Fordham v. Notre Dame

I was accepted into both Fordham and Notre Dame in December. I have always wanted to go to Notre Dame, but it looks as though I will be about $100,000 in debt after graduation. Fordham, on the other hand, gave me a full tuition scholarship which has become a tempting offer to me. Which school do you think I should choose if I want to pursue biology/chemistry to prepare me for medical school? Where should I go if I want to pursue economics/political science to prepare me for law school?

Everyone I have talked to says the if you plan on going to Law/ Medical school after undergrad that where you go for undergrad doesn’t really matter. That being said, I can see how Notre Dame would be tempting as it is more “prestigious” and harder to get into, but ultimately if you plan to go on to Law or Medical school after undergrad I would choose fordham and worry about getting into a prestigious law/med school later on and maybe fordham would allow you to spend more on a better grad school later on. Best of luck!

I agree with @lilaba . If you plan on going to law school, where you went for undergrad & what you majored in isn’t that important (grades & LSAT are what are important). As for med school, from what I’ve heard, your grades have to be near perfect (law school not so much, unless you are trying to go to a top 25 law school). If you can save $100,000 by attending Fordham & you like Fordham, then you should go. However, if you really can’t see yourself going there & don’t like NYC, etc., then maybe it’s worth the $$ to go to ND so you aren’t miserable for 4 years.

My cousin ended up going to Fordham before med school. He was accepted to the honors college with full ride. It wasn’t where he wanted to go but now if you ask him he will tell you that he loved it and has no complaints. He is now an anesthesiologist in California. I think if you think you would enjoy Fordham to go there. You will graduate without debt and have so many opportunities in the city. If the city is not your style as others mentioned, and you think you can handle the debt consider ND. Just remember you will still have to pay for med school afterwards. Just my two cents.

If you are interested in pursuing law then Fordham is a good choice. Med school??? I would seriously not recommend Fordham especially if you need to maintain a certain GPA to keep the full ride scholarship. Fordham grade deflates with the sciences and the labs are not up to date. My daughter did prehealth at Fordham and we strongly suggest looking elsewhere when it comes to science.

Please visit the labs and see for yourself. Where you go for undergrad doesn’t matter for med school-those grades do. Visit and ask questions and see if you can get a student to show you the labs.

ND will be worth every penny

^^^^^no it is NOT worth $100,000 of DEBT especially if law or med school debt is to follow. Don’t forget to tack on an additional $38,000 or so in interest! No way!

First of all, congratulations on your achievements - getting a full ride at Fordham is representative of your academic potential. I absolutely agree with @jnkam24 - Notre Dame is absolutely not worth $100,000 in debt. I would add that I have been to the ND campus and although it is nice, it is in the middle of nowhere.

On another topic, I came to the Fordham thread to see if anyone knows the date(s) when the RD are sent?

I will tell you, that while I agree that $100,000 in debt is likely not worth it, we found, with our two kids that went to Notre Dame, that the financial aid package changed and went UP significantly every year. Both my kids were on nearly a full ride by their last years. SO… if ND is a dream, then I would say go for it and keep in touch with financial aid. They do NOT want anyone to be that in debt and will help.

If you are seriously considering med school, you should inquire from the school what their rate of med school acceptance is – regardless of which schools you are looking at. I suspect, but have no proof, that ND’s rate of acceptance to med school is higher than Fordham’s, but that may not justify $100,000 in loans…only you can decide that.