<p>I recently visited both schools and am not sure what to do. I hadn't actually written out my pros and cons before this post so I apologize that it's a little long, but I separated everything clearly into bullet points.</p>
<p>RUTGERS:</p>
<p>Pros:
-Price - 2.5 times less than Syracuse. My family can do Syracuse without me ending up in debt of $35,000 max in student loans total but it'd be a little strained.
-Location - In comparison to Syracuse, it's excellent. Can go to the beach, can go to New York City, Boston, Washington DC, home if I feel like it, etc.
-Weather - What I've been accostomed to all my life.
-Resources - Syracuse has great resources too, but Rutgers has the edge.
-I suspect I'd fit in with the kids a little better.
-Friendly, welcoming atmosphere
-Friendlier community
-Felt a bit more at home there.
-Probably more able to reap the benefits of being not in the middle of nowhere in terms of speakers, concerts, campus life, things like that.
-Greek life isn't as big a part of Rutgers.</p>
<p>Cons:
-No name communications program. It's not even an up and coming one like the Rutgers Business school, it's just another major.
-Location - A positive but a negative. It's a little too close to home. Literally takes me 15 minues to get there. I'm sure I WOULD feel like I'm at college, but at the same time, I'm not really away at college...I'm right "here".
-More impersonal.
-Even larger class sizes and more TAs.
-Easier to get lost in the crowd.
-Has some, not most, but some really just... not great people due to people who barely got by in high school were able to squeek their way in. (C'mon, we all know who those kids were in high school, and it doesn't make me feel better that I'm more likely to encounter a few who managed to make it into Rutgers.)
-Campus was pretty, but only in the general sense that I liked the greenery.
-I did feel more at home there, but that's also because it's practically in my back yard. That's NOT a good reason.
-When I had actually gone to Rutgers outside of their Open House, (when I really liked it), the school did nothing for me.
-Could see it being more academically rigorous which is bad because I applied Undecided (instead of Communications like at Syracuse) so I'd be taking hard classes in courses I'm not strong in (that happening in high school is one of the reasons my GPA forced me to choose between one of these two schools).
-This is not a big con, but you do need to take buses everywhere.</p>
<p>SYRACUSE:</p>
<p>Pros:
-Excellent, excellent communications program, my major
-Did I mention Newhouse?
-Campus
-Dorms
-Food
-Urban feel
-More school spirit, I think
-Would allow me more of a chance to "start over"
-Would put me out of my safety zone and allow me to grow.
-Better internship opportunities in my opinion
-Better alumni network
-Students get more individualized attention, and it's a more personal feel.
-Better "name" reputation.
-Might sound stupid, but the people here are just very attractive.</p>
<p>Cons:
-Price. I didn't get much grant money from Syracuse, and although it's nice that you can be an RA starting Sophomore year and get free room and board and meal plan (saving around $12,000 a year), I would be forced to do it. Which is fine, don't get me wrong, but it does become a necessity. Also, I'm sure I'd be reasonably happy wherever I went, so is the increased tuition worth it? (But it might be.)
-Location - Not as bad as I thought it'd be once I visited. The drive up was fine, and I actually like the city alright. It's not New York, but I didn't find it to be as run down as I expected it to be, and there's some perfectly nice areas as well. But it's still in the middle of nowhere, and a long way from home.
-Greek Life is more prevalent here, and I'm not really into that.
-That little issue of weather. It tends to be dark and dreary and fricking freezing. </p>
<p>Basically, in terms of how colleges evaluate, what I could think of:
(It has to be) MOST IMPORTANT
Academics: Syracuse</p>
<p>VERY IMPORTANT:
PRICE: Rutgers
LOCATION: Rutgers
WEATHER: Rutgers</p>
<p>IMPORTANT:
FIT IN MORE: Rutgers
OPPORTUNITY: Syracuse
CAMPUS LIFE: Rutgers
ALUMNI BENEFITS: Syracuse
MORE POTENTIAL FOR PERSONAL GROWTH: Syracuse
"UBRAN FEEL": Syracuse
DORMS: Syracuse</p>
<p>CONSIDERED:
FOOD: Syracuse
REPUTATION: Syracuse
ATTRACTIVENESS OF STUDENTS: Syracuse
ARCHITECTURE: Syracuse
GREENERY: Rutgers</p>
<p>I think you can see my dilemma. Syracuse has an edge on what is most important and all my little quirks and desires that I enjoy my college having. However, Rutgers has a clear edge in the other campus life factors that are necessary to having a good time.</p>
<p>It's almost like my brain (the reasoned choice) says Syracuse, while matters of the "gut"/heart/the intangeable qualities lean to Rutgers.</p>