Columbia or Penn?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Toured both. Personally, didn't like either. Neither did the kid.

Really wanted to like Columbia for the Core. The reality is its not a great campus. Bunch of stressed out Asian kids smoking cigarettes outside of every dorm. Did not seem like a happy campus. Seemed very stressful and miserable.

Penn wasn't much better. Nice campus though. Genuinely liked it. But Wharton, Wharton, Wharton.

And if Wall Street isn't the ambition, not quite sure what the point of Penn is.

Disagree. UPenn > Columbia
Not even close. Columbia is a depressing spot insulated in Morningside Heights.
UPenn is a vibrant community of social people, and much more than Wharton and Wall Street!

UPenn is filled to the brim with hyper-competitive strivers. If OP is looking for a kind student body, that is not the place to look. Neither is Columbia, though it is somewhat better and more diverse culturally in general.

[Anonymous]

Both are good schools.

I would not pay for my DC to attend ColumbiaU, but *only* because the Columbia campus is surrounded by unsafe areas of NYC. Very unlucky if one’s car were to get a flat tire in that part of NYC.

The area around Penn is not ideal from a safety perspective, but it is visibly safer than just outside Columbia. This is partly because Penn is buying up adjacent off-campus land and redeveloping it, which pushes some of the violent crime a few blocks further away.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Both are good schools.

I would not pay for my DC to attend ColumbiaU, but *only* because the Columbia campus is surrounded by unsafe areas of NYC. Very unlucky if one’s car were to get a flat tire in that part of NYC.

The area around Penn is not ideal from a safety perspective, but it is visibly safer than just outside Columbia. This is partly because Penn is buying up adjacent off-campus land and redeveloping it, which pushes some of the violent crime a few blocks further away.

This backhanded compliment makes Penn’s surroundings sound much more dangerous than they are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Both are good schools.

I would not pay for my DC to attend ColumbiaU, but *only* because the Columbia campus is surrounded by unsafe areas of NYC. Very unlucky if one’s car were to get a flat tire in that part of NYC.

The area around Penn is not ideal from a safety perspective, but it is visibly safer than just outside Columbia. This is partly because Penn is buying up adjacent off-campus land and redeveloping it, which pushes some of the violent crime a few blocks further away.

The Upper West Side, which is south of Morningside Heights, is not an unsafe area of NYC, and there's a very steep park between Morningside Heights and increasingly gentrified Harlem. I never felt unsafe in Morningside Heights, because there were always so many people around. If you got a flat tire in Morningside Heights, you'd be just fine.

Can't really speak to Penn, other than to know that in general NYC has fared much better over the years than Philadelphia.

[Anonymous]

My son did not like Penn, but he did really like Columbia.
Ultimately he loved Northwestern and he did ED and got in.

[Anonymous]

If he likes Columbia, tour U Chicago too.
They have the core curriculum as well.
Beautiful campus in Hyde park, 20 minutes from downtown, and slightly easier to get in than Columbia.

[Anonymous]

Penn has the special program where you can get an undergrad and grad degree in engineering in 5 years, forgot what it was called.

I don't think I would spend the money on either school though given how much bad press they have gotten.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Both are good schools.

I would not pay for my DC to attend ColumbiaU, but *only* because the Columbia campus is surrounded by unsafe areas of NYC. Very unlucky if one’s car were to get a flat tire in that part of NYC.

The area around Penn is not ideal from a safety perspective, but it is visibly safer than just outside Columbia. This is partly because Penn is buying up adjacent off-campus land and redeveloping it, which pushes some of the violent crime a few blocks further away.

Very few students drive in NYC. Students get around by subways, buses, Ubers, bikes...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Penn has the special program where you can get an undergrad and grad degree in engineering in 5 years, forgot what it was called.

I don't think I would spend the money on either school though given how much bad press they have gotten.

Many parents would drink the poison to get their kids in at Columbia.

[Anonymous]

They both have nice campuses and are excellent schools. If your kid has the stats to get in, have them do some research and select one based on perceived fit. They are similar in some ways but also very different. Most people either love or hate the idea of NYC.

[Anonymous]

I went to law school at Penn, so I didn’t have the undergrad experience, but the campus is lovely and University City is vibrant and safe. Drexel is immediately adjacent so lots of students around at all times. Philly is also a fun (and affordable!) place to be a student. If your son is interested in an urban campus, I don’t think there are many places that are better in that respect.

I now live in NYC and don’t have any connection to Columbia, but from what I know I’d pick Penn if you have a choice. Columbia’s location is okay (also safe, I wouldn’t worry about that) but the whole experience seems kind of sad. I wouldn’t mind it for grad school, but there are more fun places to be an undergrad. Penn included.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to law school at Penn, so I didn’t have the undergrad experience, but the campus is lovely and University City is vibrant and safe. Drexel is immediately adjacent so lots of students around at all times. Philly is also a fun (and affordable!) place to be a student. If your son is interested in an urban campus, I don’t think there are many places that are better in that respect.

I now live in NYC and don’t have any connection to Columbia, but from what I know I’d pick Penn if you have a choice. Columbia’s location is okay (also safe, I wouldn’t worry about that) but the whole experience seems kind of sad. I wouldn’t mind it for grad school, but there are more fun places to be an undergrad. Penn included.

Why do you think it is a sad experience? I went to Columbia and loved it. It was intense but I enjoyed all 4 years.

[Anonymous]

Columbia diplomas are devalued by all the admits from the general studies college program and the excessive masters programs that will admit virtually anyone. They have ruined the brand.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Columbia diplomas are devalued by all the admits from the general studies college program and the excessive masters programs that will admit virtually anyone. They have ruined the brand.

As opposed to Penn’s most famous graduate: Donald J Trump.

“Columbia admits adults” gives the game away, does anyone really believe the true measure of a school is how picky they are about which 17 year olds attend and nothing else matters?

Really this all comes down to “do you want to live in Philly or NYC” and “is the Core Curriculum for you.” They are both excellent schools with strong alumni networks.

I for sure would love to meet the student who is supremely confident they can get into both of these schools that admit 5% of applicants and thinks they actually get to choose.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Columbia diplomas are devalued by all the admits from the general studies college program and the excessive masters programs that will admit virtually anyone. They have ruined the brand.

Why don’t you try and convince The NY Times, NPR, Wash Post, CNN, etc of this because they seem to use Columbia faculty all the time as experts? They don’t seem to be aware that the brand has been ruined