NYU or Middlebury?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hello everybody!</p>

<p>I've been reading threads from cc for a while but havn't ever really been an active member.. however, I'm really confused right now and I thought that maybe you guys could help?
I need to decide between two really diverse schools: NYU and Middlebury, and nobody from my school/country can be of much help sadly, haha. </p>

<p>I'm an international student from Italy who wants to double major in Studio Art and English Literature.. what school is better to do this?</p>

<p>I realize how different NYU and Middlebury are.. but I don't actually know whether I'd rather a campus life or a city life. I love both schools, and oddly enough, they were two of my top choices. </p>

<p>I'm really confused and only have a month to decide... so any opinions would be greatly appreciated :)</p>

<p>Thanks in advance!!</p>

<p>Julie x</p>

2

<p>Middlebury is a solid LAC id go with Middlebury you’ll get a great college experience where as NYU is scattered all over the place and harder to establish a connection with students.</p>

3

<p>Many of the students who choose NYU aren’t necessarily choosing a college - they’re choosing to spend four years in Greenwich Village and take NYU because it’s the choice that allows them to do that. If you’re really about getting the college experience, then Middlebury would be the choice.</p>

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<p>thankyou! I’m still really confused thoughh argh</p>

5

<p>D’s close friend is graduating from NYU and had an awesome experience. She is a Romance Language major and the program required two trips abroad. She chose Italy and Spain.</p>

<p>I don’t think she feels she chose her college for Greenwich Village. She is quite academic and is going to grad school.</p>

<p>I understand what the posters mean, but it’s not quite fair to NYU and its students.</p>

<p>I adore Middlebury, not that my opinion is worthwhile.</p>

<p>OP: You need to decide if you want a small college in a rural setting with a lot of cohesion or a large university in an urban setting with much, much less cohesion.</p>

<p>Different types of students would choose differently.</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

6

<p>^^^ Point taken - degree of “cohesion” is a fairer way of referencing it than the terminology I used. But inner-city schools such as NYU, GW, Boston U, etc., have to work through the fact that without a well-defined campus, that cohesion and sense of campus community is more challenging to develop.</p>

7

<p>NYU is so incredibly overrated. People are scattered around. They have to share their “campus” with everyone else in New York. It’s like a commuter school in that people don’t have much of a chance to bond, but just take their classes and go back to their different living places, and scatter to do different activities in New York. When you’re in a place like Middlebury, you’re more likely to keep running into the same people enough times to form friendships. People I know from NYU don’t have that same feeling of closeness. To me, it is just not a real college experience. Furthermore, Middlebury has a far better reputation.</p>

8

<p>Endicott: It depends on what one means by college experience. I moved off campus with my boyfriend as a sophomore and lived twenty to thirty minutes from campus because it was all we could afford. I much preferred it to the dorms.</p>

<p>I was active in many political groups and very active in my department and was the only person to graduate with honors. I was mentored by a wonderful professor. </p>

<p>I think I had the perfect “college experience.” To me, it mainly meant academics, and I now have a PhD.</p>

<p>My S is at Williams, very similar to the Middlebury experience I would think. He is very, very happy there. My D would have felt very claustrophobic. She does not like rural environments. She is urban all the way. No Starbucks, no smile.</p>

<p>She is graduated from Barnard and NYC has been a partner in her education. She had many benefits from attending school in NYC. She visited the Met, the ballet, the opera, of Broadway shows all for class assignments. She had easy access to all her friends because it is a transportation hub. She saw friends and family whenever they passed through NY. </p>

<p>But most important, she had an all night Apple store to fix her ailing computer on several occasions when a paper was due the next day.</p>

<p>She did not get as involved with clubs or campus activities as my S.</p>

<p>Each is perfectly situated for his/her personality.</p>

9

<p>@Endicott</p>

<p>I’ve started noticing you lately, mainly on the NYU boards, and all you seem to do is bash NYU for various things. I know that the school has its flaws but you seem to contribute nothing positive and wish only to put the school down.</p>

<p>Frankly, its kind of starting to get annoying.</p>

10

<p>I really don’t think that NYU is overrated.</p>

<p>OP: The thing is, you’re looking at two schools where you will have two very different experiences. I was choosing between Wake Forest (small, campus, sports, southern) and NYU (big, no campus, no sports, northern), so I understand where you’re coming from! At NYU, everyone is very independent. Greenwich Village is really nice IMO; there are lots of things to do! There are really cute little places to eat and whatnot, and there is this park where a lot of people hang out. Most of the dorms have their own bathrooms and air conditioning, and several have dining halls in them. One dorm even has 3 and 1/2 dining halls in it. A lot of the dorms also have “themed floors” which is pretty neat. </p>

<p>Many of the buildings that you would have class in are really close together. NYU isn’t super spread out as some may believe, but it DEFINITELY isn’t a campus. An education at NYU certainly isn’t your “traditional” college education. The university heavily encourages study abroad. </p>

<p>The downside to NYU is that the city isn’t for everyone. Ultimately, I couldn’t see myself walking alone to classes, even in the daytime, with tons of strangers / bums / etc. This really doesn’t bother some people, and many people can overlook that. My neighbor went to NYU and never had one single safety issue. Also, many of the dorms are spread out. Some dorms are very close to the academic buildings, but there are also dorms on Wall Street I believe. </p>

<p>I don’t know much about Middlebury aside from the fact that it’s cold (& small). Middlebury would probably offer you the much more “traditional” college experience, and a greater opportunity to interact closely with your classmates and teachers. But I would definitely not rule out NYU – NYC is great for internships!</p>

<p>Good luck with deciding :slight_smile: I’m sure that you will get an outstanding education at whichever school you choose! </p>

<p><em>-POSSIBLY A REALLY IMPORTANT EDIT-</em></p>

<p>OH WAIT ONE MORE THING.</p>

<p>Studio Art = Tisch, English = CAS (I believe) … I’m not sure if you can major across schools. This is DEFINITELY something you’re going to want to call & ask about before making your decision, because I wanted to perhaps double major in psychology & photography, and they told me that I couldn’t major in Tisch since I was accepted into CAS; I could only take classes there (& MAYBE minor).</p>

11

<p>Photography is through Steinhart. Not sure about Studio Art. Yes, NYU has separate schools which can pose some difficulties.</p>

12

<p>Thank you so much for all your advice :)</p>

<p>Basically, I think I’m going to go to NYU for a few reasons. Firstly, I feel like Studio Art would be better at NYU (as NYU is also known as an artsy school) and there are loads of museums/galleries which at Middlebury I wouldn’t find. Also, I’ve always lived in a city and I loved it. I feel like Middlebury would be maybe great for the first year… but after that, I know I’ll find it a little secluded. Moreover, I don’t ski- i feel like that would cut me out from a lot of social activities. I’m not much of an outdoors person. I’m captain of our school’s varsity volleyball team and play some basketball… but that is about it. A more superficial reason; I’ve been used to having a nightlife since a young age… and I might find dorm parties a little depressing after a while. </p>

<p>Also… my parents are scared of sending me so far away from home. I’m from Italy- flying to NYC is okay… 7 hours and I’m there. However, to get to Middlebury the journey seems endless- Milan, London, Boston, Burlington, train to Middlebury. This might seem like yet another superficial reason but I’m very attached to my family and life in Italy… and I’d like to come back for spring break as well as christmas. Spring break is generally only have a week long… and in order to come back from Midd I’m sure I’d lose about 3.5 days, which would make my visit back home pretty pointless. I know it’s a stupid reason… but I don’t see a huge academic difference between NYU and Middlebury anyway, so I’m considering all options at this point.</p>

<p>Anyways… if anyone has any other advice to share… please do! I’m not sending my deposit till later in April anyway as I’m known for changing my decisions from one moment to the next :S </p>

<p>Thank you so much for all your input!</p>

13

<p>New York University</p>

14

<p>Middlebury! Its English department is excellent. Also, you will actually be taught by professors rather than 25 year old grad students. At Middlebury, you can get to know your teachers, coaches, etc. and you can’t do this at NYU without difficulty.</p>

15

<p>Middlebury for sure.</p>

16

<p>NYU has some great programs. Tisch and Stern are amazing but outside of that Middlebury definitely has an upperhand.</p>

17

<p>Definitely Middlebury. I’ll see you there. Class of 2014.</p>