So I’ve come to terms with the fact that I might have to attend a huge state school (upsetting for me bc I really wanted a small LAC but was waitlisted almost everywhere…).
I have been accepted to Ohio State University (in state), Purdue, and UMass Amherst.
I think that I will get enough financial aid at all 3 (I know OSU probably the most but for the sake of the conversation here I want help choosing one on FIT).
I am planning on majoring in Biology/Public Health/Pre-Med and really just want to focus on amazing opportunities (lab work/internships) that can help me get into a top tier graduate school.
I am not very interested in Greek life or sports but still want to make friends :(
Based on these aspects of what I’m looking for in a college, which one out of the 3 would be my best fit??
“for the sake of the conversation here I want help choosing one on FIT”
Until you have the financial aid packages in hand, and your costs truly are equivalent at all of them, any questions about “fit” cannot be answered. Money is a huge part of that.
Hang in there. The aid packages will be arriving soon, and you will know whether you have any options or not.
@coffeebean178 My son goes to Ohio State and my daughter seriously considered it for premed. You are fortunate to have such a great flagship state university. Ohio State offers a lot of residential Living Learning Communities for freshman. By joining a health related Living and Learning Community (hopefully you can still try to get in) at Ohio State you will be with a close knit group of kids who share a similar interest. Remember, you can always make a large university smaller but not the other way around. Ohio State medical school and hospital complex is right on campus offering a lot of lab work and internship experiences. And I know there are also a lot of research opportunities available. In contrast, Purdue is more of a school noted for Engineering and UMass and Purdue don’t have a medical school or hospital complex on campus. And going out-of-state and paying a lot more money at those schools when you know med school or graduate school costs are on the horizon, just doesn’t make sense, especially in your case when you have a world renown University right in your own backyard. Checkout this link. https://www.aamc.org/download/493728/data/factstablea2.pdf
Ohio state supplied more applicants to medical school than almost every other college in the country. Granted, the class size is huge. But they do a good job of preparing students for med school. But you will need to work hard because the grading in science classes is difficult. And a high gpa is needed for medical school. If premed doesn’t work out Ohio State offers a lot of other majors for public health fields. So you can still work in the health field.
My perspective is where do you want to live? You have three different geographic locations on your list. To me, they are quite different in vibe. You didn’t say where your home state is. Do you want to be closer to home? Do you want a change?
Personally I think being a Boilermaker would be a lot of fun! The mid-west offers something that MA can only dream of (sorry MA people).
Good luck and enjoy the process. You have great options and obviously a bright future. No matter where you choose it will be great!
As others have said, 3 great options. UMass Amherst is part of the 5 colleges consortium, so you would be able to also take classes at Amherst, Smith, Mount Holyoke, Hampshire (situation in flux) - That might appeal to you. UMass does have a med school, but it’s in Worchester.
Have you researched Med School placements for each of the schools? That would be good to know. Of course, you (like many do) might change your mind about pre-med after a semester or two.
I’ve visited both UMass-Amherst and Ohio State - but not Purdue. Different vibes and geography. You’re fortunate to have 3 solid choices. Meanwhile, did you accept a position on the wait list at any of the LACs? If so, which ones?