<p>I have until May 1st two choose from Yale, Caltech, Northwestern, Duke, and Dartmouth. As of now I'm not leaning in any direction.</p>
<p>All schools are giving me good financial aid, and Northwestern is a full ride. At Caltech I would be playing for their D3 basketball team.</p>
<p>I have NO idea what I'd want to study, but I've always liked math and science (I probably wouldn't have applied to Caltech if not for basketball).</p>
<p>PLEASE HELP!!!!! All advice is much appreciated.</p>
<p>Have you visited any/all the schools? What did you think? Most people on CC will tell you to go to Yale or CalTech. Those two are considered the most prestigious, but all of your choices are great and I could see choosing another if you think it is a better fit. CalTech is probably stronger than Yale in math and the sciences, but I don’t know if their atmosphere and curriculum is appealing to you or a turnoff. Since CalTech is certainly unique in that regard. Also, don’t know how important playing intercollegiate basketball is to you. If you don’t want to give up basketball, but don’t find CalTech’s atmosphere appealing, I know Duke sports a pretty solid club basketball team that competes against other teams, and I’d assume Northwestern does as well. I’d imagine Yale and Dartmouth also have opportunities to play, but it’s probably more in the intramural sense and not as competitive of players. Congratulations on getting into so many great schools! Good luck!</p>
<p>Caltech would be a great environment for you then, since you’ll be playing for the school. You’re probably going to be a star there too and popular. And, although the school lacks diversity and girls (lol), it does have a large, wonderful campus. You’re most likely going to love the weather there too. And, it’s Caltech. The name alone would command a great amount of adulation from other people. </p>
<p>Now, if you wouldn’t be playing basketball for Caltech, I would strongly recommend Yale, then Dartmouth or Northwestern.</p>
<p>I did visit Caltech, Yale, Dartmouth, and Northwestern. At Caltech the small-campus feel was concerning, and it’d be tough being so far from home (I’m from NJ). Hanging out with the basketball team there was awesome, but outside of that group there were few kids I could really see myself hanging out with.</p>
<p>As for the other schools, none stood out from the visits alone. I just can’t seem to get a good feel for anywhere. My decision will likely be made more from information available online than anything from the visit, sadly.</p>
<p>“All schools are giving me good financial aid, and Northwestern is a full ride.”</p>
<p>How good is that financial aid? Run the numbers, and take another look at it: [FinAid</a> | Calculators | Award Letter Comparison Tool](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Award Letter Requirements - Finaid) What kind of difference can a full ride at Northwestern make for you and your family? Will it mean that there is some money left for grad school, or to support you while you take an unpaid internship? Is there any chance at all you can walk on for the Northwestern basketball team?</p>
<p>Not just for the Northwestern scholarship, but also for the rest, do you need to maintain a certain GPA in order to renew it in future years?</p>
<p>I’m originally from the Midwest myself, so I can understand if you prefer Caltech for the weather. It strikes me as a nice snow-free place to spend four years provided it is affordable.</p>
<p>I’d be concerned about Caltech for you. It’s < 1,000 students and you don’t feel a connection there to any group but the basketball team. The team just won their first conference game in 26 years after snapping a 207-game losing streak in 2007. Its overall record of 5-20 this year was its best since 1994-95. I’d have trouble believing that your affiliation with that program could sustain your passion for the school over four years.</p>
<p>The other options are fabulous. For a math and science guy who likes hoops and could probably dominate an Intramural league, a full ride at NU sounds like a dream come true.</p>
<p>Like gadad, I am not seeing the Caltech fit. It is academically SO intense, that if you don’t sleep, eat, and breath STEM, you are likely to have trouble because that is what they expect of you.</p>
<p>I currently work at caltech and am strongly considering attending Yale next fall. My best friend is going to Dartmouth. So, by affiliation I view merit in each of your options. That said, I’d strongly caution you about caltech. It’s for a very select type of person, and though I work there, I could never do my undergrad there. Not only that, it’s known for being rigorous to a point of excess. That said pasadena is one of my favorite places on earth (la without the hustle and bustle), research and science connections are amazing, and it’s got one of the biggest names in science. The two ivies you listed are better known for humanities, but any school of that caliber has quite a bit to offer in any department. Also, consider that Dartmouth is on the middle of nowhere, all of the others are near cities.
Money is a strong argument. Have you considered appealing your awards at other schools using northwestern as a sort of leverage?</p>
<p>Sent from my Desire HD using CC App</p>
<p>
fourth vote against Caltech. Good luck choosing between Yale, Northwestern, Duke, and Dartmouth! :)</p>
<p>Happymom, for a Caltech-caliber basketball player (division III), it would be nearly impossible to walk on at Northwestern (division I, major conference).</p>
<p>Thanks Chardo! I’m not on top of that kind of stuff. Back in the stone age when I was in grad school, I had a housemate whose fiance had walked on to a Big 10 football team, and it occurred to me that it might be an option. If it isn’t, well it isn’t, and the OP will have to take that into consideration as well in making the final decision.</p>
<p>Also of note, northwestern and Dartmouth are both quarter system schools. That’s a dealbeaker for some people. Also, Dartmouth isn’t just quarter system, It’s a modified quarter system called the D-plan.</p>
<p>Sent from my Desire HD using CC App</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for the advice. REALLY appreciate it and anything else you have to say.</p>
<p>With Caltech, I hope I didn’t make it sound like I wouldn’t at all associate myself with kids outside the basketball team. I would be fine socially I think; UCLA is nearby for weekend parties, and the entire community is rallied around the team. They walk around campus as superstars.</p>
<p>I hesitate to give specifics about my financial aid, but I will say this: When comparing the hidden costs of the NU full ride (meal plan, $3,500 “House Fee”), the difference in costs is almost (but not quite) negligible. (Yale+Dartmouth are only slightly more expensive. Caltech and Duke I’d be paying around twice the hidden costs of NU).</p>
<p>Again, THANKS so much for the info and keep sharing if you can.</p>
<p>Also, to be perfectly blunt, the Yale name can do a lot for you in terms of opportunities, especially fresh out of college or during college. Dartmouth to an extent as well. If those are both just barely more expensive than Northwestern, I’d say go Ivy. That may sound elitist, but there is certainly a grain of truth to it.</p>
<p>Sent from my Desire HD using CC App</p>
<p>Can you play BBall at Dartmouth or Yale? A Division I player may have a chance of making the team. Personally, I would go for Yale or Northwestern (full ride is hard to turn down).</p>
<p>“Like gadad, I am not seeing the Caltech fit. It is academically SO intense, that if you don’t sleep, eat, and breath STEM, you are likely to have trouble”</p>
<p>I agree with this. I think Caltech is not right for people who aren’t sure what they want to study, but they like math and science. It’s for people who are rock-solid certain that they want to spend four years up to their necks in a science swimming pool. More so than even MIT.</p>
<p>Go to Yale. I think it’s a no-brainer here if its only slightly more expensive than Northwestern and Dartmouth/Duke are even more expensive than that. Yale is top-notch in every field and the name alone will open doors anywhere.</p>
<p>Yet another vote against Caltech. OP, you initially wrote</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>which doesn’t sound like a Caltech student at all. As other posters said, people are at Caltech because of an intense desire to do all things science. If you’d led with something about the STEM options, and THEN mentioned how great that you’ll be able to play b-ball, that would be a different thing. Have you watched the documentary “Quantum Hoops” about the Caltech team? The basketball team is treated like rock stars right now because they made national news breaking a long losing streak. Caltech is a place where it’s far more common for a professor to be awarded a Nobel prize than for the basketball team to win a game. 
</p>
<p>You may want to check out the opportunities to play intramural basketball at the other excellent options you’ve got in hand. Any of them will have great academic opportunities in science and math and any other field you care about. Duke is going to have the amazing school basketball team, if you want to be part of a great spectator/fan base.</p>
<p>UCLA is two hours in traffic away from Cal Tech. USC is much closer. Go to Yale.</p>
<p>this is looking more and more like a Yale enrollment</p>