I posted this in the GS forum too but decided to add it here as well.
This post is intended to provide information to others who have been accepted to both programs, or are considering applying to both. I applied to both schools by the October 1st 2016 early decision deadline. I heard back from Penn LPS first then was accepted to Columbia Gs almost 2 weeks later. I knew I had a big decision to make but neither school is known for being particularly forthcoming with the credit transfer process, or financial aid information, until well into your first semester. The only way I could weigh every pro and con to each school would be to defer admission, which was time I was not willing to waste. Instead I poured through several articles regarding each school and looked to forums such as this to try to make as informed decision as possible. In the end I chose UPenn LPS, here is why:
The Campus:
It goes without saying that UPenn has one of the most attractive campuses out there. One reason I applied to both schools is because of the campus feel while still being in close proximity to a city. I visited both schools and the Penn campus was far more appealing to me. This feeling is mostly intuitive and may vary depending on the person. After living in New York for about 8 years I am excited to be attending my last 2 years of school in a somewhat calmer setting.
The Diploma:
I would be happy with any diploma really, but the fact that Penn provides an identical diploma to its non-traditional students is a good feeling. I have read several articles about the Columbia GS diploma, many students have fought to change the writing to Latin like the Columbia College diploma so it will look more similar to the traditional. The dean of the school released a statement denying the motion to do so. Columbia GS claims to pride itself of providing the same rigorous Ivy League experience to its non-traditional students as they take classes alongside traditional students. So why the snobbery about the diploma? Doesn’t a student who takes the exact same classes as another deserve the same diploma?
Nickels and Dimes:
The cost of accepting my admissions offer from Penn was $0.00 while a deposit of $500.00 was needed for Columbia. Penn lists all additional fees in the same place as tuition on their website so a student knows exactly what they should expect to pay per semester. In contrast, Columbia includes a list of several fees but does not state the price of those fees. I have read many articles about extreme sticker shock once GS’ers actually realized they would be paying.
The Community/Culture:
The culture of Columbia, according to articles I have read, is very much one of taking pride in being stressed out. Students compare themselves to others according to how much they can take on at once. Students are also known to start aggressively going for internships in their freshman year of college. To each their own, but this is not the type of academic environment I think I would best thrive in. While Penn is competitive in it’s own right the pace of Philly is much slower than that of New York. Unlike Columbia, Penn is not a commuter school so there is more of a sense of community which is helpful in staving off stress.
The Core Curriculum:
This was probably the most important deciding factor of my decision. Penn provides a broader range of courses that satisfy the core, while Columbia has very specific curriculum demands. I strongly believe that EVERY student should go through the core curriculum and imagine which classes they would sign up for each semester. All Ivies are not created differently and there are many lists available online that highlight the different approaches taken with core curriculums of these schools.
Tuition and Financial Aid:
Both schools will readily inform you of the lack of funds for LPS and GS students. Both universities are need-blind, but not when it comes to GS and LPS. So it all comes down to the funding available at each school. GS always offers some small scholarship that is said to increase as you perform well. What they don’t tell you (and I have read several accounts of this from GS students) is that the difference between a 3.5 and a 4.0 is only about $2000.00 in aid money. One advantage of LPS is that it takes the lack of aid into consideration and cuts tuition in half for LPS students. I have also read several accounts of people having between 60% and 90% of their tuition covered by school funds. LPS also offers scholarships that are exclusive to LPS. I anticipate graduating GS with about 120K in debt vs the 40-60K range I would expect to be the maximum for Penn. Even though GS will likely transfer 60 of my community college credits, it would be cheaper for me to spend an extra year at Penn then to rush through Columbia. In many respects Columbia has its advantages, but in no regard is it twice as nice as Penn so I can’t justify paying double.
At the end of the day, both Universities are in the top 10 of almost any list out there. I feel fortunate to have been accepted to both, and I knew I would be happy with whatever decision I ultimately made. Each person has to choose what is right for themselves. I do not intend to persuade one way or another with this post, I just wanted to provide some insight into my personal choice. Happy hunting!