UMass or BC?

College Search & Selection
1

Hi All,

I am a high school senior from a public high school just out of Boston, MA. I have been accepted to Boston College and UMass, and I am trying to decide between the two. I am not sure what I want to do yet, but I have interests in several fields: 1. a medical path (neuroscience, perhaps medical school to become a surgeon), and 2. a business path (I don’t know what discipline of business). The obvious answer would be BC, however, money does play a factor. My parents have said that if I attend BC, I will graduate with about 50-60k in loans, while if I attend Umass I will have no loans. They have also offered to help pay for graduate school and give me some extra spending cash if I attend Umass. I prefer BC, but there is a large financial difference in attending the two schools. Thoughts? Any advice would be appreciated, keep in mind I am not sure what I want to do.

Thanks,
Matt

2

Both are great schools. An education is a great investment in a persons future. Perhaps a list you create with each schools pros and cons would be helpful for you.On a personal note I feel that loans for college by motivated students are not a bad thing. Its an investment in yourself. The best investments are in ones self, not credit card debt for frivolous belongings, cars, etc.
Choose the school that’s the best fit for you.
Go to admitted students day at each school and slowly you’ll know whats best for you.

3

D is freshman at BC. Sister completed ug on a premed track at UMass Amherst.

In general, BC is a more academically focused and classes are intense in the sciences. It’s an elite level collegiate experience. Campus and facilities. Sports and access to a major city. Smaller classes etc Residential life on campus through senior year. And a true commitment to service to others embedded into the culture. Also their focus on the whole person including a required core are great long term benefits. All really great things.

That being said if you are looking at pre med path you will find UMass Amherst to be both rewarding and challenging. The setting is nice. And they are building a lot of new spaces on campus. And the food is great. The students are diverse. The profs are really talented. And the cost is so much better for you. And Amherst is a great college town. So much fun to be had there.

Med school is about grades and mcats. Experiences and ecs are important too. Both schools will prepare you for that path. And med school can cost upwards of 300 thousand dollars. Every penny you save is less pressure on you down the road.

If costs were 50 percent less than you mention, I could be swayed. At the levels you discuss, go to the Flagship uni and work your tail off.

4

@privatebanker by flagship uni you mean UMass correct?

5

If you’re thinking of medical school, 60K in undergrad debt is not a good call. For business, it could be manageable but you should really do out the math to understand the financial reality of that in the future.

IMO this boils down to a few main question sets that you’ll have to answer:

  1. How much of a fit difference is there between the two? Is it close or is BC miles and miles ahead? How does that extra spending cash at UMass affect your fit/life there?
  2. What's the chance you go into the medical path versus the business path? What about if you end up doing neither path? How does that 60K debt affect your future if you choose each path?

My suspicion is that UMass is probably the right call. It’s a solid school for both subjects and while BC may have advantages, particularly for business, there seems to be too much uncertainty to take 60K of debt on for. What if you end up pursuing a field you’re passionate about that happens to pay only moderately, where you will really feel that 60K of debt postgrad? It’s a better investment than buying a car, yes, but so is no debt going to a solid school, assuming you’ll be happy there in terms of fit.

Visiting both again is a great idea and can certainly help you make a decision and is a great suggestion. Don’t rush yourself in your decision. Good luck and congrats on the acceptances!

6

@matt2306 Yes, he means UMass. Flagship is short for State Flagship, also known as the #1 public university of a state.

7

College confidential participants certainly seem to have a bias against spending money on a quality education. Not saying it cannot be found in a state flagship. Students have different learning styles and education requirements. Important questions to be asked are how many students per class for all the preequites for medical school. State flagships can often have introductory biology,chemistry and physics classes with well over 300 students. TA s often are not native English speakers. These classes indirectly become weeder classes for pre med students. Many times these are bright students that needed a more intimate environment to absorb the material. Perhaps they saved 60K. Many never realize their dream of attending medical school. Often times these professors at state flagships are brilliant researchers that bring great funding to the university. A great researcher is not always a dedicated great teacher.

8

Both UMass & BC are “R1” “highest research activity” universities. Both have some big classes & a lot of smaller classes. The assumption that private colleges are distinctly different from public ones is something that would not occur to people in the vast majority of states in the U.S.

9

moooop not sure I understand your assumption on last post.
BC is a R1 so it can be considered a national university for ranking purposes.Of course they do research but not to the magnitude of a state flagship. Most state flagship need the research funding to support the school.

10

I’m saying sure, there are differences among colleges regarding the education they offer.

But you seem to be saying that one of those differences is that public flagships are like THIS (big classes, heavy research, iffy teaching, little personal attention, foreign TAs), while private colleges are like THAT (small classes, light research, good teaching, personal attention, few foreingn TAs).

I’m saying sure, some colleges offer the first group of characteristics & others offer the second group. What I don’t get is using the public/flagship vs. private distinction as a guideline for which colleges are in which group.

Take UVa and Boston U–the former probably has more of the second group of characteristics & the latter has more of the first group. In reality, most colleges are a mixture of characteristics, whether they are public or private, big or small .

Some people, especially in the Northeast, where public colleges tend to play second fiddle to privates, seem to assume your dichotomy is correct. But from living all over the country, I’ve seen that in most states, the best students, who want the best education , end up at the big public universities (which are often, but not always, the flagship).

When I was in high school in Massachusetts, it was common for students to say something like, “I didn’t do well in high school, so I have to go to UMass [for a second-rate education].” When I was in high school in the Midwest, it was more common to hear a similar student say, “I didn’t do well in high school, so I have to go to a small (i.e. private or non-flagship public) school [for a second-rate education].”

In other words, there might be bad, ok, good, & great colleges, some with better teaching than others, but you can’t know which is which just by looking at the sticker price, size, or public/private distinction.

11

@lgs03 In most other cases I would agree with you that BC is a better bet, if merely because the median income of BC graduates is over $20K higher per year, and their job placement rate is also higher, so a $60K loan can be paid back pretty quickly, and won’t accrue much interest.

However, looking at the acceptance rates from UMass and from BC into medical school, they both have comparable rates. The average medical school debt is now over $200K. Now, add to that the $60K which will be accruing interest over the years in medical school. The highest paying medical specialties also have the longest residencies. So that’s 4 years medical school and another 3-7 years residency, and that $60K is collecting interest all that time.

The benefits of going to BC over going to UMass Amherst, for somebody who is interested in going on to medical school, are not worth that much extra debt.

12

Certainly tough to make correct broad generalization on public vs Private.
The research opportunities availabe at a state flagship can be a great positive for many students to choose that over a smaller public or private university.
The pendulum on CC seems to always lean towards cheaper is better.
Four years of a ones life at these formative years should be more we’ll thought out.

Matt is a bright young man at a crossroads in career choice. He should visit both schools. Go when classes are in session.
How many kids at the premed classes at each school. ? Yes at most state flagships these are very large classes. Many times we’ll over 300 kids. 500 plus is not unheard of. This may not bother Matt. BC perhaps is the same size , my educated guess is that it’s much smaller than a state flagship. Maybe it’s 150. Still large. Decisions to be made. Let the student decide if that important to them. As a former successful premed student at a highly ranked state flagship I was shocked at class size and lack of dedication by those professors. I survived and made it through to the next level of education. Most of my bright classmates to my left and right did not. They needed a more supportive educational environment at 18-22 while navigating the transition to living independently and transitioning to adulthood.

Undergraduate biology degrees without a path the professional school are not in high demand by job employers. So weather it’s at a small private or large flagship the prospects are not good for direct employment. Many times for premed students a less competive public or private is a better option. The path to being a medical professional is a marathon. A place where the student is happy and can thrive is a critical to their personal happiness and potential admittance to professional school. To survive the process cost should be a factor however not as high as often espoused on CC.

13

@Mwolf
A State flagship me be a better option for medical school as that is where the research is important for those that want it as part of their medical training. The 60K can be made up there if cost is the prevailing factor again.
Cost is very important to get me wrong but it’s a marathon that can be as long as 15 years. Success, fit and happiness should come before cost.

14

Lgs, congrats on what is apparently a very prosperous life…but surely you can understand that to some of us, a $60,000 debt at age 22 is more than a little daunting.

And it’s simply not true that cheaper always wins on CC…people are always asking if the op’s family can handle the price of more expensive options. And the choices are rarely Princeton at full price vs. Southwest Panhandle A&M for free…they are usually more like in this thread, where the cheaper option is still a very reputable school that will give the student a bright future.

15

@moooop
Fours years at the wrong school are worth more than $60,000. By no means am I recommending spending extra money.
Life is about what you value. Same parent that encourages their child to attend a state flagship shows up with a new Denali to pick up their child at the end of the semester. Not always and not always better for many students to spend any money on college.
Lets focus on what people should value rather than personal attacks.
Lets focus on students making well educated decisions.
My personal recommendation for prospective medical students is to attend the easiest college they can so that they may have a life at some point in their adult journey. High GPA and MCAT score are paramount to getting in. Its not the right answer for many students. I respect their choice.
Our country has many community colleges and federal programs for those that have no ability to pay.
Nor did I recommend to Matt one school over another.
The cheaper school option that is reputable is very often discussed on CC. People that have an estimated contribution for any school have the means, but need to find if that school has enough value to attend for that particular students abilities and goals. That discussion is lacking and often superficial on CC.

16

Congratulations, Matt! You have been accepted to two excellent schools.

Have you received an invitation to apply to the UMass Honors College? If you are accepted to the honors college, then I would highly recommend going with UMass and saving the money.