<p>I have been accepted to all three schools, I am instrested in pre-med. I am offered the Vanderbilt Cornelius scholorship with 4 year tuition. I also received some scholarship from UChicago. I live close to WashU. The decision time is fast approaching. Any advice for me where to go?</p>
<p>Really appreciate your input</p>
<p>In all honesty, your post is odd. And I thought it might not even be valid…that you were jking or a ■■■■■ because of your lack of being thrilled with the incredible lottery win of free tuition to Vandy. </p>
<p>If you are wealthy, go to the school where you feel intangible “fit.” Otherwise</p>
<p>You just won a CV, which is offered to less than 1% of 31 thousand applicants. I can’t understand why you are not ecstatic. Your family would still receive further support for room and board if you can show further need at that level but free tuition removes the cost of Vanderbilt stunningly. </p>
<p>Tuition tends to go up every year, and parental income must be proven each year via FAFSA for everyone else on need aid, so that your financial aid package goes up and down with parental income in many cases. </p>
<p>You are protected from such worries. </p>
<p>Our son is a merit winner at Vanderbilt, and we consider it to be a miracle. He is a fine young man but in all honesty, he is not “smarter” than any of the students entering Vanderbilt in your class. He is just very actualized as a person and active on campus, but so are scores of other students who are not on merit aide.</p>
<p>If you had won a Wash U merit package, of course that is where you should go. There is no point in focusing on the pros and cons of Wash U vs Vandy when one of them pays your four year tuition and a summer research stipend. </p>
<p>Vandy and Wash U are peer colleges. I have lived in St Louis and think it is a friendly large city with a great cultural life to offer students, and the Wash U campus is lovely. Wash U is not that far by car from Nashville. In fact, some Nashville raised kids go to Wash U for that very reason. You would not have so far to travel compared to hundreds of other Vandy freshmen who will come from far far away and will be entering a southern city like Nashville for the first time. </p>
<p>Nashville is a super friendly decidedly southern city with a good cultural life and a good economy. In fact, the friendly factor reminds me of my years in the Midwest. Nashville and Vandy have a great town gown thing going on. Nashville is not a mammoth city like Houston, Atlanta or St. Louis for good and for ill. Everything is less Big City, and quite manageable. But life is good and you can find so much to do in Nashville.</p>
<p>I have read here and there that premed at Wash U is outstanding but come on! Premed at Vanderbilt is also outstanding! </p>
<p>Debt load for graduate school is the next big hurdle. Your eyes should be on funding the med school or grad school years.</p>
<p>Give your heart mind and soul to Vanderbilt classrooms and friends for four years. Med school will follow. </p>
<p>And go out and kiss the spring green ground if you actually won a Cornelius Vanderbilt scholarship. Know that you didn’t deserve it any more than hundreds of other great young adults entering Vanderbilt this fall but you were singled out for this privilege for your own personal destiny. </p>
<p>Come to Vandy and do your best to deserve this great gift. You get to apply to med schools as a Cornelius Vanderbilt scholar. Vanderbilt has everything you could ever need from age 18-22.</p>
<p>I agree with Faline. 3 great universities and one is free!</p>
<p>Vanderbilt must have really liked your application - Cornelius Vanderbilt scholarship is great, congratulations</p>
<p>thanks for your reply. Don’t get me wrong. I am honored to received CV scholarship and am feel very lucky. In my opinion, UChicago offers more options if I want to switch away from pre-med. Also I am not sure about the Greek life at Vandy.</p>
<p>Good luck with your final decision. My son is non Greek and might have preferred a college without Greek life having much of a presence, but 60% of the men on campus are non Greeks. He was not going to eliminate UVA, Wm and Mary (we are Virginians) and other great colleges because of Greek life from his list, and he received merit offers from liberal arts colleges as well. The schools he initially wished to attend were non Greek but full price. He has a ton of very interesting friends, many of them first generation from other countries. Vanderbilt has given him fantastic opportunities re internships and small discussion based classes, foreign study and meaningful things to do in Nashville.</p>
<p>Chicago is a great place, and I wish you well as you figure this out. </p>
<p>In this economy, your eyes should be on the prize of your post graduate plans and how you will gain admission and fund graduate school. Schools of law, business and medicine are very very expensive. </p>
<p>good luck</p>
<p>I understand the concern over Greek life, but why do you think Vanderbilt has less options if you choose another field? Vanderbilt grads are highly successful at virtually all walks of life. If it helps I had one s at Vandy who was Greek and one who was independent. They both had many friends, a wonderful experience and have benefitted tremendously from their Vanderbilt experience. Best of luck, nothing but good choices.</p>
<p>Being a pre-med at Vanderbilt is HARD, probably the hardest track. Greek life can also be a drawback but if you don’t care about peer pressure, don’t let it bother you. I have found tons of wonderful non-Greek friends, and the Greek life is very superficial anyways, mostly for Facebook pictures and such.
However, UChicago is a cutthroat place, and Vanderbilt is very friendly for a top 20 school. People will help you, whereas in other colleges, people are more concerned with beating their classmates.
Pros and cons to each.</p>
<p>If your parents can write $60,000 checks for eight years, then go with the school that feels right - the best fit. If money is an issue, then go to Vanderbilt. </p>
<p>Also, Faline makes a good point. Since 60% of men are not greek, you have 2000 other non-greek guys to hang out with as well as 1700 non-greek women. I think you’ll find your niche socially.</p>
<p>The relationship between independents and the Greek community at Vanderbilt is not as good as it should be, but it’s certainly not so poor that there is no social interaction between the two groups. Most people have a large network of friends, both Greek and non-Greek, and those who don’t are closed-minded people who do so by choice (and they exist on both sides). If you come to Vandy you will have 6800 other students to hang out with, period.</p>
<p>The Greek and non Greek populations at Vandy are both very diverse and interact with each other well. Please avoid negative false stereotypes about 40% of the student body.
Greek organizations need to do a better job at promoting Greek life to new students.
Academics: My D has found an excellent support group which has helped with her premed studies in her sorority. Nationwide Greeks have higher GPA’s, lower transfer/dropout rates and higher graduation rates.
Leadership: Greeks make up 75% of campus leadership positions and 85% of fortune 500 key executive jobs.
Community service & philanthropy: Greeks and non Greeks are involved with countless cs groups and Vandy Greeks raised $400,000 for charity last year. Greeks tend to donate more to their university after graduation.
Behavior: Greeks tend to feel more connected to their school and have less feelings of loneliness.
Keep an open mind. There is more to Greek life than fun.</p>
<p>pxu666, what was your final decision? Curious! And wishing you well regardless of your decision.</p>
<p>Vandy. thanks very much for your honest opinion. My parents really want me to go to UChicago</p>
<p>Welcome to the Commodore family :)</p>
<p>Welcome to Vanderbilt. It is always hard to relinquish another perfectly wonderful life at a fine institution like Chicago that is a contrast to life at Vandy. You will be able to be the master of your own destiny at Vanderbilt. My son applied for the College Scholars program and was accepted second term freshman year. Take a look at that possible path to an Honors Diploma should classes capped at 15 scholars interest you. This “made up” for our son’s need for discussion based classes that were unorthodox and fascinating, although not all students have the time to go this route to an honors diploma. (He had to relinquish his initial interest in a liberal arts undergrad degree when he chose Vandy but many of his senior projects, extra curriculars–which are numerous and varied for all students at Vandy… and the Scholars seminars fully made up for this.)</p>
<p>Many students will instead opt for honors diplomas in their own major, or will get caught up in research opportunities or advanced courses in their own majors. </p>
<p>But give College Scholars a look. Definitely gave our son time with some of Vanderbilt’s most fascinating teachers…and gave him exposure to students who were older and very self directed as the classes are not limited to what year you are in your undergrad program.</p>
<p>Also spend some time on the Residential pages on the Vandy website. There are housing pathways to create community for non Greek students. Our son chose a Mayfield Lodge proposal for sophomore year and he lived with women and men in a house with 10 private rooms and shared living space. My only recommendation to you on housing is that you start thinking about it after Winter break and take the initiative to create your own Mayfield proposal or other residential application from the choices at Vandy. There are many students who are looking for community after the year on the Commons who are non Greek. My son has maintained with his Commons Academic residence professor who has generously written letters of references for him about ten times so far as he applied to various housing configurations, applied for internships, jobs and committees. Get to know the professor who is in your Commons house, and get to know someone on the faculty in your major early on. </p>
<p>Congrats</p>
<p>Faline2, Thanks again for all the advice and information. Look forward to join the Commodore family </p>
<p>Best regards</p>
<p>I sent you a PM…:)</p>
<p>I thought about you, pxu666, yesterday during Vandy’s graduation ceremony which I believe is online somewhere at vanderbilt.edu or at insidevandy.com. The Dean of the Engineering school got so many cheers as he read out the names of graduates…and there was a definite sense of brotherhood/sisterhood on the floor of robed Engineering grads! I imagined you in that group in four years and felt happy for you! Looks like a friendly School of Engineering on the Vanderbilt campus. (those who suffer together…ha). But they did cheer together!</p>