<p>I dont know what to choose? please help.</p>
<p>Four years out of your life is a long time. I would want to spend them well.
Washington (Congress, Kennedy Center, Smithsonian, Major League Sports, top opera and symphonies, embassies, think tanks, Monuments, cool internships) trumps Philadelphia(Major League Sports, next tier cultural inistitutions) which trumps Providence, RI (no serious culture or major league anything).</p>
<p>i personally think Georgetown would be the funnest experience.
Brown would be the most intellectually stimulating
and that Penn would be the most competitive environment, but still play-hard.</p>
<p>vienna man = never lived in or visited Providence.</p>
<p>Lilklumsy, could you elaborate on any of your interests, possible majors, etc.? Anything else you can reveal to us about your personality, goals, and desires for a college will help us help you make a decision.</p>
<p>As much as I am bound to hate Penn, it is a great school. I have spent a lot of time there, and the quality of life is superb. It has a great city too.</p>
<p>@vienna man: DC trumps Philly? Blasphemy!</p>
<p>I’ve visited all 3, I have to say I liked UPenn much more than the other 2</p>
<p>What’s your major, your academic/career goals, etc? That always helps/</p>
<p>Until then I’ll just presume the best for you is Penn ;)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Be honest-- after then, you’ll still presume Penn is the best for him/her.</p>
<p>I would opt for Brown then Penn.</p>
<p>If you’re going for Business: 1. UPenn 2. Georgetown 3. Brown</p>
<p>Biology, English, Humanities: 1. Brown 2. UPenn 3. Georgetown</p>
<p>Int’l Relations, Government, PoliSci: 1. Georgetown 2. UPenn 3. Brown</p>
<p>
Yeah, Providence is an artsy city, RISD is great and Boston is 45 minutes away.</p>
<p>Yeah, I guess you can paint a lot of pretty pictures in Providence RI when you are not attending a world class network of museums, major league sports, top 4 opera, the US Congrees in session, lectures at places like the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars, and plays at the Folger theatre. If I were a reflective artist, Providence RI is definitely the place I would want to be.</p>
<p>With a vibrant arts and theater arts culture within Providence, and extremely easy access to Boston, Providence is far from the cultural wasteland this thread suggests.</p>
<p>I never said it was DC, but it’s hardly the place some people who haven’t lived there for four years are suggesting it is. I’m from outside of NY and I’m defending Providence-- that should tell you everything you need to know.</p>
<p>I’ve lived in all three cities, and am quite familiar with all three schools. I think Simson98 got it about right. Each schools has its strengths and weakness, so it depends upon what you think you want to study. All three cities are very livable. Providence, while smaller than the other two, actually has a lot to offer and has much fewer big problems than either Philly or DC. It is also a lot more affordable than DC.</p>
<p>If you are totally unsure about what you want to study, then I would choose based upon the comparative strength of the schools–which quite clearly is Penn first, Brown second, and Georgetown third.</p>
<p>My only slight disagreement with Simson98 relates to Political Science. Actually, none of the three are particularly strong in that field. People assume that Georgetown is strong because it is in DC, Bill Clinton went there, and the Walsh SFS is excellent and well known. But Georgetown’s political science department is not part of the Walsh School (its in arts & sciences) and the department has had a lot a attrition and is largely resting on its laurels. The truth is that the best Poly Sci program in DC is at GWU. On the other hand, if poli sci is your interest, it probably is a somewhat stronger department than either Penn or Brown.</p>
<p>
Hate to burst your bubble, but in terms of cultural and historical–as opposed to political–institutions, Philadelphia easily matches or surpasses D.C. among those in the know. For example:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Philadelphia’s art museums collectively have more impressionist paintings and Rodin sculptures than those of any other city in the world except Paris.</p></li>
<li><p>Philadelphia has the oldest art school and museum (the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts) in the country.</p></li>
<li><p>Philadelphia has more outdoor art and murals than any other city in the country.</p></li>
<li><p>The Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the “Big 5” in the US, and historically one of the country’s (and world’s) finest. D.C.'s National Symphony is NOT.</p></li>
<li><p>Philadelphia also has the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia (under the direction of Ignat Solzhenitsyn, son of Nobel Prize-winning author Alexander Solzhenitsyn), the Pennsylvania Ballet (one of the finest ballet companies outside of NYC), the Opera Company of Philadelphia (one of the finest opera companies outside of NYC), and the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society (presenting one of the most extensive international chamber music seasons in the country). These institutions easily meet or exceed anything DC has to offer.</p></li>
<li><p>Philadelphia has the Curtis Institute of Music, one of the finest conservatories in the world (and one of the–if not THE–best in the US), which presents free recitals to the public 3 evenings a week featuring future international superstars of classical music. DC has nothing that even comes close.</p></li>
<li><p>Philadelphia has over two dozen professional theaters and over 40 resident professional theater companies, including the Walnut Street Theatre, the oldest theater in the US and the most subscribed theater company in THE WORLD. This theater scene compares favorably to any other city in the US save New York, and easily exceeds that in DC. </p></li>
<li><p>Philadelphia has many more historic sites and neighborhoods than DC, especially when it comes to the 18th and 19th centuries (Philadelphia was the second-largest English-speaking city in the world after London in the 18th century, when DC itself didn’t even exist).</p></li>
<li><p>Philadelphia has the largest urban park system in the world, easily exceeding the size and scope of Rock Creek Park in DC.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I could go on, but you get the idea. Anyone who believes that Philadelphia’s cultural institiutions are collectively a tier below those of DC’s–or any other American city’s, for that matter–is seriously ill-informed.</p>
<p>
Actually, in those fields–and most others–Penn’s departments generally have ranked higher than Brown’s:</p>
<p>[NRC</a> Rankings in Each of 41 Areas](<a href=“http://www.stat.tamu.edu/~jnewton/nrc_rankings/nrc41.html]NRC”>http://www.stat.tamu.edu/~jnewton/nrc_rankings/nrc41.html)</p>
<p>Philaldelphia is clearly below New York and collectivley still trails DC. Philadlephia’s Opera company has only four productionsand is not National in scope. The Smithsonian network of about ten museums blows away Philadelphia. With Baltimore only 30 miles away, Washingotn has access to the teams in both Major Leagues. DC always has at least two or three legitimate theatre productions going. Philadelphia sometimes doesn’t have any. I will give you fact that it does blow Providence away!</p>
<p>for what it’s worth…</p>
<p>of the three, brown is the hardest to get into by a significant margin and among those who have the choice, most choose brown.</p>