Hi guys!
So I have a tough decision to make- UVA or American University.
For UVA, I would have in-state tuition, and it is of course a prestigious and well-known university.
At American, I was accepted into their honors college, which accepts only 25 students a year. The students live together in a residence hall and take several honors classes and get a lot of attention. However, American is not as prestigious or well-known. Also, it carries a scholarship of 30,000, making it about the same cost for me as UVA.
So what I am wondering is, will the name on the diploma carry a lot of weight? Is it better to attend the more prestigious university or one where I will receive more attention?
I plan to attend graduate school, so I guess it matters more what the name means to graduate schools.
Thank you!
Which one would you be disappointed not attending? UVA v. American Honors=Not significant of enough difference to make the decision based on prestige. HOW you attend one of these universities will make much more of a difference than which one is on a grad school application or a job application. Go with the one where you’d be happiest. Enjoy it. Embrace it. Work hard and take advantage of the great opportunities that you’ll have at either. Treat people with respect and kindness. You’ll be golden. Congratulations and good luck!
Agree with TTG’s post. And being one of only 25 students in an honors program is very impressive. Graduate schools will know and respect both schools. Which program and social ambiance suit you better? Go with the place you think you will enjoy the next four years the most.
Both are wonderful options. Go to whichever school you are happier at. However, I am wondering about how you found out about American honors already since my best friend applied for Honors and admissions has told her that they will release that decision on April 1st, not beforehand. Good luck with whichever option you choose!
@sbrown1099 I got my admission packet in the mail a few weeks ago which notified me of my acceptance! They let people know with their admissions, not separately.
What do you plan to study? American University’s International Relations program (SIS) is rated 9th best in the country by scholars in the IR community, whereas UVA was #22. And DC is a great place for IR majors to find interns. UVA may be a better school for other majors, though.
Depends what you want to study-- I’ve hated AU being in CAS but it’s good if you want to do Politics/Business/Law/IR/Journalism bc it’s in DC. I think UVA is the better school and harder to get into (if you are out of state)
I was in Honors at AU and ended up dropping as well as my 2 roommates also dropped plus at least 15 other kids (We had 50 kids, they switched over to 25 the year after us). The Honors Program is a JOKE. I found it miserable and disorganized and not worth it except to get your Gen Eds done faster and a nicer dorm-- but you keep your scholarship even if you drop-- at least we could. It ruined my and a lot of others’ GPAs
In my view, American has some things going for it due to location and access to lecturers and adjuncts in the DC community. However, I think what is looked at first is the school, not the honors program, and I would say UVA is a cut above American.
Go to UVA, no question. Much better school for the same cost. An honors program can never make up for a lack of general prestige. You can always spend time in DC over summer and do internships.