Because you haven’t been out in the world much. Once you leave HS/college behind and enter the adult world, you’ll find plenty of folks who think NU and Columbia are peers (which they are when it comes to how well their alums do on aggregate) with some rating NU higher in some areas.
BTW, you do realize that by restating stuff and going on and on about the USNews ranking and admit rate, you’re projecting a lot of insecurity, right? I mean, granted, it’s common for many folks your age to be insecure but word of advice: After you’ve graduated, it’d be wise not to try to put down other schools by comparing them to Columbia’s USNews ranking or admit rate. People would think you’re still stuck in HS. Both those items are easily manipulated.
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Panda, thanks for the explanation- I am a Columbia grad btw… and STILL don’t believe it’s the right choice for everyone, STILL don’t believe that for someone who is not seeking out an urban environment, it’s conducive to the lifestyle/balance that someone might be craving.
And for your supposed “intellectual and cultural stimulation”- there are kids at Columbia who do not visit a single museum, attend a single opera/concert/ dance performance, or take advantage of a single cultural event unique to NYC. They party, they use their fake ID’s to get into clubs, and they pretty much behave like college students anywhere else.
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Very different setting. You can’t get more urban than NYC and Columbia. NYC is enticing to many but is also dirty, smelly and rude to others. I’d imagine for many people, student life means city life and therefore, there’s probably less sense of community. It’s definitely not for everyone.
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Not true or fair what you write.
Beautiful campus with largest collection of prized Mckin, made and White buildings anywhere in the world. . Dirty and smelly city ? Rude ? Is that your fantasy ? Plus New York has much better weather and is the center of world finance and culture.
Sounds as if you are talking about your own lack of knowledge. Hardly a good advertisement for whatever school you are pumping.
I checked admissions, libraries, noble prize winners, internships, small classes with outstanding teachers dating back to Alexander Hamilton. I would take Columbia any day of the week. No comparison.
And you’re entitled to your opinion which you’ve abundantly shared on this thread. My D loves NYC and really wanted to love Columbia but the core was a deal breaker. I’d be concerned about crime in NYC right now. It’s a mess.
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NYC…nor Chicago…is for everyone. That’s the reality. Many love it. It’s why my girlfriend and I broke up after college - she had to live in the City…I had zero desire.
Back to Northwestern or Columbia and the OP wanting to study journalism - i’m sure he has enough info.
Yankees or Cubs wasn’t the topic!!
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I have been to NYC many times. I have relatives there and have stayed at hotels or with them many times. Regarding the campus, aesthetic is subjective. However, I think most would agree that the campus is small with more urban feel. It is bordered by urban streets on all sides.
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NU is not in Chicago, it’s in Evanston. Definitely a more suburban vibe than Columbia, plus it’s on the lake front with its own beaches and boat house.
I hate this “if it’s an Ivy it must be better” mindset. It’s just false. Get that people love their schools but fit is important and Medill is tops for journalism.
There are so many reasons why a student would choose NU over Columbia and it would be the right choice for them.
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If someone definitely wants to specialize in Journalism, yes, I can see that in favor of Medill Journalism at Northwestern as a choice.
But the admissions selectivity At Columbia ( as at Harvard, Brown, Dartmouth) are very, very much in favor of these colleges over Northwestern. Just checkout Parchment , Thought & Co., USNWR, etc.
The high schools I know about on the east Coast affirm the same points.
Northwestern is an outstanding university. SESP (School of Education & Social Policy) is regarded by many as the best in the country as is Medill. Theatre/acting is outstanding as are certain areas of engineering. Liberal arts are as good as it gets at both Columbia & Northwestern. Both schools are outstanding for the study of economics.
I have several family members / relatives who have earned degrees at both Columbia & Northwestern. Both are great schools. Most attend Columbia for graduate degrees in Journalism.
FWIW side note: A high school with which I am very familiar switched from sending their wrestlers to Northwestern to Columbia after a coaching change at Northwestern. Huge sacrifice for these ultra successful wrestlers to step down from Big 10 competition to Ivy wrestling, but no change in academics.
Overlap Schools in Common: Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Princeton, & Penn.
Columbia overlaps also include: MIT, Brown, & UCal-Berkeley
Northwestern overlaps also include: Duke, Michigan, & WashUStL
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Admission rates are tied to how many applicants there are in any given year, the more applications the lower the acceptance rate. TO significantly increased applications this year with the corresponding decrease in admit rate. Selectivity is relative.
This is from Thought and Co.
Admissions shows Northwestern to be selective for sure, but not elite. Here is its acceptance and yield.
i have no stake in the claims and advertisement about Northwestern selectivity. I am not from the midwest. Let’s just be accurate please on claims.
Here is the Columbia acceptance and yield.
People are claiming that NU and Columbia grads are peers in alumni achievements (with NU doing better in some areas) and that harping on an easily manipulated measure like selectivity makes you seem like a high schooler.
I don’t see how your post refutes that.
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If a college is caught manipulating statistics on admissions and yield, that is a very, very serious matter and a condemnable charge. No self-respecting college would want that notoriety.
USNWR and all the other educational sites are well aware of this issue.
And, of course it cuts both ways !
Of course high schoolers note all of the details. Hats off to due diligence among high school students, counselors, teachers, etc.
If admitted to either or both of Columbia & Northwestern, you’ve won the college lottery.
It is as simple as that.
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Manipulating meaning encouraging apps from kids who have no shot, ED and WL management, etc.
Ultimately, I care more about outputs than popularity amongst high school kids.
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But 17 - 18 year old kids do not think that way. They have no life experience and are focused on statistics such as admissions and yields, facilities, popularity.
You cant change how kids think. For most of them, it is all about acceptance data.
further, with the high price tag on these colleges, it is very difficult to find fault with their reasoning ( and with that of many parents).
Why does it matter to you what high schoolers think? They do not have a mature viewpoint. What matters in the real, grown-up world is what employers think.
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A quick glance on those scatterplots show that Northwestern has a more self-selecting pool; i.e., the applicant pool has less of range. There were less applicants in the lower left quadrant. I like how you just missed the obvious. This is awesome. 
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Not really. I is the upper right hand corner area which is most revealing.
In any event , my point is not about Columbia versus Northwestern.
It is about a number of places as Parchment, Thought & Co., USNWR, etc. all show with the same statistics each educational information site accumulates.
Are Northwestern alumni now making the implied suggestion that it is better than the University of Chicago say about that ?
How about the claim that it is ‘the Stanford of the Midwest’ or that Stanford is the ‘NU of the Far West’ ?
My point is that there is no need to run down one particular college at the expense of another nor to engage in salesmanship on one place over a dozen other also excellent places.
Some are just perhaps more famous and wealthy than others. period.
