<p>Even though I am looking at very elite schools (Columbia, Harvard, Brown, Gtown, etc), I am also looking to broaden my range of safeties. I live in Massachusetts, not Florida, but I have always loved Florida and have frequently visited throughout my life. So, using the criteria below, what are the best schools in Florida:</p>
<p>1) Academics (especially in regards to a premed major)
2) Location - I would love a school near Walt Disney World and Universal Studios, as opposed to a school on the beach.
3) Student Body/Social Scene - I do not want an obcene party scene. Frequent parties are no problem, but if the school is rowdy and very unintellectual, it is not for me.</p>
<p>the best public schools in Florida are the University of Florida and Florida State University. The best private school is probably the University of Miami.</p>
<p>HOWEVER, these schools are crazy party schools and from your description, I don’t think you would feel comfortable at these schools (UF #1 party school according to Princeton Review, FSU is also up in the top 20, UMiami is #1 party school according to Playboy)</p>
<p>Check out New College of Florida. It is small, it isn’t rowdy, it doesn’t have athletics, it is appropriate for free-spirited intellectuals, it is near an airport in Sarasota and is a sleeper college where one can get a sound education. [New</a> College of Florida](<a href=“http://www.ncf.edu/]New”>http://www.ncf.edu/)</p>
<p>oh yeah I forgot about NCF, I’d highly recommend New College Of Florida if you are looking for a non-party school in Florida. It’s on the water though but it’s a small college which graduates many people who end up getting PhD’s</p>
<p>Since you are looking at elite schools, UCF would be below a safety school for you, a school like Florida State would be an appropriate safety school. UCF is a good school but I think you can do “better” than that especially if you are out-of-state.</p>
<p>Flagler College is a great school in St. Augustine. It’s very beautiful and would be right there for the top campus in the US. It’s right by the beach and the campus use to be a hotel. Rollins College would also be a good fit. Both these schools are private and Flagler is a GREAT deal money wise. It’s 20k with everything included. USF may also be a good safety.</p>
<p>Two flagship public universities: Florida State and Florida. U Miami is the top private U. The rest are either quite small and/or specialized, on the order of a LAC.</p>
<p>Unless you are talking about a specialized field such as architecture, the one school in the state that frequently shows up in rankings and discussions of the country’s best schools is New College of Florida. </p>
<p>Heck, if you want to go to college in a resort state, there are more good choices in California. I hear they have one of those Walt Disney places there, too.</p>
<p>As an OOS, with merit money, UMiami is a better value than the state schools…small class sizes, better scheduling, a cosmopolitan city with countless non-party thngs to do. Pre-med is a real specialty there. The state U’s are looking to fund budget shortfalls with OOS tuition, be sure you check out the costs for OOS closely.</p>
<p>Just because a school is named #1 party school doesn’t mean that have to party all the time if you go there. I went to maybe 1-2 parties a year throughout my entire stay at UF. It’s a big enough school that you’ll find all kinds of people there. I was one of those people you’d see in the lab at midnight on a Friday, and rarely was I the only person in the building at the time.</p>
<p>Anyway, I’m not sure what the OP likes specifically about Florida but there are definitely no beaches near UF, though the nature is great. Orlando (and Disney) is about a 1-1.5 hour drive. Since the OP is interested in premed, Shands is a very large medical complex.</p>
<p>good points gthopeful, another thing to consider is how much “partying” affects you, some people are disgruntled and unhappy because everyone around them seems to be partying, however other people like you are perfectly fine with not partying 24/7 and perhaps being in the perceived “minority”</p>
<p>It all depends what type of person you are.</p>
<p>gthopeful, that was one of the saddest posts i’ve ever read on this site…there is absolutely no reason to be sitting in a lab at midnight on a Friday night in Gainesville. college is only 4 years (hopefully haha)! enjoy it!!!</p>
<p>This will quickly devolve into a debate of philosophies, but I don’t think there’s much to party about in college as you still have your whole life ahead of you and you haven’t done much with your life. I chose to work hard and so far it’s turned out pretty well: I’ve landed a position in the #1 lab in my interest area and hopefully it will translate to a good R&D job in a few years.</p>
<p>that’s the attitude that unfortunately not all college students have.</p>
<p>On my roommate survey for my housing application, I was asked if I was “academically focused” or “socially focused” . I thought this was a stupid question since I’m paying $30,000+ to get an education/career not a social life…</p>
<p>fsu and uf have honors college program which has some of the best teachers in the usa and very small classes. So it may be a party school but the student makes it the party school or just a regular school, so it’s your choice because there will be partys everywhere you go.</p>
<p>I’m quite biased, but my alma matre is Jacksonville University. I absolutely loved that school. Small college in a big city. It was a big change from the University of Iowa where I spent my first two years. Loved the smaller classes, great campus, great city, great seafood, and you can get your pilot’s license from the school. Can’t beat it.</p>