<p>I'm an international student from Pakistan. All three colleges( college of arts and sciences in the case of tufts and NYU) have their own set of pros and cons and none seems better than the other. I'm very confused. Need urgent advice!!
So basically.
-I want to major in Econ or finance which I know CMC has a great program for. so does stern except I'll have to internally transfer.
- My parents are paying the full cost.
- Location doesn't really matter as I like all three equally, though my dad likes NYC because he thinks living there will teach me a lot plus it has the best opportunities for internships etc in the finance sector
- good study abroad programs are really important for me and I love all the places NYU sends it's students too!
- CMC is definitely highest in rankings (LACS) but it's not internationally recognised. That's important because I plan to work in Pakistan.
- I don't want the environment to be too secluded or too impersonal and I know that NYU and CMC are on the ends of that spectrum!
I'll be grateful to anyone willing to offer advice </p>
<p>The only reason CMC is not “internationally recognized” is, the school has only been in existence for 60 years.
But, in those six decades, Claremont McKenna has established itself as one of the nation’s leading undergraduate academic institutions.
It appears you’ve narrowed your choices to Claremont and NYU…you are quite right about CMC and NYU being on opposite ends of the spectrum, in the sense that you’re faced with the choice of living in the greatest city on the planet, or attending (arguably) the best college on the planet…lol!
Seriously, though, you - not your dad - will be spending four of the best years of your life in one of these two very different settings, and a personal visit to each school would be invaluable… As much as I love New York, and NYU - my niece attended- I can tell you unequivocally that there is no comparison in the quality of education at the undergraduate level with CMC, where you will have world-class professors who are there to TEACH. Most of your classes will be between 10-18 very bright students…its not uncommon for professors to hold an occasional class at his/her home.
Then, there is the five-college consortium which affords you the opportunity to take classes at Pomona, Harvey Mudd, Scripps, or Pitzer. Finally, the school’s hidden gem: The Athenaeum, where you can have dinner in a relatively intimate setting up to 4 nights a week with noted luminaries from all walks of life. Recently, they have had speakers such as Bill Clinton, Condoleeza Rice, Anderson Cooper, Karl Rove, Billie Jean King, and Eric Schmidt, co-founder of Google.
You are fortunate to have been accepted. According to xiggi, one of this site’s experts on admission statistics, this year’s entering class, with an expected acceptance rate of 10%, is poised to become the nation’s most selective LAC, surpassing Amherst and Pomona, as well as several Ivies.
There is a reason CMC students were rated by Princeton Review as The Nation’s Happiest students…my vote goes to Claremont! </p>
<ol>
<li><p>You can study Econ and Finance thanks to the Financial Economics Sequence.</p></li>
<li><p>Study abroad opportunities at CMC are awesome.</p></li>
<li><p>I don’t know too much about international recognition. However, a Top 10 LAC SHOULD beat out Tufts/NYU IMO.</p></li>
<li><p>From what I’ve heard, students are usually successful when looking for internships in NYC. You can probably confirm this by doing a quick Linkedin/Google search on “Claremont McKenna (insert any BB here) New York”.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>In addition, I’ll back up “stagalum” by saying that the attention and quality of undergraduate education you’ll receive at CMC is truly unparalleled.</p>
<p>Thankyou for the advice guys 
It is a huge help. Thanks again.</p>
<p>Comparing a “top ten LAC” with a top 30-ish university… Apples and oranges.</p>
<p>The beauty of Tufts is that it straddles both categories. Competes as a research university with much larger schools, yet maintains the feel/ personal attention of a smaller LAC. I’d venture that if Tufts were ranked in USNWR on the LAC list, it’s rank would stand proud with the top 10-20. This has been suggested many times on CC.</p>
<p>Having attended NYU, I have to concur with poster on your other thread who noted the scattered, often alienating experience of being an NYU student. NYU’s bureaucracy is a tenth circle of hell, keep in mind. As for CMC, its reputation is inexplicably amorphous for a top LAC; if name-brand value is a consideration, Tufts and NYU tops it, just as most universities seem to do over LACs in terms of international reputation. </p>
<p>@gondalineNJ </p>
<p>I wasn’t comparing CMC to a “top 30-ish university”. I was explaining how I feel that it should have more, if not equal name-brand recognition internationally. Of course this is unrealistic, given its size and age.</p>
<p>OP, ask yourself: Is a little extra recognition worth sacrificing quality of education and personal fit? I’m sure top employers will still give you plenty of credit for attending CMC; even if they are overseas.</p>
<p>You have a very tough choice to make, no doubt. I really hope you got the opportunity to visit each campus and see where exactly you could best picture yourself.</p>
<p>@gondalineNJ </p>
<p>I didn’t mean any disrespect by ignoring Tufts in my response to ‘redstuff.’
It’s a fine school, and a couple of friends went there.
Since ‘redstuff’’ only compared CMC and NYU in the body of his text, I assumed he had narrowed his choice to those two.</p>
<p>I must admit, however, that I am a bit mystified by your characterization of CMC’s reputation as being “…inexplicably amorphous for a top LAC.” Its true that, in terms of ‘international recognition,’ there are dozens of large universities whose names are more recognizable to the masses than any LAC.
i.e., U of Florida, Alabama, USC etc. are more well-known around the country than Williams, Amherst, Swarthmore, Pomona, CMC, et. al (in large part, due to their sports programs. But, I doubt whether many would say the educational opportunities at these large universities surpass, or - for that matter- compare, with those at the top LACs.</p>
<p>‘Redstuff,’ I don’t think you’ll have any problems with prospective employers in Pakistan if you graduate from CMC, whose graduates have proven to be successful, all over the world. If you do,just tell them to do their homework…lol!</p>
<p>By inexplicably, I meant regrettably. CMC is unknown where I live on East Coast, perhaps because of shortsightedness on the part of local GCs, perhaps because of the fact the CMC doesn’t deluge local students with promotional materials (my D may have gotten one or two emails from them?). Sadly, all we’ve heard about CMC is the recent SAT reporting scandal. </p>
<p>And, boy, do I agree that there is an unfortunate disconnect between name-brand recognizability among the general populace/ abroad and actual educational quality. Gets discussed on CC ad infinitum. But since the OP mentioned rankings, then name-brand must be a factor for him/ her. I’ve posted on other threads how I believe international students need to tell the folks back home to “do their homework” with respect to broadening their definition of and criteria for a reputable, quality US college.</p>
<p>And btw, my D is getting a world-class education and mind-broadening experience (thanks to the diverse student body, small classes, responsive and engaged professors, plus incredible cultural/ social life of Boston area) at Tufts.</p>