THE DECISION:Which school should I choose? (Help an international student out!)

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Got in the following schools:
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Tufts
Boston College
Claremont McKenna College
George Washington University</p>

<p>For most of these schools I'm their school of arts and sciences. GWU is giving me a scholarship of 25,000 per year and accepted me into their honors program. </p>

<p>A little bit more about myself:
-My current interest is in the political science/international relations area
-I'm Asian-American but basically has lived abroad for most of my life
-I am not seeking a pre-professional path for my undergraduate experience, I am looking forward to going somewhere that's easy to register for classes across different schools and disciplines
-Outside of the classroom, I would love to continue playing the violin and intramural sports in college </p>

<p>Would really appreciate any input anyone's got, especially if there's first hand experience with one of these schools. Living abroad and not having visited any of these schools, I would love to find out about some specifics on these schools beyond what their website has to offer. Thanks! </p>

2

<p>Going strictly on IR department reputations, Tufts is tops:</p>

<p><a href=“http://internationalrelationsonline.com/education/international-relations-program-rankings/”>http://internationalrelationsonline.com/education/international-relations-program-rankings/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>And Tufts strong interdisciplinary focus means, I assume, you are encouraged to take classes across various schools and disciplines (at least that’s what my D tells me!).</p>

3

<p>Right now your best choices are GWU and Tufts. If you can afford both, look at particulars: do you want a quad/residential campus? what about weather, do you like snow or not mind humidity? what are you more comfortable with, interactive classes or lectures?
If both are close in costs, weigh pros and cons. Does one offer something the other doesn’t? What perks does the Honors program offer?
If there’s a significant cost difference, choose the cheapest.</p>