I’m so grateful to have been accepted into two amazing schools - Northwestern and Berkeley - but I’m so torn on where to commit! I’m a California resident (cost is not an issue, though) and I want to study econ. I have 10 days left to pick. Any advice?
Flip a coin. If you don’t like the result, then you know the answer.
No wrong choice. Different settings. Different campus cultures–one more liberal, the other more moderate.
Different campuses, different sizes, different amounts of flexibility of major. Saltwater vs freshwater (NU is right on Lake Michigan). Different amounts of resources. Different weather. Different regions. Quarter system vs semesters.
You have no preferences about any of that?
Berkeley’s weather is definitely preferable, as is its cost. I prefer Northwestern’s quarter system and smaller class size, though.
Another consideration: Can you get into all of your required classes in order to graduate in 4 years at UC-Berkeley ?
I don’t know a whole lot about picking classes at Berkeley, but I think I’d be able to. I am considering double majoring, though, which might throw things off.
Check our live from Northwestern series on YouTube if you haven’t already. It’s very easy to double major at NU.
Did you get any FA from Northwestern or how much is the difference in tuition? You can make up some of that difference by living off campus with flatmates as the rent could be $1,000/mo or less in that case.
Thanks, I have watched some of the videos! Unfortunately, I didn’t get any financial aid from Northwestern, so it would cost me about $80k per year (whereas Berkeley would be around $40k).
Berkeley has a strong 4-year grad rates, so that should not be an issue.
If you’re serious about double majoring, it’s easier, maybe much easier to double major at NU. That may break the tie, if you will, because they’re really close if NU is affordable.
If you are studying econ you care about return on investment. The extra $40k/yr is quite a bit. Berkeley has one of the best econ depts in the world. I know some kid from Midwest went Berkeley just to study econ. The downside is Berkeley is notoriously competitive it may ruin your transcript if grad school is your goal.
I’m still undecided about grad school, but I’m definitely taking it into consideration! It would be nice to have funds left over for grad school, which would be a strike against NU. At the same time, NU’s alumni network is great.
@EMC . . . so your parents wouldn’t be willing to deep-pockets all your education, undergrad and grad? Or is it in a large but finite college fund?
The latter - I have enough to cover Berkeley undergrad with some left over. For Northwestern, I can cover nearly all of undergrad (if I keep working, I can cover it fully). I’d be on my own for grad school, though.
40k/yr is a lot and I would go to Berkeley if I were you.
My D 2024 visited both of these schools.
She wants to study engineering and was told during the Berkeley tour it would be nearly impossible for her to switch between engineering majors (or to switch to many other Berkeley programs) after direct admitting into a major as a freshman (which you pretty much have to do to gain acceptance to the program).
At NU, she was told she could wake up every day and just switch to any school/major by clicking a checkbox on an online form. The NU rep stated he went from journalism, to engineering, to Bio, to Econ major during his first few years.
The Berkeley rep said it would be nearly impossible to just switch from something like Biochemical Engineering to Chemical Engineering… Not sure if this is 100% accurate, but it was a total deal-breaker for my D.
She starts NU Engineering in the Fall.
So if ability to switch majors is important to you, I’d recommend looking very closely at Berkeley requirements and compare them to NU.
Berkeley >> Northwestern - $160,000.
^ Different pros and cons for each school.