<p>Okay my ED Choice is NYU and I don't know what to pick for ED2?</p>
<p>Now I figured that they're both equally great schools so the decision would differ from one person to another based on what is more relevant to each personality.</p>
<ol>
<li>I was raised in cosmopolitan cities and although I know both are relatively rural-ish, I'd like to go for whichever is more urban and closer to NYC.</li>
<li>I intend on focusing on Media, English and Creative writing. Which one is more artsy and literary and less mainstream (political science, psychology and so)? Even though I'm more interested in Colby, I worry it won't be good in terms of English, creative writing and communication.</li>
<li>Student life?</li>
<li>Prestige. Okay, I am not a snob but my ultimate dream is to move to New York and become a writer/journalist/book editor and the popularity of the school will mean a lot in my future.</li>
<li>My chances are higher in Colby because they offer financial aid and I am applying for near full. Also, Colby's median SAT score is 100 less than Hamilton's and I doubt my SAT score will reach Hamilton's median.</li>
</ol>
<p>Initially, I was putting Kenyon in the comparison with the two of them but I need near full aid and Kenyon's endowment is tiny in relativity.</p>
<p>It’s hard to understand how you can like NYU for ED1 and Colby/Hamilton for ED2. They can’t be more different! </p>
<p>Rural - ish??? Have you visited either Colby or Hamilton? Neither is “close” to NYC. NYU is as urban as you can get and Colby is probably as rural as you can get.</p>
<p>@trekslxchick, I would prefer urban but 95% of LACs granting generous financial aid are in rural areas. I don’t mind rural either honestly. And you’re absolutely right. I never visited ANY of these campuses simply because I am an international student.</p>
<p>Hamilton is more rural. Hamilton is also closer to NYC. As far as your “mainstream” question goes, they both have ultimately the same academic options as far as departments go. Your chances are pretty much the same…Colby’s acceptance rate is 26%; Hamilton’s is 27%. As far as prestige goes, I’d say they’re basically equal - Colby may be slightly more highly regarded. Best of luck</p>
<p>If your goal is to be more urban, closer to NYC, then why are you looking at Colby? Why are you looking at Hamilton? I have been to all three, and if your dream school is NYU, Colby and Hamilton could not be more polar opposite to what you are seeking. Colby is great–my daughter is a student there, but you need to be content with having the closest “Big City,” be Portland, ME, more than an hour away. Hamilton is also far from anything remotely resembling a city. If you settle for Hamilton or Colby, you had better enjoy the outdoors and outdoor activities a lot, or you may go stir crazy.</p>
<p>In regards to Hamilton…they are very strong in creative writing-according to rankings #2 in country FWIW… Also, they have a semester in NYC program that is well established.</p>
<p>My older son is a rising sophomore at Hamilton, while my younger son will be a rising freshman at Colby.</p>
<p>Colby tends to attract students who enjoy the outdoors. Hamilton does as well, but I think that Colby has a higher percentage. Both schools are ranked similarly, and both are in the middle of nowhere. My son at Hamilton enjoyed his first year and is looking forward to returning to campus. My son going to Colby is very excited and looking forward to getting to campus.</p>
<p>@Golffather -cool handle - even though neither offers merit aid both practice preferential packaging so being at the median and applying ED may get him admitted with lots of loans and no way to compare financial aid packages .</p>
<p>My feelings about any kind of ED are well documented in this forum.</p>
<p>RE: “Lots of loans.” Exactly.</p>
<p>Hamilton makes it very clear, for example, that they expect both parents (in a divorced situation) to share in the cost of a college education. I think that just illustrates H’s position on matters of finances and financial aid.</p>
<p>GolfFather, the expectation for a two parent contribution regardless of marital status is not unique to Hamilton. In fact, I cannot think of a school without such a policy… Of course there are available forms if extenuating circumstances prevent this (lack of contact, etc.) but the general financial aid policy among most - if not all colleges is that both parents are responsible for putting their child through college.</p>
<p>Hamilton’s position on matters of finances and financial aid is illustrated by its need-blind policies during admission and pledge to meet full-need of all students admitted. It is one of the most generous colleges, especially among small schools, because of its huge endowment. If you are in the middle when it comes to finances perhaps it would be better to hold off for regular decision so you have more leverage; I have heard that the packages are often similar regardless, but I understand not wanting to take any chances. Maybe call the school beforehand and see if they’ll give a financial aid estimate (the online calculators aren’t always precise, but give you a decent idea of costs as well.)</p>
<p>Perhaps a bit late in replying, but if you are an international student and expecting aid, I think the answer is, you won’t be getting much. If you are merely an American citizen who lives overseas, that’s a different situation, but international (non-US) students get aid from a different pool and many/most colleges don’t provide aid to international students at all. There are severe legal restrictions on providing non-US residents aid. Do Colby or Hamilton offer international students any financial aid? You better check before you apply.</p>
<p>Basic rule of thumb for anyone - U.S. resident or international: If you are depending on financial aid to attend college, under no circumstances should you apply ED. If you get accepted and your aid package doesn’t add up, you are screwed. No backups, no appeals, no dropping down to a cheaper school. You simply won’t be going. Don’t do it!</p>
<p>You may want to think about LAC’s in cities (or near cities). They are few and far between. Two that come to mind are Lake Forest College (LFC), outside of Chicago and Occidental College in Los Angeles (Eagle Rock). Both have substantial merit aid. LFC has a program that allows you to spend a semester right in Chicago. Both have lots of internships in the city. Occidental is ranked higher than LFC. Both are good schools. Our daughter is a freshman at Occidental.</p>
<p>I should think that if you love NYU, the most similar schools would be GWU in DC and Boston University. At least you are comparing apples to apples in terms of urbanity and selectivity. Good luck with ED I!</p>
<p>Not true. The ED agreement allows a student to back out if his financial aid offer is not sufficient to allow him to attend. The disadvantage of applying ED if one needs financial aid is that it’s not possible to compare financial aid offers. The FA offered by the ED school may be the best offer, or it may be thousands less than what would have been offered by other schools, but if accepted ED the applicant has to accept or reject the offer without knowing what other schools might give him for financial aid.</p>
- even though neither offers merit aid both practice preferential packaging so being at the median and applying ED may get him admitted with lots of loans and no way to compare financial aid packages .</p>