Rutgers University vs. Bryn Mawr College?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Rutgers University
1

<p>I'm having a tough time deciding between these two colleges. At this point I tell people who ask that I'm planning to study computer science in college, but this might very easily change. I am very comfortable with the all-women aspect of Bryn Mawr. In fact, if I end up at Rutgers, I will be signing up for the Douglass Residential College. </p>

<p>Here are some of my pros and cons for Rutgers:
PROS: cheap (in-state tuition), many university resources, research, strong computer science program, downtown New Brunswick, great food everywhere, free division 1 football tickets, it's more of a "party school" (which can also be considered a con), great nation-wide reputation, history (9th oldest university in the nation)</p>

<p>CONS: too many students- 32,000- which means you're on your own most of the time (administration wise) and huge lecture classes, "RU Screw", too much emphasis on greek life in social life, i don't like how spread out the campus is (1300 acres)/the fact that most rely on busing system, most people are from NJ so it's not very diverse</p>

<p>Here are some of my pros and cons for Bryn Mawr:
PROS: small, close-knit community, cute traditions, honor system, beautiful campus/huge dorms/excellent food, strong math program, 20 minutes from philly by train, bi/tri-co/quaker consortiums with swarthmore, haverford, and upenn, rather diverse student population, a large percentage of students study abroad (which I want to do), administration and teachers look out for you and know your name</p>

<p>CONS: might become suffocatingly small (about 1,300 students and only 130 acres) after a few years, the town seems a bit boring when I visited, computer science program is rather weak</p>

<p>I'd love any opinions. Thanks!</p>

2

<p>I honestly can’t speak about Bryn Mawr, but I can say some stuff about Rutgers. First off, Rutgers has a strong Comp Sci program. Yes the intro classes are large lecture classes, but the upper level classes get much smaller. Also, don’t let the size of Rutgers scare you away. Yes, Rutgers New Brunswick has something like 33k undergraduates, but you can honestly make Rutgers feel as small or large as you like. I am an engineer, I personally prefer to stay within the confines of Busch campus with my engineering majors. I opt to keep within my small community at Rutgers and it fits me well. If this is what you prefer, then you will definitely be able to get that small college feel that you may want, especially within the Douglas Residential College. The RU Screw is only a screw in so much as if you let it screw you. If you are proactive, there are so many advising opportunities available. The people who complain about the screw are the ones who do nothing throughout the year and then complain once something doesn’t go their way. Stay on top of your work and your career goals and there are many administrators who are willing to help you. Greek life is not as important as at other colleges. Rutgers has many fraternities and sororities, but only proportional to the undergraduate population. I am not in a frat yet I enjoy the social opportunities at Rutgers a lot. Plus if you know some people in Greek life you can always hang out at their parties and such when you want to. And being a girl, you can get into any party you want without having to worry about having a certain ratio (just an aside). As far as diversity is concerned, yes most people are from NJ, but you get people from every walk of life. While geographic diversity isn’t the greatest, there are so many different types of people across NJ, plus the out of state and international students that Rutgers is honestly one of the most diverse universities out there. Finally, yes the campuses are very large, but the bus system does what it has to and is pretty easy to learn. I hope this helps.</p>