<p>So basically I was accepted to both and they'll both cost the same. So let the persuasion begin.</p>
<p>Chicago is a world class city. St. Louis is...... ahem.....</p>
<p>I have nothing to say to persuade you in either direction. However, I have a daughter who's a senior at WashU and a son who's a h.s. senior and who has already put down a deposit at Chicago. My D has loved WashU, and I am confident my S has found exactly the right place for him. I think highly of both schools, but I would have a difficult time imagining either of my children finding the same fulfillment at one another's schools. Both are full of friendly, intelligent, interesting kids, but I think they are largely different groups of kids. You really have to visit and spend time at each in order to determine which one feels most like home to you.</p>
<p>Chicago, no question.</p>
<p>The biggest thing that turns me off about WUSTL(which is still an amazing school, don't get me wrong) is how obsessed they are with rankings. When I applied there I got a letter from the director of admissions and the FIRST sentence mentioned how "WUSTL is one of the top ranked schools in the nation". Not, "The academics at WUSTL are among the best in the world" or "we have more Nobel laureates than xxx". The school's own admissions office rates itself on how high in the rankings they are, which is sad.</p>
<p>I had to ask myself why I wanted to go to a school when, according to them, the best thing they have going for them is rankings(that they manipulate btw.)</p>
<p>Chicago is in another league man, no matter what rankings or anyone else tells you. Plus as Codex mentioned, Chicago > St. Louis. hands down.</p>
<p>The schools have very different cultures. You can see it from the get-go.</p>
<p>U of C matriculation revolves around a very thoughtful, academic type lecture that is attended by parents and students sitting together. Then everyone proceeds to behind a bag-pipe and drum corps to a gothic gate on the quad and students and parents part ways. I was moved to tears.</p>
<p>At Wash U's opening ceremony, parents are seated and the students come running in,cheering, grouped by dorm, wearing t-shirts that identify them by dorm. It's loaded with rah rah school spirit and it's boisterous. This is emotional too.</p>
<p>Both approaches can work. But do you have preference?</p>
<p>Obviously, this is just an example and not the way to make a decision, BUT it is worth looking at school culture to see what you like better.</p>
<p>What are you gonna study? If Math/Economics/hard sciences, then Chicago no doubt no questions asked. If something else, Chicago may still be tops in that field but I wouldn't know about it.</p>
<p>But Glasses, right after the UofC kids part with their parents, they walk through the gate into a ridiculous frenzy of upperclassmen from all the different houses screaming their heads off and waving house flags and cheering. It was definitely boisterous and tons of fun.</p>
<p>Absolutely, but it felt like it was for,and in celebration of, the first-years and not for parental display.
That was part of why it was so fabulous. It was for my kid, not me.</p>
<p>writ-- I should have included the "behind the gate" craziness in my description. Glad you brought it up!</p>
<p>1) We can't really answer this question without more info from the OP</p>
<p>2) I find it amusing that at least three parents (map, glasses, and runnersmom) have children at both U of C and WashU. That makes me think that on some level the schools are comparable, even if they are comparable the way siblings are comparable.</p>
<p>Make that 4 sets of parents...ditto exactly what map said. But I have had 2 kids at Chicago and the outlier went to Wash U. Middle child and all that!!</p>
<p>Unalove-- just for the record I don't have any children at at Wash U but I do have nieces and nephews attending. But I do agree that U of C and Wash U "are comparable the way siblings are comparable". What a great line......my kids are soooo different but obviously have much in common.</p>
<p>Just a hypothesis but I'd think that alot of the families with children in both schools live in the midwest?</p>
<p>Likely, but I'm on the east coast.....</p>
<p>Oops, sorry Unalove, didn't notice that you'd already included us! And Beefs, your theory may have some validity, but not for us. We live in the NYC suburbs.</p>
<p>Your hypothesis doesn't hold true for us, beefs; we're in New England. My H and I find it funny that both our kids are ending up in the midwest for school considering that we dwell in the heart of college-land.</p>
<p>Anyone who responds with one school over the other must necessarily be biased, because we don't know your son, and probably know less than we think we do about these two excellent schools. That said ... Chicago all the way.</p>
<p>The social scene at both schools are quite different. Chicago tends to be more focused on life-long learning, learning for fun etc. Depends which one your son prefers.</p>