So, a few months ago, I got into UMass Amherst and Rutgers for Sociology and SAS resp. I plan on double majoring with economics and/or psychology (maybe a minor of one) as well. I’ve thoroughly researched both colleges and am still very confused. COA for Rutgers is 50K (but if I get conservative with spending and rent textbooks instead of buy them, maybe 46K) but UMass is coming up to 40K (36K if I get conservative with cash). My parents have been saving up, but I dont want to pose too much of a burden on them.
Here are the pros and cons of each (acc to me)-
Rutgers- Pros
-Close cousin lives 15 mins away- support system
-I like the courses slightly better
-I dont have to choose a major till sophomore year
More Indian kids= festivals are a rave (I’m Indian [not living in India, though] so this is a factor)
Douglass Residential College (benefits of a small LAC combined with the opportunities of a large state uni- minus small classes, of course)
Livingston Theatre Club, Indian Accapella team etc (ie, attractive extra curricular options; I’m a performance nut)
Rutgers is actually pretty well regarded- atleast more than UMass
English department seems to be really cool (I want to seriously think about maybe minoring in it)
I love how internship-focused the psychology department is
Major companies are in/around New Brunswick, so more potential job/internship opportunities (?)
Cons-
UNSAFE, oh my god. This is actually holding me back so much. The statistics dont look pretty.
More expensive than UMass
Empties out in the weekends…? (Idk, I’ve just heard some stuff)
UMass Amherst- Pros
Amherst seems like an awesome town
UMass seems like a much more organised college (they report internship opportunities, graduate job placements right on the major website!)
DINING HALLS! Voted as one of the best in the country
-SAFE
5 college consortium
A lot of emphasis on undergrad research opportunities
A lot of international student support
One campus (unlike the 5 campus mess of Rutgers). It is also quite pretty in the fall, as is the general Western Mass. area
It follows heterodox economics, which is more my thing
Prominent sociology department
Less expensive
Cons-
Seems to be lightly less academically challenging than Rutgers
MA people seem to not look at it favourably
Extra curricular activities pale slightly in comparison to Rutgers
Not selected for Honors College, so getting a personal academic advisor is only possible if I pull a good gpa and transfer into the program (which shouldn’t be too hard considering I’m a pretty good student, but still- a semester or two in comparison to Rutgers)
I’m not a party freak and UMass does have a reputation as “Zoomass” (though I dont now how that holds up now…)
Lol, sorry for the long post- just wanted to express how conflicted I am because I feel any choice I make will be the wrong one. In terms of fit, I’m sure I’ll be happy in both places (which may seem strange considering how different they are, but I’m adaptable that way)
@realspades I would not say that UMass will be less challenging. Massachusetts residents have great respect for UMass and send many top students. Kids just don’t want to go to their own flagship because they want to “get away.” NJ kids are the same about Rutgers. ZooMass stereotype is from the 1980’s. It isn’t like there is less partying at Rutgers.
I would choose UMass. Less expensive. Highly regarded. beautiful location and you can take classes at Amherst and the other consortium colleges. Rutgers is not worth 40k more.
I’m surprised that you think that Rutgers is a better school than UMass. I consider them peers. Further, UMass is cheaper and in a better area. The only real pro you list for Rutgers that I think you should be considering is the cousin living nearby. You need to decide how important that is to you.
I’d agree on reputations with above comment. They are similar enough in that respect that I wouldn’t really consider it a factor–both very well respected state flagships. U Mass did have the Zoo Mass reputation, but I think that’s really something that’s moved very much into the past. In terms of being less academically challenging, I would really expect them to be pretty much exactly the same in that respect. Top students from MA and NJ attend each. The Amherst campus’s appearance has improved steadily in recent decades–newer buildings are much more attractive, still a couple of concrete monstrosities around, but definitely way better.
I’d personally prefer Amherst–especially with the multiple campus set-up at Rutgers and membership in the Five College Consortium at U Mass. I find the general Amherst/Northampton area to be nicer. But I think one could argue a slight advantage at either one, depending on departments and what criteria they were emphasizing. It might be a real advantage to have family nearby, depending on you, and the family. In general, though, I’d give the nod to Amherst and $40k v. Rutgers.
However, you are the one who will be living and learning and meeting people at one or the other for the next four years–not me or anyone else–so in the end go with what you feel. Good luck!
I’ve talked to the cousin (aka, the close family I have) and while he seems to think UMass is the better school, Rutgers might be a better choice for me, considering the Indian kid population. Also, one thing that is definitely going for Rutgers is the residential college that seems to have advantages like personal advising, alumni connections and other small college perks that seem extremely attractive to me. Keeping that in mind, how is the advising at UMass? Because as an international student, I definitely need all the help I can get (and I do agree about the 40K, however I want to know if the aforementioned advantages at Rutgers are really worth it or not for the price).
At UMass, I think I’d feel more comfortable (in general) because to the area compared to Rutgers, but my cousin told me that New Brunswick isn’t actually that bad? I think I need a little more information on this.
Another issue is the course, but that is something I can only answer with myself.
Rutgers area isn’t that bad. Very downtown New Brunswick, the area where the bars are, can get very dicey if you wander in the wrong direction. There is off campus housing there, as well as the Johnson & Johnson headquarters, but I go to New Brunswick all the time for dinner and feel perfectly safe. I don’t know the names of all the campuses, but the area where the football stadium is (maybe Douglas?) is a perfectly safe residential area.
Rutgers biggest downfall to NJ kids is usually the bus situation - you often need to take busses to get to your classes so it’s not the typical campus experience many want at a college. But it is a very good school, especially for the sciences.
Rutgers had 36k undergrads. Are you sure it is very personal for advertising? UMass has 23k undergrads. 10% are Asian or 2300 Asian. Rutgers will have more especially as it is a larger school bit do you need a large population.
Being able to take courses through the consortium is a big deal. Amherst is one of the best LACs in the US. Amherst is a much nicer area.
@gearmom wow! Thank you! I never realised that they were so active. Also, I was talking about the residential college which is limited to about 2300 or so undergrads overall. Thus, the close knit group.
@NJWrestlingmom That’s very reassuring, thank you! The football stadium I believe is in the Busch campus, though, but I am assured that Douglass is perfectly safe as well. The only point of worry is late night clubs and activities that I might want to attend; often, I would have to walk in these sketchy areas to get back to my campus (Douglass, most probably) from College Avenue (where most SAS classes are held). I come from a very, very safe country and I have no prior experience in defending myself (mainly because I never had to), so I worry about my naivete in dangerous situations.
@realspades Frankly, I am a little confused. You go to college and are assigned an academic advisor where ever you go so isn’t that a personal advising? You have a question, you just go to your advisor whether you are at Rutgers or UMass? What do you think is different about Rutgers?
@gearmom Apparently, from what I see on the Douglass Residential College site, it’s supposed to be a “college within a college” type thing, an ode of sorts to Douglass College before it was incorporated as one of the campuses of Rutgers University in 2006. https://douglass.rutgers.edu/
Residential communities are common, I agree; but Douglass has some unique features like alumni externships, scholarships etc. Generally, at UMass and Rutgers (non residential college), you’d be assigned an advisor who’d have dozens of other kids to take care of, too; I believe that the DRC, the advisor will have fewer students to work with and can probably provide more personal attention, though I may be wrong (?)
@realspades, I lived for years within spitting distance of both campuses and have taken continuing ed courses at both. While I agree that they are academic peers, you will have a tremendously different experience at each. If you were going as a grad student, I would likely advise Rutgers for many reasons, but for undergrad, go to UMass–enjoy the bucolic setting, the small community and the overwhelming feeling of safety. You’ll find your people, and you may be surprised by who they end up being. Plus, your cousin can visit you, and you’ll have a place to go for Thanksgiving and winter break. Western Mass is a beautiful place to be for four years, and not to be forgotten, UMass is a whole lot cheaper.
@ChezCurie Thank you so much! And since you mentioned that you’ve taken gen ed classes, how would you rate them based on challenge? I get bored very easily and I constantly need my schoolwork to challenge me, but some UMass students sometimes complain of classes being too easy? I don’t fully believe them, but I can’t say anything for sure since I don’t have a clue.
Bored No difference. No way. Pick your classes carefully. But I do know UMass Amherst has a lot of highly regarded profs and PhD candidates coming out of there over time.
If your at all stem UMass will be the opposite of boring. Grueling is more like it.
@realspades Not sure about the number of students each advisor has. That would be pretty expensive if each advisor only had a handful of students rather than dozens and these are both state flagships. I doubt each student gets an advisor that only has 5 students to work with. That would not be cost effective and state taxpayers would not want to pay for such an extravagance.
Personally, I’m not sure about spending an extra 40k for Rutgers when it is a peer college to UMass. If you have to be with your cousin fine but at either place you’ll find a great community. For your major, I’d want to head on over to Amherst myself. I think that is a special opportunity. And personally I would be more comfortable in an artsy, wealthy area like Amherst with an occasional trip to Boston than a more city experience.
I agree with @privatebanker. I’ve taken four courses at Rutgers and four at UMass–just pick your courses wisely–avoid non-tenure track profs/adjuncts and you’ll be more than fine–both truly are great schools.
@gearmom there is an additional $50 fee per semester to be part of the college, which seems fair considering everything else they are offering. The cousin aspect isn’t really a deal breaker since we already agreed that we’d meet maybe once in a month or two since we each have our own lives. I really, really like the Amherst area, too, and I think it’ll be a great place to go to college! I guess this decision really only comes down to course!
@ChezCurie@privatebanker I’m entering as a sociology major, but I plan on double majoring and minoring (if it doesn’t pose at too much of a pain) in something else. I guess with so much I plan to put on my plate, I should be sufficiently challenged hahaha.