NYU vs. GWU vs. URichmond

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Richmond
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Hi! So the deadline for choosing a college is coming up very soon and I am having a crisis because I cannot choose a school. I keep changing my mind and it’s scaring me because this is such a big decision. I was wondering if I could get some advice. I’m trying to decide between NYU, GWU, and the University of Richmond.

I want to major in Public Health, which is available at GWU and NYU. URichmond does not have it but has a Healthcare and Society major, which seems like a close alternative. I am planning to go on the pre-med track and am interested in studying abroad.

I have been wanting to go to NYU for a long time. I am attracted to the Global Public Health program and the opportunities of the city. I feel like I would be most comfortable in NYC because I love the diversity and liberal feel of the city. However, NYU is the farthest school from home and I’m concerned about the huge class sizes. I would have to pay 14k a year for NYU.

URichmond has small class sizes and I have heard good things about doing pre-med there. I would only have to pay for books and personal expenses - about 2k a year. However, the school doesn’t have Public Health and I’m nervous about the atmosphere. It’s a very small school located in an isolated area. I don’t really care for the city of Richmond, either. I’m scared I’ll feel like I’m suffocating in a college bubble if I attend this school. I graduated high school early because I couldn’t wait to leave and I don’t want a repeat of that situation. I haven’t visited yet (I will later this month) but I have a nagging feeling this atmosphere will be like high school and I’ll be unhappy. I’m not really looking for the “traditional” college campus feel.

GWU to me is a middle ground between both schools. It has the Public Health major and is located in an urban setting. It’s not as big as NYU, but it’s not as small as URichmond. I would have to pay 11k a year for GWU. I’m attracted to the opportunities offered at GWU and I also love Washington DC. It’s located between URichmond and NYU in terms of distance from home. I like GWU but tuition is only a little less than NYU and I feel like I should just go to NYU if I decide to take out loans.

I was previously leaning towards attending Richmond just because of the low cost - 2k would be fantastic for me because my family doesn’t make much income. At most I think my parents can contribute 2-3k a year max for my college, so Richmond is certainly manageable for them. Costs aside, I really want to go to NYU for the Global Institute of Public Health. I feel like I would be happiest in the city environment and I feel like the GIPH is most relevant to my interests. However, it’s a 48k difference. I don’t know if I should just stick to the money or go where I actually want to. I really didn’t think NYU would give me as much aid as it did and it just kinda sucks getting a full tuition scholarship and still not really being sure if I can afford to go!

Anyways thanks for reading all of that - any advice would be much appreciated. Sorry if anything doesn’t make sense - it’s 1:30 in the morning… Thanks! :slight_smile:

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The healthcare and society major (next year the name is being changed to healthcare studies I believe) at U of R is essentially what most schools call public health, but with a different name, so there’s no worries with curriculum here- it is the major you desire. If you want to attend med school, I would definitely choose U of R because you want to save your money for med school. U of R also has excellent med school acceptance rates (higher than the national average), as well as programs for pre-med students, such as a free MCAT prep course and clinical experience through VCU MCV.

Campus is only a bubble if you make it. We have shuttles to go off campus and plenty of activities and clubs on campus. Some students are even travel to VCU to attend all kinds of events.

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It is wonderful to to have such great choices, but it is vital to understand the true financial picture of all of your options. You mention in your post that your parents can only contribute 2-3 K to your college costs.

You are only eligible to borrow $5500 in Federal Direct Loans as a freshman ($6500 for Sophomores, $7500 for Juniors and Seniors). If your parents apply for a PLUS loan and are denied due to poor credit, you could apply to borrow an additional 4K). Does the 14 K price tag for NYU include the $5500 in Federal loans, or is that an additional amount your family must pay on top of the loans? (Same question for UR and GWU) No Bank will lend you any additional funds for school without a co-signer with a good credit history.

The maximum amount of subsidized loans available to you each year is $3500, remaining Federal loans are not subsidized and begin to accrue interest as soon as the money is borrowed. Although you could defer payment during medical school, interest would be accruing for quite a few years and your loan amount and payments could end up being much higher than you think.

There are also very few scholarships available for medical school and usually huge loans are required for most med students. it makes sense to keep your undergraduate loans to a minimum if planning on med/grad school.

Even though 14K for NYU may seem like a bargain, it seems as though that price tag may not work for your family. If you are attending school in NYC, you also need to consider other costs as well - travel costs to and from NYC, as well as within the city, costs for incidental personal items, and eating out or doing other social things in NYC - it is notoriously expensive.

Yes, Richmond is in the suburbs, but its academics are outstanding and the Healthcare and Society major and other premed options are excellent. The pre-med advising is awesome and UR’s med school acceptance rate is very high, especially when you consider that they do not weed out applicants like many other schools do. Their general and career advising is excellent, too, they really want all their students to be successful!

My 2 daughters who attend UR love the small classes and have developed great relationships with their professors. They are both doing research with professors, have paid summer internships, and the Junior is spending the current semester at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland this semester(all paid for with her UR scholarships). They love the nearby Carey Street area, with lots of great restaurants and little shops, and occasionally venture to downtown Richmond for various events/restaurants and to the James river for hiking, cooling off in the summer, etc. UR students can get off campus pretty easily through the shuttle buses and friends who have cars.

Please, please, please - consider the whole financial picture before you make your decision, costs may grow over time, your family may need its limited funds for a family or health emergency. You will need money for travel, a social life, books, etc. and funding those expenses can be very burdensome and stressful for a lower income family.

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You’ll be miserable at Richmond. I agree that for only $3,000 a year difference you should go to NYU since it’s your dream college and everything you are looking for. Distance from home? NYC has flights everywhere, so maybe you can fly home easily. Also you have Skype and texting – something us middleaged people didn’t have when we went away to college. Just think – you will be even farther away from home when you study abroad. Are you going to let that stop you? I hope not.

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@mommyrocks I think you misread the OP. The cost difference is $12k a year, for a total of more than $48k over the four years. That is money that the OP will need for med school and their parents can only contribute $2-3k a year, which is what UR would cost.

OP, if you come here, I don’t think you’d be miserable. Campus is very welcoming to people from all backgrounds and lifestyle.

Were you offered the Richmond scholar or is most of your aid financially based?

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@kellheesi , this is a good link for information about federal loans - https://studentaid.ed.gov/types/loans/plus - it will help you evaluate what you would need/be able to borrow to attend each school.

The best way to see if UR is a good fit is to visit, see how it feels, and ask lots of questions. My younger daughter who is a freshman was worried it would be too small for her - UR was the smallest school she applied to - in the end, the strong academics and low cost for our family made the most sense. She is also not 100% sure of career plans and LACs like UR generally have a little more flexibility to allow students to explore different options and take a broad range of courses to see what they enjoy. Students don’t actually declare their major until sophomore year. She is very happy at UR and really thriving there. In the fall, as sophomore, she will be a Sophomore Scholar In Residence(SSIR). It is an awesome program at UR. The students in the program take a course together, live together in a dorm, travel abroad together and work on common projects together. There is no additional cost to students! The SSIR program offers a broad range of courses in the sciences and humanities, with several focusing on medecine/health care, and many go across multiple academic disciplines. Check out the options - http://livinglearning.richmond.edu/ssir/
It is wonderful programs like these that help make UR really stand out academically!

Another plus for UR is that most students live on campus for all 4 years. It really helps build a sense of community and a connection to the campus. The upperclassmen usually live in the newer suit-style dorms which are very nice or in the on-campus apartments.

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@guineagirl96 @mamag2855 Wow, thanks for all the advice!! I do plan on taking the pre-med route, but I don’t know if this decision is concrete. I am interested in entering the medical field but I’m not sure whether I want to be an MD or just in the public health field. I was planning on trying out the pre-med courses and getting relevant volunteer work to help me decide what I want. I do agree that URichmond seems like a good place to do premed - the classes are so small and there are so many research opportunities.

@mamag2855 The 14k is including federal loans, transportation, books, and personal expenses. After looking into it, I discovered I could probably cut it down to 11 or 12k because NYU’s estimate allows for more personal expenses than I think I will actually use. If I do work study it’ll be 8 or 9k. Loans would cover 5.5k and then I’m planning to use 1k a year from my savings, so in the end my parents would have to pay about 1.5-2.5k out of pocket. It still is quite a difference, however. I would graduate with at least 22k in loans whereas I would be loan-free at Richmond.

I visited Richmond this week and I thought the campus was very nice. The tour guides were very friendly and informative as were the students/professors we ran into. The campus is very nice too, but I still get the sense of it being too small and quiet for me. I’m not too fond of the city of Richmond - it’s not very far from where I live and I feel like it’s the same environment I’m tired of. I could definitely make it work, but I am still mulling over the different factors. I can say that I really like Richmond’s study abroad opportunities and the SSIR program. I am very interested in studying abroad and I am also interested in the small class sizes so I’m definitely keeping UR in mind.

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@kelheesi glad to hear that the costs for NYU or GWU already include your federal direct loans. It is still important to consider how all remaining costs for either school would be covered, assuming you have worked out the details with your parents.

I know how it feels to think about attending college in your own backyard, since I attended a state university about 45 minutes from my home. I lived on campus and I found that my life there felt so different, and I was interacting with a whole new group of people, that it did not feel so geographically close to my hometown. It was nice to see my family on occasion, visit my little sister, and have a home-cooked meal. My parents were very good about letting me plan visits free of pressure to see me more often because I was close by.

I hope that UR is still under consideration for its awesome academic environment and fantastic financial aid. Being free of U/G loans should not be underestimated, as large college debt can be very burdensome. Best wishes to you as you make your decision!