So time is running out, and I would like your opinion on my decision. I’ve been lucky enough to be accepted to these three amazing schools. I will be majoring in biochemistry at Vandy, biology at Berkeley, and both neuroscience and Plan II honors at UT Austin. I’m in state for UT, so tuition will cost me around 23k. I’ve received generous aid and scholarship at Vandy, so the original 70k will be reduced to 29k, and 54k at Berkeley.
I’m tentatively planning on going into pre-med, though I also have an interest in English. I’m leaning towards Vandy, which is obviously a great school with lots of opportunities and even a great price. I also visited and loved the campus. However, I’m a little hesitant about it due to its heavy Greek life influence, which I personally am not interested in. I’m also Asian and I’ve heard some things about possible discrimination on campus, though I’m not sure if it’s true. I’ve also heard about its grade deflation and in general tough STEM classes, though of course I’m willing to work hard (and I know premed at Berkeley is hard too!) I really like Berkeley because of its location and reputation, and feel like I may be a better fit with the student body there, but I think it’s hard to justify that extra price… Finally, UT especially with honors is amazing, so it’s also a strong contender, though I think I would love to be a little further away from home to experience the opportunities other colleges have to offer.
So, I guess my question is, in your opinion, which one should I choose??
Why not attend Texas at the lowest cost and greatest convenience to traveling to medical school interviews in Texas?
If you do get into a low cost Texas public medical school after attending Texas for undergraduate, you could start medical practice with much lower debt than someone who went to a high cost undergraduate school followed by a high cost medical school. This can give you many more options in your career and life choices, rather than being forced to chase the money every time.
I’d immediately eliminate Berkeley from the list. It’s considerably more expensive than your other two options and offers nothing you can’t get at UT Austin.
You can’t go wrong with either UT Austin or Vandy. Where do you see yourself fitting best? Size is the most obvious difference between the two.
Then don’t pledge. There’s plenty to do on campus and in Nashville that doesn’t revolve around Greek life.
I’d go to Vandy and skirt around the Greek stuff. The added perks of a T20 private are worth the extra $6k/year if your family can afford it. Plus, it’ll have more of a national student body, which will make your experience there that much more interesting.
You can only take out $27k max in federal student loans without a co-signer. If you’re planning to go to medical school, the more debt you have, the harder it will be to get the financing to pay for medical school. I would go with UT.
OP was calculating the full cost of attendance, including room/board.
If I’m not mistaken, Vanderbilt has eliminated loans from its financial aid packages. OP hasn’t said (s)he would have to borrow to attend Vanderbilt but not UT Austin.