Tufts vs Occidental - PLEASE Help Me Pick

College Search & Selection
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Hi guys, I have received all of my letters now and my top two I got into are Tufts and Occidental. I am torn on which I should go to. Any assistance would be nice. I will list the pros and cons for both schools for me below. Oh, and I am majoring in economics and want to go to law school.

Occidental:
My family has a low income and I received a great financial package.
It is only 2 hours from my house (San Diego) and LA is different enough from San Diego. It is far enough where I am separated from my home, but close enough where I could come back when I want.
I had help from the athletic coaches and my sport is much better at Occidental than Tufts.
The weather is warm.
It is relatively close to the beach and I am a surfer.
I want to go to Law School and they have a program that feeds you into Columbia Law. (Its a little more complicated than that, but you get it)
I’d be able to take my car here.
Its a really good school.
It’s close to home so I always will be close to my family, but far enough where I can have my own experiences and be myself.

Tufts:
I also received an amazing financial package from here.
I also had athletic help getting in.
Its in Boston, which is so far away, but Boston is so cool. I’ve never been and I’ve lived in San Diego my whole life so it might be cool to experience something completely different.
It’s cold and there are no beaches.
No car.
It’s so far from home I would only be able to come home for Christmas and during Summer.
Plane tickets are expensive and I’d need to be snow clothes.
It’s a different experience from anything I’ve ever experienced. (Idk if thats a pro or con)
They have really cool classes generated by students ideas (tester classes if you will)
Academically its a better school than Occidental.
Living on the east coast so far away from all of my family is scary and mysterious and I kind of like that.

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Both are great. Youngest son is at Tufts now and he likes it a lot. He liked Occidental too, but he wanted the east coast. I don’t see how anyone here can help you, but I’m sure you’ll make the right decision. Good luck to you.

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Thanks

4

@Cooper02: I really like your lists of points. You cover a variety of aspects, both academic and non-academic, they’re good, substantial factors, and you realize that some things aren’t necessarily clear-cut as a pro or con. You’ve put some good thought into things. That said, I can’t really give you an answer, they both seem like very good choices, and it’s up to you.

One thing you can do is visit Occidental, walk around, trying to imagine yourself as a student, and see how it feels. Is it too close to home, or far enough. And if possible, visit Tufts and do the same (maybe you can get them to pay for your trip). There it will be more important to think about whether it’s too far, too different from home, or whether you’d find the change beneficial, at least for a few years. How many trips home will you be able to afford, and will that be OK. I imagine there’ll be times when you’d rather be far away and times when you’d rather be near – but which of those will happen more often?

Re-reading your post, it almost sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself to go to Tufts. If it’s manageable – cost-wise, being so far away and missing some things from home – I’d think that’d be fine. In fact, that’d probably be the choice I’d make – but then I’m from the east coast, lived several years in southern CA post-undergrad, then moved back to a place with distinct seasons :-).

Good luck!