I have narrowed down my college search to 2 schools - University of Cincinnati (far away from my hometown- 4 hours) and John Carroll University (close to home- 1 hour). I got accepted into both of them, and I will be majoring in Marketing. I’m having a really hard time deciding which, and I’m looking for opinions. I would describe myself as a “homebody” and I hang out with a select few. I’m pretty outgoing, but I’m not exactly the “party” or “lets do something crazy!” type. I have a boyfriend, who is two years older than me and he doesn’t go to school, but he has a full time job & is really doing great things with his life. We have been dating for 2 years, and I could really see myself with him in the future. My predicament is that I don’t want to go far away, but everyone is telling me not to “stay home”, and that it would be a bad idea to not go away. I love both schools. I love UC because it has so many diverse people, so many opportunities, and would really broaden my horizons outside of my sheltered life. (The bitter truth) I love John Carroll because of the distance from home, the education that I would receive there, and the smallness of it. I wouldn’t be tempted to party too hard, and I could maintain a similar lifestyle that I’m living now. I’m very conflicted, someone please help 
Sincerely,
Stressed out senior
I think UC will generally have the better program, particularly with their coop program. It’s up to you as to which is more important - comfort or overall education. Are there any financial issues you need to consider?
Who is telling you not to stay home? Is this just friends who think you should have some adventure, or is this your parents and other family? If its your family telling you to go to UC, then maybe they think you need to expand your horizons before settling down with this boyfriend. You are young, and you shouldn’t be making major decisions based on the current status of a relationship. I know you think this will last, but what happens if you break up over the summer? Will you regret staying home to go to John Carroll? Assuming its affordable, UC may be the better choice for you.
My friends are mostly saying that I should go away, to not have regrets later in life. But I feel like UC would be a regret in my life if I went there. Cost wise, John Carroll is a private university, so its 38k a year & 9k for room & board. They offered me 18k off, and I’m still waiting on the second round of financial aid. UC is public, so I believe its 12k a year & 10k for room & board. UC didn’t offer me anything so far. I know what you’re saying though, I shouldn’t base it on my relationship status right now.
If it helps my S went to college 20 minutes from my house. He lived on campus and had a full and amazing college experience. That school was just the right fit for him regardless of distance. He was a quiet kid and heard the same comments from people – that going further away would be “better for him”. We had a long talk about it before he made the final decision and agreed that the nearby school was the best fit, that we (parents) would never pop by campus and we would treat him as if he were 2 hours away (ex. not expect him home for minor things) and that he would make a life for himself on campus and not come home on weekends to do laundry etc. For us this arrangement had zero downside. He had an amazing 4 years on campus. And in fact his being close was nice a few times (ex. when his laptop broke I did drive down with an old one for him to use while his was being repaired etc.), So I would say to do what is right for you. (But I do agree that you should not base it on your BF) Don’t worry about what others say.
@happy1 Thank you for sharing your son’s story with me. I really hope that I will have a posiive experience if I do decide to stay at home, but this was encouraging to hear. My parents are saying the same thing as you (not to come home as often as expected if you live close, etc.) Thanks again
Glad it helped. Good luck whatever you decide. If you do stay local, I would definitely talk to your parents and BF in advance to set up “ground rules”. . As an aside, my S spent a summer abroad (and you could go abroad for a semester or so) and went halfway across the country for grad school!
Congratulations on having nice college choices.
happy1 mom brings up a good point: when you live on campus, you are living “away from home” and in a very different world, whether it’s 1 hour or a thousand miles away from home. Committing yourself to the campus and all it has to offer in itself will give you an interesting experience.
Now, I’m one who usually recommends kids go to college away from where they grew up - to stretch their wings and experience something different. But that doesn’t mean you can’t have an enriching college life and still be close to home. College is what YOU make it.
That said, ask yourself: which campus will give me greater educational/career opportunities? In the end, going to college is very much about your education and beyond.
1° Look at the major at both. Keeping in mind that in order to find a job in marketing, nowadays, you need to have a statistics minor or equivalent, what university makes it easiest to add the minor?
(Marketing majors are often under employed or unemployed unless they have a technical skill: big data analysis/business data analysis, strong statistics, digital management, etc.)
2° Is either one affordable without debt?
3° Did you get into the Honors College at UC?
Thank you all so much for your advice! @katliamom @MYOS1634 – I did not get into the honors college, and both universities offer this as a minor. Thanks for letting me know about adding a statistics minor!
Marketing alone has very low roi - it’s very hard to find a job with just marketing. You’ll need statistics to find a job, plus internships of course. So you could email the career center at both colleges and ask what internships they currently have for marketing majors.
FWIW, I’d say do UC, lots of internships/coops, keep the college costs down, & make the decision as if BF did not exist.
And to put in perspective four hours is NOT far! That’s still close enough for most people to consider a school near home.
Stay home!