<p>I know I'm so sick of seeing all these this school or that school threads, but I got accepted into Reed today which I didn't think would happen, and now I'm stuck deciding between these two. They both have similar academic atmospheres, both have crappy weather compared to what I'm used to (California), UChicago's a bit bigger and more diverse, but it's also in a city and away from nature, etc. I have no idea what I'd major in, possibly philosophy/math/physics/some combination of these/something else entirely. I'd get a better financial deal at Chicago, but Reed's wouldn't be horrible, I'd have about 16k in loans come graduatation time versus none at Chicago. If anyone has any brilliant insight it'd be much appareciated. Thanks!</p>
<p>For me, it’d come down to nature v. city. With the FA, I’d choose Chicago</p>
<p>Hey greentrombone, </p>
<p>Both schools are quite known for quirkiness. </p>
<p>However, Reed is a liberal arts school, so it is quite small and you’ll get more individual attention — that’s my impression. </p>
<p>On the other hand, I think Chicago has stronger financials to offer you a better FA deal. Also, Chicago seems to have a much stronger prestige globally than Reed does. After all, Chicago does have 83 (or a number close to that) Nobel Prize winners. The international prestige may help you in the long run, especially if you choose to find a job outside of the USA.</p>
<p>By the way congrats on the Reed admit. I know you were drawn to Reed for its quirkiness and academic atmosphere, just like at Chicago.</p>
<p>Just 2 comments for you since I don’t know much about Reed.
1.If being in a woodsy/natural environment is important then Chicago may be tough unless walking the lakefront helps.
2. It’s surprisingly easy to access individual attention at Chicago, form real relationships with faculty and so IMHO, that’s not a reason to turn away from Chicago.</p>
<p>If you’re looking for something much more laid back (and you don’t mind a party scene), id say reed. read up on their whole idea of no grades.</p>
<p>if you want a more structured environment, id say chicago. also, if you’re looking for stuff with difficulty approaching or meeting the graduate level, chicago is your place. </p>
<p>i know chicago is very strong in all of the departments you mentioned, esp. in philosophy and math.</p>
<p>IBfootballer, Reed does give grades and I’m afraid your impression of it as a party school w/o a structured or rigerous academic environment is very wide of the mark.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone, what you all said made sense. I’m still stuck and am trying to decide what environment and atmosphere would be best. Thanks ab, I wish you good luck at Michigan and in deciding whether or not to go on the Chicago waitlist. I’d love to actually meet you and see you there 
I’m sure I could be happy at either school, but there’s different perks to both, such as the nature at Reed and perhaps a bit more opportunity for one on one attention due to its small size, but the diversity at UChicago, along with the international prestige and greater number of options for classes and professors. I guess it’s just a matter of weighing them out and seeing which school fits more, and which school I’d enjoy more both socially and academically.</p>
<p>Yes I do know that Reed does give grades, they just don’t show you unless you request them. Grades aren’t emphasized, learning for learning’s sake is, but grades still exist. They also have to do a junior qualifying exam along with a senior thesis, so I don’t think it’s all to laid back.</p>
<p>A bit of Reed misinformation has surfaced here (I suspect, though, that IBfootballer is the only one reading here who is misinformed):</p>
<p>“If you’re looking for something much more laid back (and you don’t mind a party scene), id say reed. read up on their whole idea of no grades.”</p>
<p>Good idea, let’s read up on it:
</p>
<p>“if you want a more structured environment, id say chicago. also, if you’re looking for stuff with difficulty approaching or meeting the graduate level, chicago is your place.”
Quotes from the Reed web site. UChicago, Swarthmore and Reed are often considered the most academically demanding of schools.</p>
<p>with that financial aid offer, i’d definitely go with uchicago. $16,000 doesn’t seem like much now, but it will once you start paying it off!</p>
<p>A quick point in favor of Chicago–Chicago’s 6 year graduation rate is 90%, while Reed’s is 75%. </p>
<p>Sorry, I don’t know how to link correctly, but here are the sources:
<a href=“http://web.reed.edu/president/speeches/state_of_college_06.html”>http://web.reed.edu/president/speeches/state_of_college_06.html</a>
<a href=“Times Topics - The New York Times”>Times Topics - The New York Times;
<p>S1 chose Chicago over Reed, though he really liked it, because of his impression that Chicago was much more diverse and tolerant of opposing political views. From multiple visits, he found that though the coursework was rigorous at Reed, there seemed to be less outside of class “intellectual” discussion than at Chicago. His over night stays were quite different as well, with Chicago’s much better. He did not let that color his decision too much because of the limited sample. It still was a tough choice that was made at the last minute.</p>
<p>Which nature is Chicago away from? People canoe/kayak on the river, surf and sail on the lake, hike/cross country ski in Jackson Park and the forest preserves. And spot the occasional cougar or coyote or snowy owl. The lake is a major bird migration flyway.</p>
<p>It is flat here though.</p>
<p>^greentrombone: </p>
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<p>I’d like to meet you too! I think I’ll keep my name on the waitlist, but I won’t be writing a letter to commit because I’m still not ready to commit to Chicago. But even if I don’t end up at Chicago, Ann Arbor is like, what, a 4 or 5 hour drive to Chicago, huh? :)</p>
<p>Good luck to you too – I’m sure you’ll be awesome no matter where you end up!!
-ab2013</p>