<p>So, I have recently been accepted into both the Pratt Institute's and Purchase College's creative writing programs. I am desperately trying to choose between the two. Obvious comparisons include price, making Purchase drastically cheaper. Even after the $20,000 in scholarship money Pratt awarded me, the price is much steeper. As far as I can tell, the programs are comparable. One difference is Purchase offers a B.A. in Creative Writing whereas Pratt offers a B.F.A. in Writing. I plan to specialize in fiction, but it is difficult to get such specifics from the school's websites. I would just like to know, in the opinions of others, disregarding price, which school offers a better program for an aspiring writer. All opinions are welcome and appreciated.</p>
<p>As an aspiring writer, you really should keep your costs down! Run the numbers through this calculator, and see what the difference will mean to you over the long term: [FinAid</a> | Calculators | Award Letter Comparison Tool](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Award Letter Requirements - Finaid)</p>
<p>If you read through the specific degree requirements, you may find that the Purchase BA is not significantly different from the Pratt BFA. Even if they are, those particular differences may not be of critical importance to your future.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot for the link, that’s very helpful. However, I already know the numbers. I understand Pratt is exponentially more expensive. At this point I’m really trying to ignore the numbers and get a feel for the programs themselves. I also plan on possibly pursuing a masters at one of the ivies and really need to know which school would better prepare me academically as well as increase my chances of acceptance.</p>
<p>It is OK to call each of these programs and ask about job and grad school placement.</p>
<p>Unless your family has the means to fully fund a degree at Pratt, you cannot take the cost differential out of the equation. The return on your investment would need to be orders of magnitude to justify putting yourself and your family into hock for Pratt.</p>
<p>I understand the financial situation I am facing. Initially, price disqualified Pratt to a degree, but scholarship money and financial aid have nearly cut the cost in half, making it comparable to Purchase. For all intensive purposes, money is not of consequence at this time, rather, quality of education is what I am concerned with. If sound investments were a high priority for me I would accept a full ride to one of the local universities and commute, and I sure as heck wouldn’t be majoring in creative writing.</p>
<p>Since in you case there no longer is an “exponential” difference, then Pratt is fine. I suspect that is where you really want to go. Can you visit the campus and talk with them in person? That may be what you need to do to make your decision.</p>
<p>I am merely trying to remove cost from the equation for the moment, because I do not need anyone to tell me Pratt is more expensive and that I should try to save money. I can quite easily come to that conclusion on my own. This entire thread, which has been driven grossly off topic, was created in order to obtain a better understanding of the prestige and quality of the writing programs at said schools, hence the topic name. If it was a question of Pratt cost vs. Purchase cost, I already know that Purchase wins, hands down, every time. Unfortunately, that is not the matter at hand, and so, I require no further “advice.”</p>
<p>That said, I am still very open to anyone who has any kind of knowledge or experience with either schools’ program.</p>
<p>Here’s for a lighthearted answer - imagine verbally explaining to people that you chose to attend the Pratt Institute.</p>
<p>[Prat</a> | Define Prat at Dictionary.com](<a href=“Prat]Prat Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com”>Prat Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com)</p>
<p>Depending on your sense of humor, it could go on either side of the pros and cons list.</p>
<p>Well that’s certainly more amusing than trying to start a conversation with the dictionary definition of Purchase…</p>
<p>As a graduate of Purchase, I can tell you it is a fantastic school with excellent professors. In addition to looking at the curriculum you have to look at the entire school to see what else is important when making your decision. Do you want a city or a suburban college? Purchase has incredible offerings in the arts too that add to the experience of being there and that creative atmosphere could be important to you as a writer. There’s a museum on campus and a four-theater performing arts center. One last thought, perhaps you can arrange to sit in on a writing class at each college. That might help you with your decision – good luck!</p>
<p>This might be too late to respond since the deposit for Purchase has long past, but I’ll be attending Purchase College in the Fall for creative writing specializing in fiction. I chose Purchase because of its small community, and compared to other school that offered a creative writing degree, the classes at Purchase seemed very specific (there’s an entire course on metaphors!) Also, there’s a senior project that every senior is required to do, where you spend your last year working on a collection of short stories/poems/novel and sit one on one with an author. I thought it was an excellent opportunity. I went to visit in early April and they let me sit in during a creative writing class that was going on. Even though it was only one class, the professor seemed to be dedicated to teaching the craft and the students took it very seriously. </p>
<p>I was also considering Oswego, but they emphasized on creative writing students finding something else that they could do, as a back up. And although that’s important, I really wanted to be in an environment that was optimistic and took my writing seriously. I don’t know if Pratt is the same way as Oswego, but I found that at Purchase I was going to be getting the most out of my degree.</p>