Hi everyone, I’m an international student admitted by both UNC and BC class of 2024, and having problem choosing between them.
I was admitted both as theatre major, and planning to double major theatre & one social science subject (haven’t decided yet, want to go for pre-law track). I personally don’t mind much about weather, and since I’m international student with no financial-aid, scholarship or in-state tuition thing, the tuition and living cost don’t sway me&my family very much on either side. Below are my struggles.
I know that the theatre dept at UNC is better than at BC, but think that BC, since is right next to Boston, would have better city resources. I also personally prefer big city over country sides (love the hustle and bustle, also access to more resources), but I’ve visited Duke (that day the time didn’t allow me to visit UNC…) and think the environment there is also cozy, not in the middle of nowhere. UNC, as I learned, also has overall better academics than BC, but I think they’re both good, don’t have huge difference there, especially both with liberal arts edu which I prefer.
So kinda struggling here. Thanks for everyone reading and sincerely grateful for any advice!
I live pretty close to UNC, so I’ll give you my honest opinion about it (I don’t know anything about BC, sorry). I’m not sure too much about theater, so hopefully someone else will jump in with that.
UNC is very big. Both the campus and the size of the student body are very large. The campus is basically a small town in itself. I know you expressed some concern about the theater opportunities, but I will say that the Triangle (surrounding area) is very artistic. The North Carolina Theater (about 45 min away) puts on a ton of local musicals and plays. Class sizes are also going to be very big, especially for the Gen Eds. It’ll obviously be cheaper than BC at full price (about a $20,000 difference). It’s pretty preppy, but I’d think just as much so as BC.
I would say Boston College. Honestly, both of these two schools have preeminent academics, while one of the most important things I believe we should gain from colleges is the resources they provide. Boston College is more like a big liberal art, and it is really good at social science. On the other hand, UNC is better at biology and life sciences.
As you said, Boston is a really big city and it provides lots of opportunities for students. My sister used to studied social science at UNC and she did mention that most of the opportunities at UNC are for bio and med students, so she later transferred to a liberal arts college near Boston.