To preface, I am very grateful to be offered admission at these 4 wonderful schools. I will list them from my most favorite to least favorite schools (although varies slightly)
Factors that are important to me : Weather, Prestige, Grad school placements, cost, and student culture
USC (10-20k/year)
Pros:
Better Faculty for Psychology
-Emphasis on Interdisciplinary (combining majors n minor which is perfect for my intended field)
-Better Ranking for psychology and Overall Ranking
-Alumni Connections
-Cali area connections
-Overall support for undergrads
-Merit scholar advantages (more mentorship, better housing, more course selections, etc)
-California sunshine (i somtimes get seasonal depression, rarely though)
-mcharthy honors housing
Cons:
-high cost of living in california
-10-20k a year (financial aid is being very slow and fickle right now, but i am estimating off of the scholarship I got and NPC)
Swarthmore (59k/year)
Pros:
suburban, close to city, can take classes at nearby schools
more intellectual/quirky vibe
more flexible academics, e.g i can do a self-designed major + another major or double minor
better reputation for engineering/CS
Cons:
more stressful and competitive atmosphere
hefty cost
very cold
3. Bowdoin (21.4k/year) - $85.6k for 4 years (can handle w/o loans)
providing every student a 13-inch MacBook Pro, iPad mini, and Apple Pencil
Thrive program that supports low-income and first gen students like me
great peer and alumni mentoring
2 islands for marine science research
excellent, modern facilities
great social sciences department
awesome student life
feeder to grad school ( i am considering)
good food and diversity
ocean is like 15 minutes away
Faculty scholars
School 2 Cons:
very remote/isolated
can get very cold
lack of accessibility to groceries/shops
maybe a little too small of a campus (doesn’t matter to me that much bc it is not very condensed)
not very well-known (well-known to grad school employers tho)
some people had an off-vibe when i visited, maybe i met the wrong people
4.UF : Free (first year), $7.36k (second year), $15,430 (third year), $15,430 (fourth year)- $38,220 for 4 years
Pros:
Way less costly
-Nice Climate
-Best school in Florida
-ok student life
Cons:
-ALOT of my HS classmates are gonna go there and I prefer to have a fresh start
I would eliminate Swat due to cost, although I’m perplexed why it would be so much considering you received significant need based aid from Bowdoin ($59k vs $21k/year).
Bowdoin is not remote at all. There are shops, restaurants, Walgreens, and a large major grocery store within an easy walking distance of campus. Portland is an easy 25-30 min drive.
I agree with your points on UF. All in all sounds like you are leaning USC. I don’t understand why they haven’t given you your FA package yet assuming you filed the documents on time…were the other schools’ NPCs accurate for you? I hesitate to say USC will be as low as you think, until you explain the diff in costs between Bowdoin at $21K/yr and Swat at $59k/yr.
My father had to sent around $60k to his parents in a foreign country this year for medical/hospital fees. Bowdoin took in account of that, but Swarthmore apparently do not subsidize that type of transaction
That’s quite possibly going to be an issue for USC too. What is the reason they haven’t given you your FA yet?
It would be risky IMO to deposit at USC knowing about this potential FA issue. If it was $59k fir at least the first year can your parents afford that without loans? Generally Bowdoin FA is FAR more generous than USC, even tho they both meet full need.
ETA: I would try calling USC FA and/or admissions today. Ask for an extension on the admission offer until you get your FA award, and deposit elsewhere by tmr. IF USC grants the extension and FA is ultimately affordable, you would lose the deposit at the other school but at least you’d be covered.
I had to send and find a bunch of business documents that USC requested out of me (accountant is very slow on responding too…).
It is only going to be my single dad who will be paying my college fees. He makes around 45k/year but he has around 50k savings for my tuition. So paying 59k would be possible but would be very risky financially.
I emailed USC and they said that they don’t grant extensions but my deposit fee-waiver would act as an extension. Meanwhile, I am probably going to commit to UF (fee waiver as well)
One thing that I am conflicted about is alot of people, college consultants including (not their clients), are telling me to go to Bowdoin. but i am not sure if Bowdoin is the most valued choice out of these schools
Bowdoin is an elite LAC which provides an outstanding undergrad experience. The psych major is solid. While I understand it doesn’t hit on all of your desires, if an LAC appeals to you I encourage you to consider it.
Allowing that payment your dad sent overseas to not count for FA does speak volumes about Bowdoin IMO. I would expect USC will not back that payment out either, same as Swat. IMO most schools would do what Swat did. But, with that said, it sounds like $21k per year is not insignificant for you dad so choosing UF makes financial sense.
You say that Bowdoin is not very well known. Perhaps to the average man on the street who isn’t up on colleges, that’s true, but to employers, grad schools, people involved in higher education, it is very well known and extremely well regarded. The fact that USC is well known has more to do with its football team than anything else.
I can’t imagine how one person could be equally happy at both Bowdoin and UF. They are like polar opposites in terms of size, intimacy, professor engagement, etc. It’s my opinion that you do better in an environment that you like, feel most comfortable, are excited about etc. Although both great options, I can’t believe they would be equally great for YOU.
Which environment is more appealing and why? The why is important. And not just to get away from HS peers because you can easily do that at UF. With over 33k students, you can likely never see them. But what are the real reasons you would go to one vs. the other. Answer that and you have your answer.
IME many students can thrive in seemingly disparate college environments. What I know for sure is most students’ choice is limited by their parents’ budgets…choosing based on fit is a privilege that most students don’t have.
One important difference between Bowdoin and Swarthmore is the outsize influence of athletics on the incoming class and campus culture. 40% of incoming class at Bowdoin are recruited athletes, who often have very different test scores and GPA from their non-athlete peers. This is one of the colleges where athletes regularly refer to their classmates as NARPs (non-athlete regular person) on social media and in conversation. I suspect that you got some of that vibe during your visit because it does contribute to some challenging social stratification.
Bowdoin’s classes do NOT have 200 of 500 recruited athletes. Further, many athletes’ GPAs and test scores are well within Bowdoin’s mid 50% ranges. I do agree that Bowdoin has more focus on athletics than Swat to some extent, unfortunately Swat at $59K is NOT affordable for OP.
I was honestly thinking of claiming as independent by marriage, emancipation, or other methods so I can get full aid second year but idk how feasible that is
Please don’t get married to become an independent student. I assume you are 18 or close to it, so no chance for emancipation now. If it’s common that your dad sends money overseas, you know how Swat will treat it. If that was a one time thing I would expect the following 3 years FA to be closer to Bowdoin’s…but the first year would wipe out your dad’s college savings, so that would not be a good choice.
When you say “better ranking for psychology and overall ranking” for USC, I’m not certain to which schools you are referring for comparison. For example, USC has come a long way to even approach a school such as Swarthmore on academic merits. Regarding undergraduate psychology programs, they tend not to be ranked by national publications.
Yes to UF, because it’s your financial safety, and it’s a good school.
Although you should have qualified for tremendous fin aid, if your parents’ income is only 45K/yr, and they had only 50K in savings/assets, it sounds as if your father’s having just sent a large amount of money to his family is a red flag to some fin aid offices. This could come up again, every year - what if the family needs money next year, and every year? Do you think your father is going to choose your college tuition over his parent’s medical care? Wouldn’t it be best to put him in a position of not having to do that?
You don’t want to run into having to drop out, due to finances. UF is a well-respected school, and their undergrad psych dep’t will be totally fine for your purposes. The school that would really matter, if you decide to go on in psych, will be grad school. It’s a good school for marine sciences. As for the issue of wanting a fresh start, realize that it’s a HUGE school, so it doesn’t matter if there are 100 other kids from your high school class going there - you will be able to make your mark there, in your own way. Don’t let fear of spillover gossip from high school make you give up your best financial safety to get through college without taking on huge debt.
The max loans a student can take out is generally $27K max over the 4 years of undergrad…that is (generally again) the most I would recommend. Of course fewer or no loans is better if you are thinking grad school. I would not recommend your dad take any loans on your behalf.
Irrespective of rankings, I believe USC does offer one of the country’s stronger undergraduate psychology programs. If this were your only criterion, then USC (or UF) could make a great choice. However, your overall goal, it appears, is to consider your choices by their broader aspects (including those related to your other academic interests as well as to their academic environments in general).