Before you all jump on the Harvard bandwagon, please hear me out.
Ever since I visited Tufts, I’ve been in love with it. The IR program, the warm + welcoming community, the campus – everything. This infatuation, however, did not translate when I visited Harvard. I even visited both schools a second time (I’m fairly close to Boston), and I still preferred Tufts. After getting into both, I visited AGAIN and stayed overnight at both schools. I tried as hard as I could to make myself love Harvard, but the overall atmosphere at Tufts absolutely trumped that of Harvard’s. The people I interacted with, the lectures I attended, and the overall social scene were far more engaging and suited to my interests at Tufts than they were at Harvard.
If you eliminate prestige, the choice is clear: Tufts. But part of me feels like I can’t turn down Harvard because, well, it’s Harvard! Do you think this is a compelling enough reason to go there?
Please help. I’m not sure how to go about this decision.
General information:
Cost is not a factor.
I plan to study IR and potentially economics.
I do believe you will do better where you are finding a good fit. If you could have just picked best fit colleges, maybe Harvard wouldn’t have been on your application list. Believe it that many kids who have a good shot at Harvard do not apply because they don’t see themselves there. All you did is take it one step farther and are is accepted, it doesn’t mean you have to go. I personally know students at my daughter’s school who turned down Harvard, one for Carleton and her father was a Harvard grad and active on boards there but also the President of Pomona College.
I do think there are advantages of Harvard’s name but you did your homework on which you prefer so I don’t see any reason to talk you into it.
It was obviously wasn’t because you fell in love with the campus or students (as shown in your original post). It wasn’t for the financial aid. I’m going to go out on a limb and say it was something a long the lines of “but it would be so cool to say I got into Harvard!” Oh, congratulations on two fantastic schools by the way!
I think you already made your decision, just looking for some validation. Go to Tufts.
Well before the current Massachusetts governor became Governor, he must have felt similarly hesitant. See the Boston Globe for his relevant thoughts, as expressed while taking the Proust Questionnaire.
You already have your answer. Tufts. Don’t second-guess yourself or your fit/passion for the campus based off of a name or a prestige. Harvard is a wonderful school, yes, but once you fall in love with a school, you can’t just tear yourself away.
Tufts for sure! It’s so important to find a school that’s a good fit for you and you’re so lucky to have gotten into one that you love and is also a fantastic school. Congratulations!
Trust your gut feelings; no school is a perfect fit for everyone, including Harvard. It’s terrific that you’re able to look past the prestige factor and seek out what’s important to you.
I’d consider Tufts and Harvard to be peer schools. A lot of people would say that’s absurd, but I stand by it. If you like Tufts more, and cost isn’t a factor, then go to Tufts. Don’t let anyone tell you it’s less prestigious than Harvard. They’re in the same league. Go where you’d love to be for four years.
Commit to Tufts and don’t look back. The minute you get unhappy at Harvard for what ever reason you’ll start to doubt your decision. Don’t make yourself regretful if you love a school!
Just got off the phone with my Tufts sophomore D. She was attracted to the school for the same reasons you are. You might think the blush would be off the rose by this time. It’s not. If anything, it’s deepened. After two years at Tufts, she has become a learner, not a student. Someone interested in world affairs and in knowledge for its own sake, apart from grades. Someone buoyed and energized by her advisors and teachers, who reward her for her studiousness and push her to aim higher and deeper.
If Tufts is responsible for the change in her, or at least meeting her halfway along the course of her personal development, then I applaud the school and everyone who chooses it over other options.
Go To Tufts. I went to Harvard without considering fit at all because I ‘couldn’t turn it down’. It wasn’t a good fit for me and I was miserable. Although I had previously planned on graduate school, I left the college determined to never go back to school. My sister, who went to Tufts, happily continued on to get a PhD in Biology (also at Tufts). Harvard is definitely prestigious - people still comment on it many years later - but it’s definitely not worth the sacrifice if you don’t feel like you want to go there.
Actually, @dropoutofschool, I think your mention of what may be a substantive academic strength of Harvard was decidedly pertinent to anyone making a decision between these schools. My “bandwagon” comment was not intended as a criticism of your contribution. It related more to the OP’s stated anticipation of a Harvard bandwagon; instead thus far it has been the opposite.