I’ve got my college choices pretty narrowed down (although I’m only entering Junior year so there’s a chance it could change) and BostonU is one of my top choices.
I’m planning on majoring in one of the biological sciences, as well as possibly double majoring in astronomy. I love the major choices BU offers and wanting to eventually have a career in the medical field or combining astronomy to become an astrobiologist, I know the Boston area is fantastic for the biology field. Strong academics, opportunities, location… that’s what I love about BU.
I would like to know anyone’s personal opinion of the school, academic wise and campus/ social wise.
My ultimate goal would to either be an astrobiologist or medical scientist (still toying with which one I like more, which is why I’m thinking about double majoring in both fields to leave it open to either) with plans on working at NASA as an astronaut ( this would be THE dream )
With this in mind I want a college that will ensure I’ve got enough opportunities to further pursue all of my dreams. I toured Case Western a few months ago and loved it and from what I understand it’s kind of the same feel, urban research university.
Anyways, any tips about any aspect of BU would be very appreciated. Thank you!
Clearly plenty of people like it: BU is the biggest private university in the US. One of the biggest “criticisms” (in quotation marks, because this doesn’t bother a lot of students) is the lack of a well defined campus, with some classrooms, offices and housing scattered around the city. Between this fact, and the huge number of undergraduates (almost 18,000) to some students BU seems a bit impersonal.
Actually, it looks like we’re both wrong, @Corbett – looking at on-campus undergards, it’s BYU by a long shot. (more than 30,000 undergrads) – with BU in 5th place.
Another urban school that might be good for both astronomy and medicine would be Johns Hopkins. JHU is world famous for biomedical research, and the main (Homewood) campus also has the Space Telescope Science Institute.
In addition, JHU has the Applied Physics Lab (APL), which builds and operates NASA space probes, most recently the New Horizons mission to Pluto. However, APL isn’t at Homewood; it’s located in the suburbs between Baltimore and DC.
I was looking at total enrollment (including graduate and professional students). For undergraduates only, yes, the biggest would probably be BYU-Provo.
Solid school across the board. Lots of top professors are drawn to the Boston area so that they and/or their spouses can teach at a variety of excellent colleges & collaborate with an incredible array of scholars. Boston is indeed the Disneyland of higher education…top university in the world, top scientific college in the world, top Women’s college in the world, increasingly the top Catholic education center outside of Rome, perhaps the top cluster of music schools in the country, etc. And BU holds a solid & respectable place in this most competitive of higher education landscapes.
BU’s administration has long been know to be atrocious. They can’t get anything right, nor do they care. Warren Towers, their freshman dorm, doesn’t even have air conditioning and their tuition is so high. Someone at the Visitors Center told us to get off at a subway stop that was further than another stop. I have other stories, but you get the idea. The professors are good, but everyone knows the administration and their staff are incompetent.
@JessiesGirl From your posting history you are the parent of a student who is not even a student at Boston University. You are basing your insulting post on hearsay or your own imagination.
So in your uninformed opinion you are condemning a lot of hard working people off hand.
I don’t felt good in open house, I don’t felt passion, perhaps not good tour guides.
I know have strong academics.I don’t like the campus, is a lot of buildings along Commonwealth ave.
I recommend you attend open house.
For your mayor is a good option.
@JessiesGirl almost none of the dorms have air conditioning… I fail to see how that information helps OP understand the quality of education being received. BU is not for everyone, but it is certainly the right fit for many. It depends on a lot more than what you can see from just tours/info meetings/anecdotes.
Hi, definitely a late response for this but I am a current freshman and I love it! Academically it’s been challenging but definitely do-able so far if you put in the effort. I’ve made a few good friends so far and it’s just a really fun environment. If you have any other questions feel free to reach out!
@sunflowerlover The food is really good! I live in East Campus so I have 3 main dining spots to choose from. There’s always something good to eat, I have no complaints besides that the dining hall food isn’t GREAT on weekends.
@JessiesGirl@romns116 Harvard doesn’t have AC either. Boston/Cambridge isn’t the Gulf Coast. Students complain but it only matters for a couple months.
Thank you @Sportsman88! I didn’t know that about Harvard. I know climate in the NE is much different from TX, hopefully we’ll visit as the time draws near. Esp since Syracuse is also on my son’s list (yikes).
