<p>My son got accepted to NYU, Wake Forest, GMU and JMU. Got rejected from William&Mary and UVA. He feels torn between choices he has. NYU and Wake Forest will leave him with a debt for many years. In addition to that, NYU offered him a Liberal Arts 2-year program in Florence with a mandatory Italian classes. My son has studied Russian and Spanish and would rather improve these two languages. NYU guarantees his acceptance to NYU junior year if his GPA is 3.0 or higher. It almost seems that it's NYU community college program that comes at much higher cost. Also, my son decided he wants to study economics rather than social sciences but in NYU he'll have to study liberal arts for two years. In JMU they offered him a scholarship but GMU seems a better school even though ratings are lower than JMU. Does anyone know why JMU is Tier 1 and GMU is Tier 3? Does the tier even matter? What your opinion on economics/social studies programs in JMU and GMU?
All our family is losing sleep over these decisions. Please, help!!!</p>
<p>GMU has one of the top rated economics departments in the country - they draw professors from the DC area. If your son is going to major in economics - GMU is where he should go.</p>
<p>Wake Forest all the way.</p>
<p>JMU is not Tier 1. They aren’t ranked at all. GMU is said to make the climb to Tier 2 in the next 5 years. There has been much growth at that school.</p>
<p>How much debt will NYU and Wake Forest place u in?</p>
<p>We’re planning to help our son as much as we can but since he wants to go to law school, his debt will be apprx $300-500K if goes to private undergrad school…:-((</p>
<p>^^^That’s crazy debt. Go to either of the Virginia choices for in-state.</p>
<p>I hope you mean $30,000-$50,000 for debt. First of all, it sounds as if you’re not in love with NYU, so that’s an easy one to knock off the list. All of your reservations are valid and accurate, in my opinion. Second, there’s no sense going to Wake Forest if you’ve got two such great choices in state. If we lived in VA, we’d definitely send our kids to one of virginia’s fine schools.</p>
<p>This choice should be easy then. Law school is all about the LSAT. What undergrad you come from plays a small part into getting into a top 40 school. I would assume you’re a millionaire if you’re even considering the notion of paying for a portion of his student loans IF he does attend NYU or WF.</p>
<p>JMU has a bizarrely avid following among students. It’s students rate the quality of campus life an A, and it’s a hub of activity. GMU is a predominantly commuter school with little sense of community or cohesion. NYU’s offer sounds problematic. In our household, the choice would be between JMU and Wake, and if finances are a concern, in JMU you’ve got something that wouldn’t pale in comparison to Wake either academically or socially.</p>