Hello,
Our DD got accepted to both Case Western (25K/yr) and USC. She is an NMF and chose USC for her college choice. We’re not sure if she’ll get NMF award from USC. We went to visit Case in February and were impressed with the resources there especially since the campus is located near several hospitals including the Cleveland Clinic. Biochemistry is her intended major with medicine field in the future. It seemed that CWRU is a very underrated school given its location and resources when we visited. Not sure if it is because of not many students apply there due to the cold weather.
On the other hand, USC is ranked in the top 25 & its acceptance rate was 11% in 2019. We never visited the school and a bit surprised that she got in because we heard that it rejects many NMF. We have no idea what the campus area feels and whether or not they have hospitals or other health facilities nearby. We are looking for the campus location similar to CWRU or Rice with health facilities within walking distance or short bus rides from campus.
We read online that USC has more campus spirits due to its sports, etc. Our DD doesn’t care much about sports. She likes to visit museums and concert halls more than sports events. So we thought CWRU would be great fit for her. However since USC is ranked higher and more difficult to get in, it is hard to make the decision. Unfortunately class of 2024 won’t have the Admission Day events so she has to decide virtually by her instincts. We don’t know yet if she will be getting the NMF award from the school.
If she gets the NMF award from USC, would it be better to attend USC with higher total COA (after NMF award) or choose CWRU with 25K/yr? Which one would be stronger in preparing students for Medical school in the future?
Today, she’s also waitlisted from her top choice school, Rice. She is going to send an email to Rice for her continued interest. We know that it is a very slim chance to get off from the waitlist but she wants to try. Is it worth to pay full price at Rice if she gets off the waitlist or chose CWRU/USC?
Thank you for all your advices and help. This is our first & only time for making the decision.