<p>I'm doing RD at all of them so my time will be limited in the coming weeks.</p>
<p>I'm deciding between Cornell/UVirginia and Columbia/Chicago...</p>
<p>Can you please help?</p>
<p>Safety
UT Austin</p>
<p>Match
USC
NYU</p>
<p>Reach
Penn
Georgetown</p>
<p>Columbia/Chicago
Cornell/Virginia</p>
<p>One of each pair, or one of the pairs.</p>
<p>But based on the rest of your schools - social life and sports = positives, so I'd go with Cornell and UVa.</p>
<p>I would keep cornell because it's commonapp</p>
<p>Thank you so much for the posts above. Yeah, the common app does make Cornell more attractive.</p>
<p>As far as Chicago/Columbia go, I was attracted to both by the big-city factor and prestige (I'm really wanting to do International Business). Columbia was my no.1 choice way back when, though it's been replaced by Penn now.</p>
<p>Columbia is in NYC can't get much bigger. as for Chicago, can you write a good essay?</p>
<p>drop chicago; its in a terrible neighborhood and the campus is so dead. everyone seems crammed in libraries and there is no sense of community or activites really going on. iwasd thouroughly disappointed, and as a chicago reasident im telling it like it is bro!</p>
<p>most of your schools are in big cities. I don't know if you've visited Cornell, but it's literally in the middle of nowhere.</p>
<p>people don't choose colleges based on fit though, remember</p>
<p>I agree about Cornell location. Ithaca, NY is about 3-4 hours from anywhere you would ever want to be.</p>
<p>If you end up at NYU, you will always wonder about your uptown former numero uno, so yes Columbia. Ithaca is gorges, so yes Cornell. If you want big time sports you can stay home at UT or go to USC.</p>
<p>I have to disagree with Calibois1313's assessment of Chicago. I have a child there and many friends and family members who have attended both Chicago and Columbia. The school is not in a terrible neighborhood, but in Hyde Park which is economically and racially diverse in an excellent way. They campus is certainly less urban than Columbia and is more of a traditional college campus with green space and lots of Gothic buildings. True, some bad neighborhoods are nearby, but they do not immediately surround the school and if you use common sense you will never really by bothered by them. The city of Chicago is exciting and is easily accessible but not right on top of you distracting you from the college experience. No, not all people, or even a majority, hole up in the library and have no social life. My child sings in several choirs, goes to concerts, movies, radio broadcasts, dinner,theatre and museums all over the city, etc. People are social and no different then at other schools. I think that Columbia may be a bit more pre-professional than Chicago in atmosphere, with Chicago being a little more interested in learning for its own sake, but that is only my opinion( I live near Columbia and know a lot about it ). Columbia is also a great school and if New York is your thing, you really will love it. The campus does lack the gothic beauty of Chicago though and is not as spacious and green. I like them both and you should check them out if you can to see what feels right to you. P.S. athletics are secondary at Chicago, but a good division three league exists and the arts are growing rapidly there.</p>
<p>Might want to look at Duke.</p>
<p>Well, since you asked, I'd skip Cornell and go with Virginia. Too many reasons to list.</p>
<p>For chicago, take a look at their essay questions. My friend pointed out that if you enjoy doing the essays, you're probably a fit for chicago. If you went "w.t.f." when you saw those essay questions, you probably wouldn't fit in there. They are quite quirky, I was part of the latter group, but chicago isn't mainstream by any means, and is not for everyone</p>
<p>I agree to drop Chicago. It's about as different from USC as night is from day.[ Take it from a mom whose son went to both colleges] FYI, Columbia ALSO has the core[ like Chicago] which requires students to take a lot of liberal arts courses that most other colleges don't require[ at least not the the extent of Columbia or Chicago] .Duke would be a better reach for you if you like the "feel" of USC or UT.</p>
<p>I'd agree with dropping Cornell (please no hate mail, it's a FINE school) in favor of UVA which has a much better location, better weather, and comparable academics.</p>
<p>Penn is great :D</p>
<p>I've heard that UVA gives aid to OOS students, true?</p>
<p>If not, why would you pay for UVA over an actual Ivy, like Columbia or Cornell?</p>
<p>What's Cornell doing in that bunch of urban colleges?</p>
<p>Isn't Columbia's RD acceptance rate like 6%? Do you have the grades, test scores, and hooks to be among that tiny group?</p>