UVA or VTECH (Biology)?

College Search & Selection
1

I have been accepted into UVA’s and VTECH’s College of Sciences, and I have the difficult decision between two excellent schools. I like both colleges in that they are filled with intelligent people obviously and the appearance of the college is wonderful; however, I do have my concerns:

  1. Level of Difficulty - I am a very hardworking person, so topics and good grades don’t magically appear. At UVA I feel like I would be below average, I don’t want to be in tears every night there because it is so competitive and difficult.
  2. Fitting In - I was looking at UVA’s Facebook page looking at the posts people put (let’s be honest: UVA does have a stereotypical reputation of being preppy). I understand it’s a “stereotype,” and not all students there will fit it. There is more to a school than what it appears to be on the surface. But, I’m not a person that sits and watch Netflix all day. I’m not really into partying either.
  3. Biology Program - I plan on pursuing a medical career, and I know UVA has a superb program. VTECH has one of the largest research facilities in the state. Experience and exposure are extremely important to me. The professor I talked to at TECH said that above everything, experience is the one thing he focuses on the most. Does UVA have an extensive research program?
  4. The College “Name” - UVA has one of the highest rankings by college websites for a public-university. I heard that when you graduate from a school, you are also paying for the name. I’m not saying VTECH is a bad school, but it doesn’t have a rank as good as UVA. Does rank really matter?
  5. Programs At College - VTECH has multiple programs such as summer academies that incorporate all basic sciences (Physics, Chemistry, Biology) and teach how it is applied in real life. In addition, they have LLC’s for students with that particular major to live all together in a hall. I believe this would help me in school. It appears to me that UVA does not have any sort of program life this…
    What else should I look at to make my college decision? Any advice would be helpful!
2

Ultimately the question is “Where do you want to live for 4 years?” Blacksburg and Charlottesville are very different towns. I graduated from Tech, spent 2 years living 30 minutes from Charlottesville and then moved back to Blacksburg (where I’ve lived and raised my kids for 20 years). Blacksburg has a completely different feel than C’vlle. The Blacksburg community has adopted Tech in a way that Charlottesville never has embraced UVA. Being at Tech is also about hiking to the Cascades and tubing on the New River and being part of things outside of classes. That is certainly something to consider.

And while UVA may have higher rankings and name recognition, Tech is certainly well thought of in science and engineering circles. You really can’t go wrong but it sounds like Tech might be a better fit for you personally.