Hi! I cannot decide between University of Rochester and The Ohio State University. I plan on majoring in Biology and minoring in Neuroscience with a Pre-Med Track. Both Universities are very far away and I will be an OOS student. I received the competitive Morrill Scholarship at tOSU that covers full tuition and financial aid cover most of the cost except for $2000. On the other hand, at University of Rochester after receiving the Dean’s Scholarship I end up paying less than $3000 a year. I recently visited Ohio State and I really enjoyed the campus. I also like that since I am in the Morrill Scholars Program I will have a sense of community with the LLC and activities. The research opportunities seem stronger at UofR and the ranking is over 20 spots more than tOSU. I am visiting UofR soon so I cannot compare the campus yet to tOSU. Also, is it better to go to a smaller school or a larger school? Does the student body influence medical school admissions? Is it better to go to a Private or Public Institution?
tOSU is an excellent school with limitless opportunities. I don’t place much importance on rankings, but can’t imagine why UofR would rank above tOSU.
The above seems like a pretty blinded post. OSU is great, but that doesn’t mean other schools aren’t either.
What are the total costs for each of these?
Those questions are completely up to you and generally are categorized under how well a school “fits” you.
Does tOSU have the same kind of course flexibility that UofR has? Does it have the same ease and access to a hospital that UofR has with Strong?
You should have a better idea after seeing UofR. I really loved the campus and paying less that $3k is incredible.
I meant no disrespect for UofR. It sounds like a great school!
I was just stating my opinion that 20 rank points mean nothing. Would totally agree with @PengsPhils “fit” comment.
@OhiBro Ah, gotcha! I thought you meant that OSU was obviously better and UofR couldn’t possibly compare. Looks like we’re actually in agreement 
@RodrKat610 there are as much if not more opportunities to research at Ohio State. It is one of the world’s largest research universities. It has a larger hospital complex (Wexner) than Rochester Strong. Checkout
https://aschonors.osu.edu/research Also Ohio State supplies the fifth most applicants to medical schools than any other school in the US. Checkout:
https://www.aamc.org/download/493728/data/factstablea2.pdf
My son is at Ohio a state and the living learning communities are terrific opportunities to live and learn—promote student engagement outside the classroom with students who share the same interest and passions. And sophomore year there is STEP which is another great program. Checkout https://step.osu.edu/program-overview/
The fact that you are in the Morrill scholars program will create a small knit community within the larger university. Remember you can always make a large university smaller, through LLC’s,l and other programs, but can’t make a small university larger. And finally, you can’t beat the recreational facilities R-PAC —checkout:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.elevenwarriors.com/the-ohio-state-university/2018/10/97251/campus-connection-the-rpac%3famp
and the spirited social environment that comes from being in Buckeye land! Even if you don’t like sports, attending a Big 10 football game is a must!
If I’m reading this correctly you’re saying you have Ohio State at 2K and U Roc at 3K? If that’s true, I’d pick U Roc in a heartbeat - terrific school, with tons of accessible research options, etc. The undergrad research rate there is between 75-80% giving the school quite the “research culture” among students. Being able to go there that inexpensively would be awesome. (This assumes you’re interested in research, if not, then that becomes a non-issue and it might not be the better school fit-wise for you.)
That said, if you’re interested in Pre-med it really won’t matter as med schools won’t care. Pick the school that fits you the best. Undergrad is merely a step on the journey for a future doctor. Should you need a Plan B (change your mind about med school or not get accepted), either school will work.
Congrats on getting two awesome offers! (If I’m correct in my reading, that is.)
Know nothing about Morrill at OSU. If just look at the two schools overall, given virtually the same (and very low) cost, I’d pick U of Rochester because of the caliber of its students and rigor of academics.
Though both of your choices seem like they could be good for you, the University of Rochester seems like the rarer opportunity, and would be my recommendation.