<p>surfette,</p>
<p>I know Villanova very well (from years of first hand experience) and have learned a lot about Vanderbilt in the past year. </p>
<p>In academic terms, the comparison is not close and the gap is growing as Vanderbilt has grown into a legitimate competitor to the most highly ranked universities in the country. Conversely, Villanova is a mostly a regional school with a very high percentage of its students (80%+?) coming from the Northeast. The statistical advantage goes to Vanderbilt in virtually every category when you measure the strength of the ENROLLED student bodies.</p>
<p>As for the student body, the schools are roughly the same size with approximately 6500 students. With this size, there is some diversity at both schools, but Vanderbilt is somewhat more ethnically diverse (Villanova has about 4% African-American, 6% Asian, and 5% Hispanic while Vanderbilt has 8%, 6% and 5%, respectively) and draws from a national applicant pool. Both schools tend to attract high numbers of private school applicants and the wealth that usually goes along with that is evident on both campuses. Both schools are expensive to attend. Both schools have greek systems, but IMO the Vanderbilt system is more active and has a higher proportion of men and women participating (which may or may not be a good thing for you). </p>
<p>Re Philadelphia and Nashville, the access that students have to the cities and the cities themselves are quite different. Villanova students are 12 miles from downtown Philly and, while the trains to downtown are frequent and easy to catch from a campus train station, the student body tends not to visit the city on a regular (eg, weekly) basis. If you want that, then go to UPenn or Drexel which are located in the city and students at those schools actively participate in city life. By comparison, downtown Nashville is but 1.5 miles from Vanderbilt's campus. Students do go there frequently although because the campus and surrounding area is so appealing, many students limit their activities to just the area around the school (commonly known as the Vanderbubble). </p>
<p>As for Philadelphia and Nashville, the cities are as different as they can be and probably appeal to very different types of people. I can comment extensively on each, but I would not advise basing your college choice on either city. The reality is that your time at Villanova would not really be a Philadelphia experience, but more of a Main Line experience (the Main Line is the wealthy suburbs that are located to the west of Philly). Your time at Vanderbilt would likely be more influenced by Nashville, but the Vanderbubble around Vanderbilt's campus will likely be where you spend the vast majority of your time. </p>
<p>Weather-wise, Nashville will average 7-10 degrees warmer during the school months. Spring in Philadelphia does not truly arrive until April and even then it can be cool and blustery. There is definitely more snow in Philly (it snows 2-5 times per winter and sometimes in significant quantities), but it rarely stays on the ground for more than a few days or a week. By contrast, a slight snowfall in Nashville is big news and rumors of an impending storm can send the locals scurrying to the supermarkets to stock up for the big 2-inch accumulation. :) </p>
<p>Both are fun schools, provide a good college experience and have national name recognition (although Villanova would probably not be well known without its highly-ranked mens basketball program). But, bottom line, Vanderbilt is clearly several notches higher on the academic food chain and, IMO, if you are qualified to get into Vanderbilt, then the choice is easy.</p>