Hey y’all. I haven’t done many college visits (only BU and Northeastern) but I’ve fallen in love with Northeastern’s campus, because I love how it offers a campus feel while being in the middle of a very big city with good access to public transit (unlike BU and schools like NYU, which are just a bunch of buildings in the city). I’m looking for more schools that match this feel, preferably east of the Rockies and in the north (somewhere where it snows a lot). Also, nothing too difficult to get into (so no uchicago, mit, harvard, columbia, etc…, can only apply to so many of these schools, you know?)
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Pitt
Don’t look at the admissions data. It’s a very well thought of school. Maybe CWRU. But I really think Pitt.
UVM maybe too.
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University of Minnesota
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American University in Washington, D.C. (and Georgetown, but that sounds like a reach) has a campus feel. GW is smack dab in the city, but some feel that it’s “just a bunch of buildings” but others really feel a lively energy there.
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Take a look at Drexel if you liked the coop part of Northeastern.
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What are you interested in studying?
Pitt and CWRU were my first thoughts too. And if OP is intent on a highly-ranked private U, there’s always Carnegie Mellon which is right next to Pitt. (How difficult CMU is to get into will depend on major - if it’s CS, forget it, but for many other majors it has a higher admit rate than NEU.)
Maybe Fordham?
UMinn Twin Cities is a good suggestion too. URochester is a bit more suburban-ish but still good access to the city.
If CS is the goal, then maybe DePaul in Chicago?
I haven’t seen the Eastern Canada campuses for myself, but feel like there might be one or two that would fit this description. (McGill? U of Toronto?)
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If Catholic schools work I’d look at the Jesuit colleges which are almost all located in urban areas and have distinct campuses. The Jesuit colleges include a variety of geographic locations and academic ranges. Some ideas in the Northeast could be Fordham (either Rose Hill for a more traditional campus or Lincoln Center for a small campus in the heart of NYC), St. Joe’s, Loyola - MD, Boston College (in suburbs). You might also consider Providence and Villanova (in suburbs).
Some other ideas offhand in no particular order: Pitt, Syracuse, URochester, Case Western, Drexel (especially If you liked the co-op program at Northeastern), Tulane, SMU to name a few.
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If size isn’t a factor, then Macalester ticks all of the boxes. It’s a small LAC right in St. Paul, with a nice campus, plenty of snow, and is a top 30 liberal arts college.
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Thank you all for the responses. I’m trying to study CS and music (as a minor or dual degree)… I’ve already done all of my music dual degree apps (incl. cmu, urochester, cim/cwru) and am planning to apply to u of t too (haven’t done a tour but walked through campus and hope it has a similar feel). I’m also not looking to apply to any religious schools because I’m trans. Definitely looking at Pitt!
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Lawrence University could be a good safety, if you’re a solid candidate for the schools you’re targeting. Appleton, WI isn’t a big city but it’s a city, and very walkable from campus. Cold weather, and extremely combined-major friendly for musicians. Diversity-wise, it’s a very accepting campus as you’d expect with a performing arts focus. (FWIW the outgoing President was LGBT and the new one is a Black woman.)
Northeastern is great for music business but BU is better for music performance.
Ohio State is very good for combined music degrees, and has strong CS and Data Science programs. (And the urban campus might fit what you’re looking for.) They even have a specific music+CS degree https://music.osu.edu/future/undergrad/degrees/bachelor-science in addition to a music performance BA that’s geared for dual degrees.
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Look into St. Olaf in Minnesota. Our family knows someone there in CS and music and he loves the place.
I think we have to go back to that the OP wants a campus feel in the midst of a big city - hence the suggestions of Pitt, CWRU, UMN, etc.
Pitt, Drexel and Fordham came to mind. S20 also really liked Northeastern. CWRU would qualify. DePaul or Loyola in Chicago also come to mind. St. Joe’s in Philly possibly. These are all schools S20 and S21 applied or visited. Neither ended up at any of these schools but they liked them.
OP doesn’t want Catholic schools so Fordham, St. Joe’s, DePaul, Loyola won’t work.
We aren’t religious at all and DePaul was refreshing and very LGBTQ positive and the people we met on campus reflected what they claimed vs just a talking point. I wouldn’t cross them off the list necessarily.
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I’m a big fan of Jesuit colleges in general (in fact my S graduated from Fordham and had a fantastic expereince). I agree that the Jesuits are educators first and foremost. That said, to be comfortable at a Jesuit university I think one should; 1) be respectful of religion; 2) have no issue with seeing religious symbols on campus (ex. crucifix); and 3) be willing to take any required philosophy/theology courses.
A few Jesuit colleges do offer gender-neutral housing (including I believe Fordham - Lincoln Center which houses the college’s theater and dance programs and might be a good option if not for the OP’s preference for a non-religious college).
At this point I think we should respect the OP’s preferences/comfort level and exclude religious colleges from future suggestions.
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Looking at urban universities with computer science, music, and no religious affiliation that aren’t uber-difficult for admissions, here are some possibilities:
Ohio State (Columbus)
North Carolina State (Raleigh)
University of Minnesota (Minneapolis)
University of Pittsburgh
Depending on your gender, Simmons (Boston)
Drake University (Des Moines)
Clark University (Worcester)
University of Cincinnati (and at least back in the day their music program was highly regarded)
Virginia Commonwealth University (Richmond)
Temple.
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