<p>Liberal arts program- will probably do grad school. Any thoughts on why you would choose one over the others would be much appreciated. Cost isn't really an issue. Each school is very different, all have great academics, but no one has "the whole package" we are looking for. (I suppose it's hard to say "no" to any one of these as they are all favorites for different reasons.)</p>
<p>By grad school do you mean PhD study?</p>
<p>For academics, in terms of rigor and student quality, Cornell will be a notch above the other three. But the difference isn't huge.</p>
<p>All four places have a fairly different student culture and vibe going for them. Notre Dame is fairly conservative, white, and big-time drinking. BC is really preppy and the students are often drawn to the school because of the Boston locale. Cornell and UVA have more similar feels to them, with the Greek scenes and the large, sprawling campuses in a collegetown environment. But UVa has the southern gentility and big time sports going for it while Cornell has a more diverse, varied student body and Northeastern, hard-working mentality.</p>
<p>I am not sure what I mean by grad school. Possibly law school, but it is really too early to know. I think college is a time for exploration. Each school has so many positives and I know it will be hard to say no to any of them- I'm anticipating tears, but I hope no regrets.
All but Cornell have big time sports, but Cornell is definitely respectable, especially in hockey and lacrosse :) Is there school spirit there? I assume the weather is probably the worst at Cornell, but Notre Dame's is pretty severe as well. I don't thing weather will be a deciding factor as my child is pretty adaptable. While I feel that diversity is important, I also want her to feel comfortable- she is quietly involved in some faith-based activities and they are an important component of her life. She thinks Greek life would be fun, but it also is not a deal-breaker.
On visits, she loved all the schools. As I said is very adaptable, but we haven't had the fireworks go off! I think she would be happy at all, but am most concerned about Cornell. It has the reputation of all work and no play. On our visit, the admissions person kept pounding about Cornell's high standards and it honestly sounded like a grind. (He was actually pretty full of himself, and I know this is one person's opinion, but he is a spokesman for the school.) She is a hard worker, but I want college to be fun as well- it should be the best time of one's life! Is the environment really competitive, or do students help one another? I know it's difficult to generalize, but I appreciate any feedback. Thanks!</p>
<p>You have them in the right order. Nephew attended Cornell now in Law School, liked it a lot. UVA if you are in state is a hard deal to beat dollar for dollar and still great no matter the cost. ND a big school with excellent academics and hopefully great sports again one of these days. I am guessing by ND and BC a religious affiliation, but BC is a significant step down. Still a great school but not like the others. Given it's location it competes with H Y Williams Amherst etc for the best students and would be the first choice for very few of those.</p>
<p>The weather at ND, Cornell, and Boston are going to be the same. ND is the coldest, and Cornell may be the wettest, but I've never experienced anything as nasty as a Boston ice storm.</p>
<p>UVa and Cornell have some of the strongest Greek systems in the country. Notre Dame may have some of the best on-campus residential life in the company. Boston College? Well it's in Boston if that's your thing.</p>
<p>Notre Dame and Boston College are obviously going to have a lot of faith-based service programs. I can't really speak about UVa in that regard. For Cornell, between the public service center and the Cornell United Religious Network, there are plenty of opportunities for volunteer service and finding your religious niche. The Cornell Catholic Community and the Navigators are pretty popular among students, as well as Hillel. I was actively involved in Habitat for Humanity all four years at Cornell.</p>
<p>There's no major at Cornell that is truly competitive. Engineering, biology, math, and the physical sciences, etc. are going to be very rigorous, but everybody I knew at school was helping each other on problem sets, studying for prelims, etc. In the humanities or the social sciences, the courses again will be rigorous, but they are certainly not insurmountable, and I personally think you will be better because of it. In my freshman writing seminar my first semester at Cornell, I think I wrote more papers than most of my friends at other schools did across all of their courses combined.</p>
<p>And there's tons of play at Cornell. Between the fraternities, house parties in Collegetown, wine tours around Cayuga Lake, Slope Day, the bars in Ithaca, sledding down the slope in the winter, great concerts offered by Fan Club and the Cornell Concert commission, swimming in the gorges in the fall and spring, barbecues in the spring, etc., I don't know an alum who wouldn't want to spend another year on East Hill.</p>
<p>I don't mean to hijack this thread but d is basically deciding on the same schools, but will substitute Georgetown instead of BC. We have already eliminated BC.</p>
<p>CayugaRed, would you be able to tell me if there is a large Catholic presence at Cornell? D has attended catholic school her entire life and we don't want this aspect eliminated during her college years. I haven't been able to find any information about the size of the Catholic community at Cornell. Thanks for any help. We will be in Ithaca next week.</p>
<p>Thanks NYMama- I have the same questions. The info we received specifically discussed the availability of kosher food and a shabbat service was listed on the Cornell days schedule for 4/11 and 4/18, but no mention was made of any other religion. I have been told that there are Catholic churches in the area one can attend, but no particular presence on the campus, unlike some other faiths. Maybe CayugaRed (or another Cornellian)can shed some light on this. Thanks so much.</p>
<p>If it means anything, there are 300 individuals in the 'Cornell Catholic Community' Facebook group.</p>
<p>Another popular Christian religious group on campus is The Navigators. There are 100 kids in that group.</p>
<p>I know that Catholics represent the largest religious segment on Cornell's campus. Judiasm is next. Those figures would include non-practicing students as well.</p>
<p>[Navigators[/url</a>]</p>
<p>[url=<a href="http://www.curw.cornell.edu/catholic/%5DCornell">http://www.curw.cornell.edu/catholic/]Cornell</a> Catholic Community](<a href="http://www.curw.cornell.edu/navs/home.html%5DNavigators%5B/url">http://www.curw.cornell.edu/navs/home.html)</p>
<p>On campus, I attended services occasionally (especially for things like Ash Wednesday and the start of Advent), but I wasn't really involved in either organization, so I really can't say much about them. Some students are really involved in them and really liked it.</p>
<p>If you daughter doesn't want her faith to be eliminated during her college years, then it won't be. Regardless of where she goes to school.</p>
<p>Cornell was once commonly called 'The Godless University' because when it was founded it wasn't associated with any one denomination. Ezra wanted it that way. Oh, and we accepted Jews, women, and blacks too, right from the beginning. The Sunday services at Sage Chapel feature a rotating cast of preachers, all from different faiths and beliefs. Even Wiccans are represented.</p>
<p>Ithaca is the North American capital for Buddhism.</p>
<p>Obviously, if having a Catholic education is your absolutely priority, Notre Dame rises above the rest. Georgetown may be Jesuit, but it's an afterthought for most students.</p>
<p>
[quote]
It has the reputation of all work and no play.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>No, it has the reputation of work hard/play hard.</p>
<p>I'd say the Catholic community here is pretty large and active, and they have mass right on campus in Sage Chapel. They have bible studies during the week, and many of them are part of other campus Christian fellowships, of which there are more than twenty (with around 50 people each).</p>
<p>I feel in general that you can find a sizable number of any group or interest at Cornell, just because there are over 15,000 students.</p>
<p>I attended Easter Mass in Sage Chapel this year. Standing room only. Lots of students, as well as parents and local adults (faculty? grad students?). Sage Chapel is a non-denominational chapel located in the center of the central campus. My impression was active community.</p>
<p>I have also attended Sunday mass in Annabel Taylor -- there are several RC services on campus in a normal weekend. Well attended and very welcoming.</p>
<p>All of the above listed schools are excellent but when all is said and done Cornell is still Cornell. You can not take away the prestige of the Ivy League.
Cornell is respected nationally and world wide. Cornell hockey sold out Madison Square Garden so I would say there is school spirit.
UVA would be my choice if you turn down Cornell.</p>
<p>They celebrate two of the three Sunday Masses in Sage Chapel, the other in Anabel Taylor Hall. Per a letter I have from Rev. McMullin, director of CCC, participation in Mass is up 1/3 with the addition of Sage Chapel as a venue. </p>
<p>Cornell</a> Catholic Community</p>
<p>I wanted my d to go to Cornell over G'town because I wanted her to have a "real" college experience - thought G'town too limited in terms of social opportunities. Cornell is fun - and work.</p>
<p>My h had a job interview near ND years ago - I would take upstate NY over Indiana any day.</p>
<p>BC's dorms are split - friend's son is living in the further dorms - needs to take bus to campus - not a happy camper.</p>
<p>I've been told to pick Boston College over Georgetown at least for undergraduate studies, from a student who studied undergrad at BC and was a grad student at Georgetown. </p>
<p>To the earlier poster, i think some people forget how fast BC has been climbing the college ranks even within the past couple years. It is definitely not a notch down and its on its way up.</p>
<p>I also agree with the order of the schools that you put in the title of the thread. But the main reason I am posting is to say that it sounded like you just had a crappy tour guide. Most Cornell students definitely aren't full of themselves (which adds a really nice feel to what you could imagine would be a harsh climate otherwise). It is a great feeling being able to go to a school with such intelligent students who can still be completely down to earth and fun. If he broadcast the idea that it's hard work and no play he (no offense) really has no life. There are SO many different ways to "play" around Cornell that it easily competes with almost all other schools on that level (especially if play includes things like clubs, sports, and gym classes). It is definitely a work hard, play hard mentality. There are very few majors that have students who never go out and do things (the people who don't are either pretty much super competative premeds [and some engineering students...but it's such a broad major that it's harder to categorize] or architecture students weighed down by projects). It's not the 2nd largest Greek system in the country for nothing; people really do get involved around campus.</p>
<p>And just as a sidenote, I also agree with the above poster...BC is not a notch down from uva and notre dame (altho I do believe it is from Cornell...I'm picturing a hill, not a step ladder lol).</p>
<p>To say BC is a step down from the other three clearly goes against the facts. According to Princeton Review, BC's middle 50% SAT range is 1860-2140 while UVA's is 1800-2130. In terms of selectivity, Cornell and ND rate 98 and BC and UVA 97. Cornell has the highest SAT score (1940-2250) and UVA the lowest (1800-2130), with ND and BC falling in between. My overall point is that there is very little difference academically between any of these schools. The choice should come down to what school feels like the best overall fit. Personally I would rule out Cornell right away because it doesn't have D-I athletics. (Just my personal preference....I'm sure some people couldn't care less about that). ND, BC and UVA all have major D-I athletic programs. ND and BC are both Catholic, ND having the "stronger" Catholic presence of the two, but BC is has much more of a Catholic presence than Georgetown. BC undoubtedly has the best location of any of these schools. For an in-state resident, its hard to argue against the price at UVA. These schools are all in the same boat academically and each has different positives/negatives....it really comes down to fit.</p>
<p>Last time I checked ... like yesterday, since my son is a Cornell athlete LOL ... Cornell is a D1 athletic school. They do not have athletic scholarships however!</p>
<p>I agree that there's not a lot to choose between these very selective schools and it would come down to location, fit, and specific academic programs.</p>
<p>Cornell>ND>UVA>BC</p>