Decision Day is rapidly approaching and I need to make a decision ASAP! I have narrowed it down to University of Buffalo, Northeastern University, and University of Rochester but this is as far as I can get because all of the schools have their pros and their cons, and here is where it gets complicated…
UB is cheap, close to home (could be bad or good), I was accepted into their pre-pharmacy program and their pharmacy program is an excellent program, but I feel as if UB lacks in the opportunities and services that U of R and NEU could offer me like co-ops and internships, research, etc.
Rochester is farther away from home but still close (about an hour drive), it’s a good size, beautiful campus, flexible curriculum, and obviously the research opportunities. However, there is no pharmacy program and while I am not completely convinced that I want to do pharmacy it would be nice to have the option. It is also the most expensive out of the three.
Northeastern obviously has an amazing co-op program, I was accepted into their 0-6 pharmacy program, and Boston is an amazing city. On the flip side it’s 8 hours away and I don’t know if I’m ready to go that far from home and travel expenses can add up.
So UB is the best financially, Rochester is the best physically(?) (distance, campus, size), and Northeastern is the best for my life after college.
If anyone has any tips for choosing or any input I would greatly appreciate it because I’m starting to go insane!
If you are not 100% comfortable with the distance to Northeastern then take it off your list. Don’t give yourself additional anxiety.
Between the other schools I would base it on 1) amount of price difference and its impact on your family 2) how certain you are of pharmacy or at least wanting it as an option 3) do you feel you would prefer/do better in one environment over the other (ex. they are different size schools, consider if UB may have more large lecture classes etc.). Since they are close by maybe visit them both on accepted students day before deciding.
Co-op’s serve Pharmacy very well, especially with the huge medical hub that is Boston. So does all of the research going on at U of R.
That said, I think @happy1 has a point on comfort. I do think there’s another side to that, though. Unless you plan on staying close to home for the rest of your life, you’re going to have to move farther away eventually. I would argue that college is a good time to do that - you have summer breaks and holidays and all - with full-time work, you aren’t going to have that. That said, staying close to home for your life is 100% okay too. If what is holding you back is family or other factors, don’t discount that.
What is the exact price difference between the three? Would there be any loans at each?
Based on your post, I would keep all three in the running, but if U of R is much more expensive, combined with not having a pharmacy program, it may be the first to go. If you don’t want to go that far from home, I think UB is your choice. If you are okay with Boston, then I would say it depends on how big the price difference is.
@PengsPhils I think every person is different in terms of when they are ready to move far away from home. I know a couple of people whose parents pushed them to go far when they were uncomfortable with it and it backfired (although I’m sure that is not always the case).
In the case of my S, he did not feel like he wanted to go that far away for college and we listened to him. He went to a great school that wasn’t far from home. We set out ground rules in advance --his dad and I promised to not pop by when we were in the neighborhood and he promised to not use being close to home as a crutch (ex. no coming home with laundry etc.). In the end he really never came home other than school vacations but I think he got a great deal of comfort in knowing that he always could come home. By the time grad school rolled around, he had grown in maturity and self confidence and had no did not have a second though about going halfway around the country for grad school.
The timing of when it a person is ready to move far away is individual. If the OP is anxious about being that far away, then IMO it should be a factor is his/her decision. But we can agree to disagree on this issue and the OP will sort it out for him/herself.
URoch is an excellent university and a good opportunity in terms of a traditional college experience should you be able to make the school work financially. This is not a direct comment on your other options, however.
You make some good points and I think we agree more than you would think - I do think that being willing to push slightly outside of your comfort zone is the distinguishing difference. Whether going to Boston is a slight push or a large push is, as you said, individual. I just wanted to note the other side - that any sort of nervousness or unreadiness should not mean eliminating an option entirely. College is a very good time to take a bit of a leap, when you still have that safety net and can transition from kid to adult. It’s not for everyone though, as you mentioned.
@happy1@PengsPhils thank you guys for the feedback I really appreciate it. As for location, I have always been an independent person but at the same time I like some familiarity. I love Boston and all of the opportunities that come with it and part of me feels like I should take the leap and go a little bit out of my comfort zone because I feel like for more of my life I have stayed in my “safe little bubble” for lack of a better term. UB is about 45 mins from my house and while Buffalo is a city that’s on the rise and has lots to offer I feel like Boston can offer me so much more and I’ve always wanted to live in another place.
I’m currently at NEU so I probably have a bit of bias, but I also was accepted to UR and chose between them. For my field, NEU was much better so it wasn’t much of a consideration, but UR is very good for medical professions, despite not specifically having a Pharmacy program. I too also loved the open curriculum there - I’ve found NEU to be quite flexible as well - I’m doing a philosophy minor with CS, and that is satisfying a good deal of my “core”. It would have been exactly the same as a philosophy cluster at UR. As far as Pharmacy at NEU, I’ve only heard great things from students here about the Pharmacy program here as well, to be fair. The co-op’s work very well with Boston.
Based on that last post, I think that you should go for Boston, or at least not let it hold you back - you sound like you would fit right in
I’m actually originally from Florida, so I feel you on living far away. I consider myself very independent and I love being in Boston because the whole city feels like it’s just a bunch of young college students in the same boat. If you can, I really highly recommend visiting Boston if you haven’t. If you do end up in Boston, going out with friends over freshman year will get you familiar with plenty of Boston, and you should feel right at home shortly!
Again, though, cost is still important. What is the exact difference between UB and NEU? Will any of it be loans? Same goes for UR.
The cost of things gets a little complicated due to the 6 year pharmacy program. So basically my parents are going to pay 20,000 a year for four years no matter where I go. UB would be $18,000 for the first two years and then for the four years after it would be probably about 40,000 a year not including what my Parents would contribute (if I do continue with the pharmD program). So in the end I would probably have about $100,000
In debt which is actually a lot for a state school haha. Northeastern, after the grantS and EFC, I would have to take out about 6,000 a year in loans which isn’t bad. It sounds like the financial aid package I received can be applied for the first 5 years? But I’m not 100% sure and then what I’ve gathered from the NEU website is that tuition for the final pharmacy year is actually cheaper than undergrad. Rochester would be about $9,000 in loans for me for four years. Obviously that could change IF I do decide to change my major but I don’t want to make it even more complicated.
I would highly recommend that you give this some serious thought, as a PharmD degree is very marketable, with many career paths and higher job prospects. I friend of mine with a pharmacy degree works fulltime for a major pharmaceutical company doing Quality Control related activities and work retail pharmacy on weekends (when required). Another Pharmacist I know does Pharmacy Software Consulting (very high income) and doesn’t do any direct pharmacy work.
What would you do with a undergraduate biochemistry or pharmaceutical sciences degree?
UB - ((18K-20K) * 2) + ((40K - 20K) * 4) = 76K in loans
NEU - (6K * 4) + 14K = 38K in loans
UR - (9K * 4) = 36K in loans
UB Non-Pharmacy = 0K Loans
NEU Non-Pharmacy = 24K Loans
At NEU, 5 years is actually the same price as 4 due to co-op - make sure your parents understand that, as the math above assumes that they pay for the 4 years tuition, even though it will be stretched out over 5.
Where did you get the 100K from on UB? I could only find 76K, but that is still huge.
If this is correct, and you choose to do Pharmacy, UB is actually your most expensive option by more than double! On the flip-side, it is the cheapest if you do not. A very odd situation. Even though the drop rate for PharmD programs is significant, the risk that you stay in the program at UB is too costly IMO. Unless you decide in the next two weeks that pharmacy is really unlikely, you may need to cross off UB.
