I was accepted to both and am having trouble deciding which to choose. I’m from NJ so both are pretty local. I’m going in as undecided, so it wouldn’t necessarily matter if one school has a better program than another. I’m really big on school spirit and going to sporting games while also receiving a quality education (as most people are also looking for). Could anyone who goes to/graduated from either school give their input? Obviously anyone else is open to replying, but the first hand knowledge would be very helpful. Also, this is just a personal question, but which school is more “well known” throughout the country (like a “national university”)?. Thanks in advance!
PS - I posted this in both the Nova and Lehigh thread, so there is no “favoritism” per say.
@teenamoogan - IMO you really cannot go wrong with either one. Have you visited both and possibly stayed overnight to experience the campus life to get a feel? if not, maybe that will sway you one way or the other. Both have very good career services and have excellent job placement in this NY/NJ/PA area. Depending on the major you target or whether you are accepted into an Honors programs could help pick one over the other. In the end it usually comes down to finances. In our case our son was also accepted to both in Honors programs, and to make it even tougher the FA package difference between the two were similar. So for us it is a toss up. As for school spirit and national exposure I think Villanova has a slight edge.
If you’re big on school spirit and going to athletics games then Villanova is the clear choice; everyone on campus is excited about the basketball team every season- the pavilion as well as games at Wells Fargo Center were completely packed all season long. Villanova football also draws a pretty sizeable crowd; but not as much as basketball.
As far as academics go, it’s hard to say without knowing what you intend on majoring in. Which college were you accepted to? For Business I would say you’re better off at Villanova; VSB alumni are extremely well connected in the finance industry and the accounting program is #1 in the country in terms of number of recent alumni in prestigious high paying jobs according to LinkedIn, although Lehigh is no slouch at #4.
For Business, the academics may have a slight advantage in favor of Nova. For any hard sciences, stick to Lehigh- especially if you value research oppurtunities. I am not sure about humanities, but liberal arts courses at Nova in general were some of the most rigorous I have taken.
Overall in terms of name recognition and general perception of prestige, Lehigh probably has the edge here.