<p>Thank you for the input everyone 
I am going to visit all three in the coming weeks, but I think It might end up being Cornell simply because of the facilities, intellectual atmosphere, and prestige (lol, Ivy whore ftw).</p>
<p>Based on your criteria, I think Northwestern or Cornell are your best options.</p>
<p>I think I agree with you tenisghs. Although Vandy is ranked nicely for biomedical engineering, the overall engineering facilities/curriculum/professors will most likely be better at Cornell or Northwestern, simply because these are more science-oriented schools. And since Cornell is the more affordable of the two, I think I will be enrolling there this fall, barring a huge inclination towards Northwestern when I visit there Thanks for the help everyone!</p>
<p>^Let me warn you; Evanston is awesome even if it werenāt close to Chicago. There are 80+ restaurants/cafes (dining capital of the North Shore), Borders, 18-screen movie theaterā¦etc in the downtown area (hence walkable from campus). And you will like Chicago! You may not want to visit. ;)</p>
<p>Lol, just when I thought I had it narrowed downā¦ Sam Lee, would you say that campus life is better in Northwestern than Vanderbilt?</p>
<p>idk. i never visit nashville or vandy. i heard itās nice.</p>
<p>^^^Sam Leeās honesty is refreshing. A lot of CC posters are happy to opine about Vanderbilt/Nashville (and other places) even when they have no experience whatever with the school or with the city.</p>
<p>Both Northwestern and Vandy are full of students who are very happy with their choice. Both schools are excellent and both Evanston and Nashville are great places to be a college student. They are not the <em>same</em>, so they are not necessarily interchangeable for every student; having said that, I know students at both schools whom I believe could have been happy at either. To some extent, it depends on how flexible or rigid you are as a person. You should try to visit if you can.</p>
<p>Cornell off course does not have u/g in BioMedicalā¦</p>
<p>Trust me, go for Cornell! You will definitely NOT regret it!</p>
<p>Iām not sure, and Iām surprised if its true, if no one has brought this up, but you can tell the Hopkins financial aid office about your aid/scholarships from Vandy/Cornell/Northwestern and they will more than likely increase your aid as a result. </p>
<p>If Hopkins aid is on par with NW or Cornell, I suggest Hopkins by a mile.</p>
<p>i already tried to bargain with hopkins fin. aid office, but to no avail =[ however i visited vandy today and loved it! do rankings and prestige really matter all that much? please excuse the grammar, did this on my phone lol</p>
<p>If you like Vandy, then go. IMO, for undergrad it isnt where you go, but what you make of it. However, I hope you visited another school as well. You have to have at least another school to compare it to.</p>
<p>azngod
I am assuming you will be doing under-graduate ā¦have you checked and are your sure that Cornell offers Biomed Engg major ? I believe it does not ā¦although i could be wrong.</p>
<p>The Vanderbilt engineering school does a very good accepted student event. And even better, they make good on their promises.</p>
<p>You will love it.</p>
<p>Hi all. Vandy is the first school that I have visited, and I am visiting Cornell, Northwestern, and Hopkins in the next two weeks. I have checked w/ Cornell, and they offer a bioengineering major as well as a biomedical engineering minor, so the curriculum is practically the same. However, Vandy is my cheapest option, costing half as much as Cornell and Northwestern and only a third of Hopkins. I loved the campusāit is the most naturally beautiful campus out of the many schools that I have visited (Ironically, besides my safeties, I have only been accepted to schools that I never visited XD). The only thing that concerns me with Vandy is the prestige factor, since it is not considered as prestigious as Cornell Northwestern or Hopkins. However, I have heard it labeled as a southern ivy and the āHarvard of the South.ā What are all your opinions on the prestige of vandy? P.S. I know it is a very shallow question lol.</p>
<p>Thanks, azngod. Good Luck with your decision making ā¦
BTW, Cornell offers āBiological Enggā major ā¦thatās substantially, although not entirely different from BME offered by JHU, Vandy, BU, Rice & othersā¦since you are visiting them you might want to re-check on this.</p>
<p>These are all fine choices. Donāt be swayed by rankings or āivyā mystique. Frankly, given the cost I would say Vanderbilt and I love Cornell and Northwestern (Chicago is my favorite site of your options location wise) but in this case I say Vandy.</p>
<p>I love Cornell because my daughter is very happy there. But looking at the cost of those schools, you would be better off in going to Vandy. If you were looking to go into finance then the UG prestige(not necessary the quality) would matter more.</p>
<p>Half as much? Definitely Vandy!</p>
<p>The $$ seems material, the extent that it drives depends in part on how important the $$ is to you, and how strongly you feel about your ability to thrive in the various environments. You are not my family, but there are certain regions of the country my kids did not want to be in, and they did not apply to any schools in those regions, and would not have gone there even if they were free. Iām not saying thatās good, or bad, but thatās the way it was, for them.</p>
<p>Also one thing Iāve noticed is that there is a regional bias to post-college destinations.
Not a pre-destination, or an absolute, but a bias. This seems obvious perhaps, but it first came to my notice when I saw a list of future destinations of D1ās midwestern LAC. I saw it again when Sam Lee posted a list of med school destinations for Northwestern, and when someone posted a list of biggest undergrad schools for some major law schools which were on the East coast, and someone pointed out that Vanderbilt was notably absent.</p>
<p>Now this may have more to do with where the students are from, and nothing more. But then at least realize this bias will affect where the bigger proportion of your fellow students/ possiible friends (even spouse, possibly) will be from, and how likely you are to see them subsequently. And where the larger portions of the alumni body are located, as per networking and social functions. (Though in this regard Cornell, for one, spreads out quite a bit,you can compare where each school has active alumni clubs that sponsor social events,lectures, networking functions, etc.)</p>
<p>There can be a regional bias to on-campus hiring too, in my experience. There will be a tier of companies that recruit nationally, but others will recruit regionally. Even some firms that recruit nationally will be recruiting in a particular region for their regional branch offices, not necessarily their headquarters.</p>
<p>Many if not most students change their minds about their majors once they are in college, so suggest keep other possible paths in mind as well. and keep an open mind once you get there. College is supposed to broaden your horizons and understanding of possibilities and where you fit, you should let that happen.</p>
<p>Also, to the extent campus cultures seem to be somewhat different and physical environments and settings are different this can also legitimately be considered. If you might be happier someplace, socially or other ways besides academically, simply because the place suits you better or the kids there fit with you better, this can affect everything else about your experience there.</p>
<p>These are all āgoodā schools, in the abstract, yet people should be able to make distinctions along these other lines, at least, and develop personal preferences accordingly.</p>