I am a senior girl from Long Island, New York and have been accepted to both of my top schools, University of Notre Dame and University of Virginia. I cannot decide which would be the better fit for me. I would like to hear people’s opinions on which is better academically overall and in reputation. I applied to the College of Arts and Sciences/Letters at each school, but after much deliberation have concluded that I want to apply to business school. So for ND I can try to get into Mendoza as a sophomore, or at UVA apply to McIntire, neither of the two being an easy or guaranteed thing. I want to have fun but am intimidad by UVA’S Greek system, and ND feels more familiar and similar to the Catholic school I attend now, in contrast to UVA’s public school, more diverse atmosphere. But on the other hand, I do fear that ND is rather “dead” in the winter once football season ends. Also wondering if the academic rigor at ND is too demanding to have a large social life. I know people obviously balance both there, but i tend to study a lot/take a lot of time to get tasks done. Any opinions/advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Have you visited both schools ?
If so, what are your thoughts & impressions ?
@Publisher yes I have visited both. Notre Dame is obviously extremely cold and that left a lasting impression on me. The University of Virginia seemed more chaotic, unorderly and less mellow, which might be a weird observation but it’s what I noticed. Both campus’ are beautiful, but superior location goes to Charlottesville in several aspects. The college town feel, weather, 4 hours less of a car ride, and the east coast is where I am from. But ND is so unique and has that “wow factor” in outer appearance and in reputation. I know I will love either school I attend, so it has become more of a question of which more so?
Congratulations on two fantastic choices! You can’t go wrong either way. I have Ds at Notre Dame, and one of the draws for them was the lack of Greek life, and instead the “house”(dorm) atmosphere. With regard to ND being dead in the winter, that’s when most of the dorms have dances and there are lots of other things going on. BUT - it is cold and gray for much of winter. Both will have rigorous academics, but there is plenty of time to have a robust social life.
Are you going back for admitted student days?
If you want to study business, then it might help to assess to which business school you are more likely to be admitted.
I am revisiting UVA, and went to ND a few weeks ago. As of now, I know that I want to go to ND, but am hesitant only because of the location (plane ride away, extremely cold, isolated town). To Charlottesville, South Bend is incomparable. But I dont know if I should sacrifice going there only because of poor location. As for business school admittance, neither will be easy, so not sure if I can factor that in.
In the greater scheme of things, the slightly increased level of hassle that you would incur by having to travel to South Bend rather than to C-ville is not that big of a deal. Years down the road, what you’ll remember is the experience of BEING at a school for months on end, not the experience of TRAVELLING to the school a few times a year.
While both ND and UVA are great universities that will offer you an excellent foundation for building a career in business, it sounds to me as though your heart belongs to ND. Therefore, I’d advise you to follow your heart in this instance.
To apply a bit of game theory, it would be worse to be consistently miserable at UVA because of the culture of the school (and to know that you were only there rather than at ND because you prioritized convenience) than it would be to have your otherwise positive experience at ND occasionally marred because of cold, cloudy weather.
I don’t think either school necessarily has a bigger “wow factor” than the other. It may depend on your location, your social circles, or your field. In academia, esp. in certain liberal arts fields, UVa is at least as impressive as UND. I would think the regional business and internship opportunities are a little better for UVa students (although DC and Northern Va are ~3 hrs away).
Does the Catholic factor matter to you?
What about net costs?
The dorms at ND act similarly to fraternities. Meaning, they become your social scene, have a philanthropy of sorts, parties, etc. The campus is absolutely gorgeous. Chicago is so close and you have endless opportunities coming from there. It truly is very different from UVA and hard to compare the two. UVA is more spread out, Charlottesville is fun and nice to have at hand. I strongly believe that when you step on a campus you get a feeling of how much you belong. I am a huge advocate of both schools, but also realize how different they are. You are fortunate to have the opportunities to go to both, but I would say, “go with your gut.”
Net costs are very close, ND being about 5,000 more a year than Virginia. I am Catholic and like the kind of people that the Catholic atmosphere attracts, but the presence or lack thereof does not necessarily sway me one way or the other. Thanks for all the helpful insights. I still have a few more weeks to dwell on it all, I just don’t want to have regrets either way.
One of your assumptions seems to be that it is equally easy to get into the respective business schools. Check how likely a transfer from the Arts & Science at ND to the Business school might be. I believe that such transfers are EXTREMELY limited. I know they are extremely hard at BC for example.
On the other hand, UVA has NO direct admits to the business program. All students apply during Sophomore year I understand and that this is the only way to be admitted to the business school. Yes, it is competitive but I was told by our UVA tour guide that about 60% to 2/3rds of applicants get in.
If this is all true, it seems that your likelihood of getting to be a business school grad is much higher at UVA if that is a truly important factor for you.
If what I write above it not correct, then I’d like to know how to understand this better for ourselves. Thx.
@tR5674 No what you said is correct, but I don’t think I can or should base my decision off of odds that may not work out in my favor either way. Say I were to get denied from ND Mendoza Business School as a sophomore and pursued a degree in say Econ with a minor in some liberal arts subject… Would I be unable to get any business world job with a regular degree from ND instead of a Mendoza one? Would it be considered lesser of an achievement/ be concerning to potential employers that I did not get admitted to the business school?
@backpack19 You can be successful, of course, either way. I’m just responding to what I thought you were seeking specifically.
Yes of course. Your response sparked more questions I now wish to get answers to
Something to research at both schools is if you do end up as an econ major in the liberal arts school…can you interview for the same internships and jobs as the business school students? Said differently are the career center offerings and/or outcomes different for econ vs. business majors.
Son in same spot trying to decide between Notre Dame and UVA. This is hard.
He is science oriented- most likely pre-med.
No lie I am actually trying to decide between Notre Dame and UVA right now too. I like the vibe much more at ND, but then again the social scene at UVA is much better with greek life, bars and Charlottesville. Did you end up making a decision yet?
No I still have not been able to decide!! I have been sitting on this decision for over 3 months now and it is eating away at me not knowing which truly is going to be the better scool for me. I change my mind every other day, but as of tonight, I’m leaning towards UVA. It just seems to have more pros. However, I still cannot get past giving up the ND network and family after graduating. Again, any insights would be SO helpful 
Hi, Backpack19. You have two great options here and I can pretty much assure you that you are going to love whichever school you select. But I’ll share with you my First Year sons’ experiences at UVA.
This time last year, my sons were choosing between W&M and UVA. W&M had put on a great admitted students’ day and Monroe Scholars’ presentation, my sons had friends there, and W&M appealingly portrayed themselves as quirky, intense and intellectual. UVA, perhaps because it had stormed dramatically the night before, had an underwhelming admitted students’ day and my sons were concerned about the preppy-drunken-frat-guy stereotype that pervaded these kinds of discussions. Neither guy drinks, and Greek life did not appeal, despite the fact that their Dad was in the Greek system as an undergrad.
Anyhow, after much angst both selected UVA. They found Charlottesville to be an appealing college town, liked the strong academic vibe that seemed to be more anxiety-free than W&M, desired the fun and student comraderie of Division I sports, and took to heart my suggestion that with 13,000 undergrads and 600+ clubs, they would find their people. And between the McIntire School of Commerce, the Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, and strong programs in economics, English and political science, they were fairly sure they’d progress from “undecided” to a satisfying major or two by the end of Second Year.
Well, it’s one year later. Academically, they’ve done ridiculously well and each has found several mentors in various departments. But more importantly (to me), they have had an amazing social experience. Both are writing for the student paper and one survived auditions and is now doing improv with a group that performs shows before hundreds of students (which is really amusing since we had no idea he was funny). Both are doing a club sport and have participated in many intramural events with friends from their dorm and other clubs. They are also variously involved in clubs that deal with filmmaking and game nights, and also volunteer coach a club team of Charlottesville kids in their club sport.
Outside of organized activities, they have gone to more than their fair share of football, basketball, volleyball, and other NCAA division I sports. As you can imagine, following the basketball team was amazing this year and there were several late nights celebrating on the Corner. (I did my part as a parent — they knew the lyrics to “Don’t Stop Believin’” and “We are the Champions.”). They’ve attended speaking events in the areas of politics, comedy, law, media and theater. They’be been to concerts at JPJ and festivals on the Downtown Mall. They’ve had me treat them to steak at Maya, seafood at Public Fish, and bagels at Bodo’s. And beyond that there’s Spikeball on the Lawn, Marvel movies, apple-picking, hiking the Blue Ridge and Skyline Drive, day trips to amusement parks, etc. It’s really been a great year for them. And, nope, they still don’t drink and haven’t entered Greek life. Plenty of cohorts at UVA for all interests of all kinds.
If you really want to check out the vibe at UVA and ND, go online and read the student paper for an idea of the humor, political and entertainment bent. Check out each school’s list of clubs and activities (and then check out the online presence of those that interest you). See what the students think of their school; google “best things about UVA / UND,” “Top Ten classes at …,” “Best professors at …,” “best experiences at …”
And don’t stress either. The prevalent myth on these kinds of platforms is that there IS a best school for you. There’s not. There’s undoubtedly many, many schools out there where you could do exceptionally well and leave a very proud alum. The key to an exceptional college experience is 90% student readiness: putting yourself out there the first couple of months to meet people and join clubs and activities, cultivating relationships with professors, going to class and doing the reading (you’d think “duh” but you’d be surprised), making yourself leave the dorm to listen to the speakers and see the performances that come to campus, etc. Good luck!
^ Such a GREAT post! Says it all.