Indecisiveness goes a long way. =/

Colleges & Universities A-Z New York University
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<p>Brandeis VS NYU</p>

<p>Uh, I'm not really good at articulating my thoughts but bear with me...</p>

<p>The time when I had to chose my colleges was when I just finished taking AP bio. So, I was really passionate about the subject and applied to all the schools as a bio major. My (idealistic) intention back then was to attend a medical school sometimes in life. After I received all my decisions back, I found out that I only have 3 options- Brandeis, NYU and BU, since they're the 3 schools that gave me the most money.</p>

<p>I already threw out BU because I wasn't qualified for their 7 years medical program (I didn't take SAT II chemistry). So the choice comes down to NYU and Brandeis. I favor NYU a lot more because first, it's in the a city. I lived in a city the first 11 years of my life and just loved it. I feel like if I go to NYU, I'd feel like I belong there. Second, I am also interested in studying International Business, and NYU is definitely going to provide a stronger education in the business field than Brandeis. I'm not taking Int'l Business as a joke or anything. I am the president of my school's business club (a school with 2000 kids). I also studied AP macro- and micro-econ by myself last year and received a 5,4, respectfully on these exams. And I work at a bank, so I think I have a pretty good background and feel in the business field. Third, I embrace the diversity NYU has to offer. Comparing to NYU, Brandeis is... not diverse at all. It has 60% Jews, which scares the hell out of me. I'm not trying to discriminate against Jews, but I've just never been around so many people who are the same? I don't know if that came out wrong.</p>

<p>However, my dad really wants me to go to Brandeis because it has a "safer and better learning environment" than NYU. Personally, I feel the same way. I am easily distracted and I know at NYU, I'd want to go out on the weekends rather than staying at my dorm to study. Brandeis is also good in this aspect because it's only 20 minutes away from Boston and the school offers free shuttles to and from Boston almost everyday. So I can study hard while I'm in the Brandeis bubble AND play hard in Boston. (On the contrary, I lived around the Boston area and already been too all the fun places in Boston. I still love the city though.) Secondly, Brandeis offered me more scholarship than NYU. Brandeis is also cheaper than NYU, tuition wise and random misc spense wise (NYU is in NYC after all= more places to spend money). I never realized that the money factor played such a big role in my decision making until recently (because there is some serious communication issue in this family). Third, Brandeis has a 75% acceptance rate to medical school. (I don't know what NYU's stat is. Couldn't find it on their website). If I really decide to walk down the road of the health field, I feel that Brandeis will prepare me better. I heard that 25% of Brandeis students intend to major in pre-med. And only 25 % of that 25% stay pre-med cause Brandeis weeds out all the "unqualified." This is both good and bad. Good because others will motivate me to study more. Bad because I don't want to get stressed out for the next four years. And I don't know if I'm ready tocommit the next 8 years in school yet. I'd like the get married thank you very much, dad. Jk. I don't know.</p>

<p>So basically, that's my dilemma. Sorry for being so verbose and repetitive. I kind of just wrote what I was thinking. I'd appreciated if any of you guys give me some input or give me a different persepective on things.</p>

<p>Oh and also, If I hadn't said this already, I really like big schools. Brandeis is the smallest school I applied to. So uh... ya thanks a lot!</p>

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<p>NYU's placement rate for med school is similar, though slightly higher if I remember correctly. I'll leave that to a premed student to answer...</p>

<p>From everything I've heard, the weeding-out process is true for all universities.</p>

<p>Keep in mind that you can't major in Intl Business if you're in CAS.</p>

<p>Also, NYU is a lot of the same people too. If you don't like Jews, well... we've got a lot of them. A lot of Asians and Indians too. Actually, this is probably true of a lot of the major universities.</p>

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<p>Thanks youkosiren. I've realized that I cannot major something sterny. But I guess I can at least minor in it. And I don't think I'd mind the Asians and Indians cause I'm Chinese. Hahaha.</p>

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<p>Why exactly did you throw out BU, xflash? That's a pretty good school... just because you didn't make the 7-year program is no reason to forget about it.</p>

<p>I wouldn't trust any school's so-called "acceptance" rate to medical school unless they explicitly say how that is calculated. Some schools artificially boost their numbers by barring candidates who are perceived as unqualified from applying - this is done by refusing to give the applicants the required letter of recommendation. In contrast, NYU does not bar anyone from applying. The advising office may have reservations about some students' chances for acceptance, but they do their best to support the students' applications. I was told that NYU's "acceptance rate" is around 70%, and that it has dropped in recent years because there were students considered unqualified for medical school who chose to apply anyway.</p>

<p>Forget about majoring in "pre-med". For the vast majority of good schools, pre-med is not a major. Instead, it's a course sequence that allows students to fulfill the requirements for medical school. You'll need to select a real major like biology or chemistry in order to graduate from undergrad.</p>

<p>I somehow doubt that Brandeis' environment is a "safer and better" learning environment solely by dint of location. What's important here is how well you learn with Brandeis' campus and culture compared with NYU's campus and culture. If you think Brandeis is better suited for you in that way, then go to Brandeis.</p>

<p>Finally, money is always an issue. I wouldn't go thousands of dollars into debt now for undergrad, because you WILL be in tens of thousands of dollars in debt if you go to medical school. You and your parents should have a frank discussion about what your family can afford and not afford to give you.</p>

<p>Ask away if you've got more questions or issues. As always, I hope you choose NYU :) but it's not the school for everyone.</p>