<p>I just got taken off the waitlist for Vassar but have already accepted a position at Brandeis. Thinking I was going to Brandeis for so long, Ive kind of set in my mind that im going there, but I know Vassar is a wonderful school as well. What would you advise and why?</p>
<p>This can be a stressful time. You have been "mentally" at Brandeis for a long time and all of a sudden you have another choice. I would start by asking what your original ranking was. Did you initially prefer to go to Vassar? If so why? Are there financial considerations? If so, is the support different? My S is going to Brandeis but I don't know very much about Vassar. I think that they both have great reputations for quality education. I can tell you what I think are the strengths of Brandeis, but you probably know them since you applied and were planning on going there. If you had originally had preferred Vassar then I would recommend visiting Vassar again and trying out the "vibe", talk to some professors and students there. The campus will obviously be much quieter now but there will still be some kids and many of the profs around. If you haven't been to Brandeis recently you might want to revisit that campus as well. If you live in the northeast, you could drive to each over a long weekend. Think about all the factors that went into your original choices, including location (near Boston versus Poughkeepsie). If you know what you are going to focus on in college then also consider the strengths of the particular programs at the 2 places. But, relax, the bottom line is that you are going to go a great school, what a wonderful choice!!</p>
<p>Thanks.. that actually helps alot.. I guess either way I know Ill be in a good place with many opportunities.... I think I am going to talk to admissions at Vassar and ask them to extend my time to think it through so that I can visit the campus one last time Sat. Both schools ranked the same same on my list of schools I wanted... I had 4 schools that if I got in I told myself Id be extremely happy to go to....unfortunately both were part of the 4... As for majors... I planto double major in Political Science and Anthropology...I guess I should learn which has the better program for the these majors, although I have heard great things about both schools. Thanks again for the help and anyone else's feedback is more than welcomed!</p>
<p>Keep U Posted with the Decision.
Thanks Again,
Lara</p>
<p>Lara,
Glad you are feeling better about it. I think that Political Scirence and Anthropolgy is very strong at Brandeis; again cannot speak to Vassar. For what it's worth, I was very impressed with the supportive atmosphere at Brandeis and the intellectual focus among everyone: faculty, administration and students. People seemed to really enjoy the learning experience and seemed very happy there. But visiting and responding to the feel for the place is very important. Again, though you have great choices and can't go wrong. You didn't mention anything about finances. Did Brandeis offer any grant? I would imaging that it is uncommon to receive merit-based grants coming off a wait-list. Good luck, and yes, please let me know what you decide.</p>
<p>Brandeis and Vassar are two schools that my daughter looked at and which made her "list" - she is going to brandeis.</p>
<p>There were some clear similarities: relatively small, excellent academic reputations, liberal atmosphere, emphasis on diversity, both offered good programs in what my daughter wanted. Vassar may have a slight edge in terms of name recognition and "presitige" but Brandeis probably offers more of a research university in a small school, whereas Vassar is more a liberal arts college.</p>
<p>What it boiled down to for my daughter was more a matter of social atmosphere. Brandeis probably has more of a non-party reputation. Housing at Vassar is all coed by room (ie girls rooms and boys rooms on the same floor) with co-ed bathrooms, unless you live in the women's only dorm. Though many people say coed bathrooms aren't a big deal (and sometimes single sex bathrooms end up coed as a practical matter), it was a concern for my daughter (more so actually than for me). At Brandeis, there is a choice for freshmen between co-ed by room or coed by floor (I don't think the single sex dorm option existst there anymore). At Vassar we were told that students tend to stay in the same dorm all their years on campus - so each dorm has kids of all years - I can see some real advantages to this in terms of developing community. At Brandeis, freshmen are housed together (maybe some sophmors in the same dorms) and students seem to move each year based on the type of housing available to their year - I can see some real advantages to being with all freshmen.</p>
<p>Some of these things I talk about may seem trivial. Academics is important - make sure you do check to see what they each offer in terms of what you want to study - but I do think that when you are comparing two excellent schools, a lot boils down to fit - where do you think you will better fit in. At both schools you will probably find tons of kids who are happy and couldn't imagine having gone elsewhere - what you need to figure out is whether there is a difference in the "fit" that matters to you - what makes students like each school and is that what appeals to you. See if the schools have their own message boards where you can see what students are saying about the place - are the things they gripe about things that would be important to you? Are the things they describe as going on at the school appeal to you?</p>
<p>Remember that whichever you choose, its a great school and enjoy every minute there.</p>
<p>lharte87: when visiting schools in the summer, try to visit when summer school is in session, to get a view of the student body. Otherwise you will see beautiful neat clean campuses occupied only by visiting high schools students, parents and admissions folks.
Similarly, best to visit on a weekday when classes are in session, if possible, rather than a Saturday. Also, visiting Brandeis on a Saturday is different from visiting most other schools since many students are in services or otherwise quiet, observing the Sabbath.</p>
<p>I agree about visiting when as many kids are around as possible which is a disadvantage in the summer. But although Brandeis is about 55% Jewish, only a minority of kids are very observant and when we were there during the school year Saturday seemed pretty normal to us.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone.. Ur Feedback is a huge help... I agree with you that the social atmosphere may be better at Brandeis considering its near the city that caters to students and since so many other colleges are nearby, but Im not sure that I wont have a good social life at Vassar.... Though it seems more campus based that sometimes can create more unity since the students are always seeing eachother...I agree with you that I should probably be visiting during the week, however, I only have until Sat. nite to decide, an unfortunately I cant get to the campus until then. Like unbelievablem was saying.. academics is also a huge factor ... My guidance councelor did say that Vassar has a little bit of an edge on Brandeis, as its name is more well known and it ranks a little higher... however Im not sure if this is enough of a differ to completely sway my choice. How can I find how many students get to a good law school from both schools... how can I find out which has the better programs for polisci and anthro.. i have read about both in both schools but both seem to have amazing programs so its really hard to rank them.</p>
<p>Thanks for the help,
Lara</p>
<p>info for applicants from brandeis to law schools: <a href="http://www.brandeis.edu/hiatt/lawmenu.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.brandeis.edu/hiatt/lawmenu.html</a></p>
<p>info re vassar applicants to law school: <a href="http://admissions.vassar.edu/about_after_career.html%5B/url%5D">http://admissions.vassar.edu/about_after_career.html</a></p>
<p>but I honestly doubt which school you attend will make that big a difference with respect to this - both place kids at top law schools. both will give you a good liberal arts education which is what law schools want. </p>
<p>choose which school you feel you will be happier at - you have a few years to worry about law school. (and i speak not only as a mom, but as a law school grad though that was in the ancient days when the lsat was graded on the 200-800 scale) </p>
<p>I don't know what you want to go in to, but if it helps any, Brandeis is known for its emphasis on social policy.</p>
<p>I think at this point you should just go with your gut, unless one school boasts a better poli sci/anthro program. Personally I would die if I lived in isolated, boring Poughkeepsie so Brandeis was the obvious choice. Good luck!</p>
<p>Alright everyone.. so the awaited decision... After going to Vassar's campus again... and really feeling like it was the place I belonged.. I have chosen to go there... Both schools are absolutely amazing in their own ways so it was a hard choice.. Thanks to all for making the decision making process a little easier...
Thanks again,
Lara</p>
<p>Congratulations on making your decision. Saying it felt like the "place you belonged" says it all -- that's what's so important. Enjoy your time there and good luck!</p>
<p>Congratulations! I'm glad you were able to feel like you belonged there. That's really the key. Good luck at Vassaar!!</p>