will too.