<p>Can someone compare/contrast? I know of course that both Tufts and BC are significantly more selective than BU (and Tufts is quite a bit more selective than BC?) But can someone address other differences/similarities/strengths/weaknesses? Settings/campuses? I know how late in the day it is to even consider adding more schools to the list, but please humor me. Thank you!</p>
<p>Boston College is Catholic Jesuit. A more spirited campus.</p>
<p>Tufts is not a fun school at all. Nephew is there, but will be transferring out. Quite disappointed by the lack of student life.</p>
<p>I know of course that both Tufts and BC are significantly more selective than BU (and Tufts is quite a bit more selective than BC?)</p>
<p>I would take out the words “significantly” and “quite” in the sentence above for a more accurate assessment.</p>
<p>It really depends what type of campus you like and what you’re majoring in. </p>
<p>BU definitely does not have that traditional campus feel. Buildings are scattered throughout the streets of the greater Boston area, in close proximity to the hub of town. If you want a bigger school with a more urban feel, than BU is the one. BU has really good science and med programs academically. Ice Hockey is the BIG sport here and they have a spirited rivalry with BC. Frats and sororities exist but do not have a dominant presence.</p>
<p>I know the most about BC, since my daughter is a student there majoring in Accounting, and probably the least about Tufts. BC is located just west of Boston, in the really nice suburb of Chestnut Hill. The “T” (public transportation) has a stop on the edge of campus, so it is easy to get into town. The campus is beautiful. Unlike the other two schools, they do not have an Engineering dept. Overall, academics are really good here. As a freshman, you may be housed in dorms off campus in the very upscale town of Newton, about a mile and a half from campus. About 60% of the students live on campus and about 40% live in Newton. There is a BC shuttle that transports you back and forth. My daughter lived off-campus in Newton her freshman year and absolutely loved it! It was a fantastic bonding experience that you cannot imagine. The dining hall at Newton is considered by many to be the best, since it also serves the law students. BC is frat and sorority-free. Although it is a Jesuit school, it does not ram religion down student’s throats.</p>
<p>Tufts is probably the most Ivy-league “ish”. It is known as the school for kids who couldn’t get into the Ivies. The reality is these students are all Ivy-caliber. It has a really good Intenational Relations dept. Teacher/student relations can be really tight-knit. It also has a beautiful campus. It is located on the northside of Boston, about 5 miles outside of town. It is serviced by public transportation as well. Fraternities and sororities have a more significant presence on campus than at BU.</p>
<p>I think BC has the best combination of academics and athletics of the 3 schools but does have the least amount of diversity. As mom2collegekids points out, Tufts can have students with more mixed feelings toward their school.</p>
<p>What is the impact of the Catholic/Jesuit aspect of BC? We are Jewish/secular. Thanks.</p>
<p>The question of religious influence on non-Catholics at BC has been brought up a number of times especially in the BC section of CC. You might want to do a search over there to get more detailed answers. The short answer is that there is very limited impact on student life with many feeling that BC is close to Georgetown as the most secular of the U.S. Catholic colleges. There is a religion/philosophy requirement at BC but students are free to choose from a large number of classes and subjects in order to fulfill this requirement.</p>
<p>Out of curiosity, have you considered Brandeis? </p>
<p>Don’t know about now, but back when I was applying for colleges in the '90s, my high school peer group considered Brandeis to be better academically than BC or BC. </p>
<p>Had a great impression from touring the campus and speaking with the students and admissions officer. Only reason why I didn’t accept was that Oberlin accepted me and gave me a better FA offer.</p>
<p>Here is my rundown of the primary Boston schools (read: not cambridge schools):</p>
<p>Boston College: Beautiful campus, decent athletics, strong alumni base, national name, nationally praised academics, significant business school and law school (admirable recruiting statistics from both), distant from Boston (it is in Boston but really you feel pretty far away from the action in the city), great for connections in business, politics and law, about to go under construction for a beautiful new campus update (new buildings in the gothic style)</p>
<p>Tufts: Great science programs, lacks name recognition, great campus, excellent med school, high-achieving student body, most go on to graduate school, distant from Boston (you are pretty far away from the action in the city)</p>
<p>Boston University: Great location in the city, no campus, extremely large university, good hockey program but lacking in all other sports, relatively no school spirit, close to Fenway, easy to get into, nice gym, nice location on the river, very liberal</p>
<p>Northeastern University: Great location in the city, co-op program where the university helps you obtain an internship from a significant number of employers, small student body, beautiful campus, great science and engineering program, great business school, good hockey program but lacking in all other sports, relatively no school spirit, close to Fenway, becoming tougher to get into, rose something like 120 spots in US News in five years with no evidence that this rise will stop</p>
<p>I will give my take:</p>
<p>All three are great schools.</p>
<p>BU: Not really a campus, but very close to the city if not almost in the city itself. It’s also really big but has good programs in business and medicine. The dorms are crappy though. Yet the people I know who go there love it. Yet that’s just anecdotal evidence. It may not be for everyone, but it’s not a bad school.</p>
<p>BC: As people stated, catholic orientated yet I find no one feels that pressure. Despite frats or whatever people still party. It’s far from Boston–at the end of the greenline. This means it takes a long time to actually get into Boston in contrast with BU. Yet you also get a beautiful campus. Business undergrad is really good as is accounting undergrad. I heard pre-law is also good. People are smart too and BC is a good school. I feel people who go here are happy but don’t leave campus much (it’s beautiful anyways, so that’s not necessarily bad). BC also has sports. In this respect, it’s like the only college in Boston with a legit sports team (that’s DI). The food I also heard is pretty good here (The same goes for Tufts). BC also seems to have good alumni relations and is a good school for people wanting to go to law school or business school. Student life also seems good as they have a good amount of student clubs. It’s for sure not a school to look down upon.</p>
<p>Tufts: Tufts is probably the most academically powerful of the three. It isn’t quite in the city like BU but it isn’t as far out as BC. It’s on the redline which goes through the heart of Boston (really, it’s about 5-10 minutes away from it walking). It has a beautiful campus and is easy to access the city (yet not as easy as BU). Well known for International Relations and Medicine kids here have stats at par with ivies. There is greek life, yet it doesn’t rule the school (it’s not like a state school or anything). Yet unlike BC and like BU, sports is not the thing here. It’s division III. While it’s pretty good in Division III, the sports are not like BC. Despite this, people tend to have a lot of school spirit, especially for their mascot, Jumbo. People i know here are happy. While people above me made anecdotal evidence I think it shouldn’t be weighed much (even mine!). Yet the Princeton Review this year did rank Tufts the 14th for happiest students. People in the northeast (where most big firms and good medical schools are) have heard of Tufts (for example, look at where DE Shaw recruits on college campuses). BU and BC are also heard of in the northeast. Alumni relations are really good so if you want access to the business world or for politics, they have a good career services that help out and many student groups (some are interesting, like the tufts quidditch team) that facilitate this process.</p>
<p>Tufts has a great International Relations and Medicine program, but it lacks in the liberal sciences. Hard sciences are pretty good. However, it is mostly known for bio type degrees rather than Engineering/Comp Sci type degrees. Just a distinction.</p>
<p>I have heard Tufts isn’t for everyone, as it is a little bland. I think you could say the same thing about BC (seems very preppy and has that athletics atmosphere; very traditional college feel) BU (safety school for the rich in NY/NJ; not academically inclined, etc.) or Northeastern (the school for the popular kids in high school; athletic males and pretty females; good party scene combined with good academics).</p>
<p>There are probably stereotypes for all the Boston and even the cambridge schools.</p>