If not NYU or Columbia

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My D. went to NYU and lasted one semester thinking she wanted the city experience, boy was she wrong (I however was not surprised).

She is now at an excellent school in a typical college setting and having the time of your life. Someone told me that NYU has a very high number of kids that leave within their first year, she did not at all like the experience or student body.

Bottom line make sure you do your research.

About 88% of the kids eventually graduate vs. about 90% at a place like Michigan. NYU works great if you are the RIGHT person for it. My sister was totally independent and a self starter so it was great for her. In fact, she has never left NYC. But you have to be that type of person.

[Anonymous]

This is OP. Thanks for the info. Dd has not been to NYC since she was 11 and has limited city living experience (we are in Loudoun if that says anything...) but is sure she wants a big city with Ny being at the top of her list. She's very independent, but I'm a bit apprehensive about her going from suburbia x 1000 to a huge city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - does it have to be NYC? My DD thought she really wanted NYU, but ended up choosing Northeastern in Boston over it in the end. She wanted an urban setting, but then realized that NYU may be too urban and not enough traditional college experience. Northeastern is right in Boston, but has an actual campus and Div 1 sports (detail, but can make a difference in the school spirit experience). Boston is such a great college town and yet it is smaller and more manageable than NYC. She has found that many of her classmates also originally wanted NYU, but ended up choosing Northeastern. Also, if Northeastern is not for her there are still tons of other great schools in Boston that she should consider.

She should also consider schools in Philadelphia and Chicago. Great cities with some great schools. As I told my DD, save NYC for graduate school.

Just a thought - Northwestern is a great school that's right outside Chicago, and Evanston itself has an urban feel.

For OP's daughter, with her stats, Boston University might make more sense than a Northeastern or Temple.

"Evanston itself has an urban feel" - in a Bethesda sort of way.

[Anonymous]

Fordham is a good bet. Also check out urban schools in other cities, such as Boston U., Drexel, GWU or Emory.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - does it have to be NYC? My DD thought she really wanted NYU, but ended up choosing Northeastern in Boston over it in the end. She wanted an urban setting, but then realized that NYU may be too urban and not enough traditional college experience. Northeastern is right in Boston, but has an actual campus and Div 1 sports (detail, but can make a difference in the school spirit experience). Boston is such a great college town and yet it is smaller and more manageable than NYC. She has found that many of her classmates also originally wanted NYU, but ended up choosing Northeastern. Also, if Northeastern is not for her there are still tons of other great schools in Boston that she should consider.

She should also consider schools in Philadelphia and Chicago. Great cities with some great schools. As I told my DD, save NYC for graduate school.

Just a thought - Northwestern is a great school that's right outside Chicago, and Evanston itself has an urban feel.

For OP's daughter, with her stats, Boston University might make more sense than a Northeastern or Temple.

"Evanston itself has an urban feel" - in a Bethesda sort of way.

Evanston is older, bigger and more diverse than Bethesda, so it basically knocks it out of the water when it comes to having an urban texture - and you're also a short distance from Chicago, which is a far more interesting city than DC.

[Anonymous]

We just went through this same choice with DD who had slightly higher stats.

First, Fordham has two campuses. One at is at Rose Hill in a walled off community in the Bronx. It is not the suburbs by any stretch of the imagination. It is 100% NYC, just not Manhattan. Fordham's other campus is in Manhattan right at Lincoln Center around Columbus Circle. This campus is more Manhattan than NYU. You could quite literally spend an entire semester there without ever setting foot outside. It is an urban vertical campus with an unbelievable new freshman dorm building also attached to the other ones. Security is tight to get "on campus."

Fordham is Jesuit, but that is reflected more in the rigorous core curriculum than any religious atmosphere. The Rose Hill campus feels very traditional and some kids like that. The LC campus has a lot more quirky kids including a lot in the arts. The respected Gabelli business school is now on both campuses. The LC campus feels pretty confined though. It is small. The benefit to going there is your quad is Central Park and the city is the campus. You have to apply to one or the other campus depending on what your major is.

There is a noticeable difference between the Fordham students and the NYU students and the Columbia students, though, and oh, and especially the Barnard students. DD was not feeling the Barnard students at all. She did not want the same sex experience and was not as impressed by the proximity to Columbia as so many seem to be. We visited them all and NYU was the only school in NYC where she could see herself, not counting Columbia, which she didn't apply to, but seemed to like.

Out of time to continue...but there is more about most of the other East Coast urban schools,too!

[Anonymous]

REALLY look at these schools. My D thought she wanted this big city experience too, we visited Columbia, NYU and Fordham and not only did she realize she did not want to attend any of them, we cut our trip one day short!
It was overwhelming, dirty, noisy and crowded. There was zero indication you were on a "college campus" and that was the biggest surprise to her.

Fordham is not in a very good location and frankly i would not have felt comfortable sending her there. NYU was the least interesting to her and is for a very specific kind of kid, be sure your kid is that kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We just went through this same choice with DD who had slightly higher stats.

First, Fordham has two campuses. One at is at Rose Hill in a walled off community in the Bronx. It is not the suburbs by any stretch of the imagination. It is 100% NYC, just not Manhattan. Fordham's other campus is in Manhattan right at Lincoln Center around Columbus Circle. This campus is more Manhattan than NYU. You could quite literally spend an entire semester there without ever setting foot outside. It is an urban vertical campus with an unbelievable new freshman dorm building also attached to the other ones. Security is tight to get "on campus."

Fordham is Jesuit, but that is reflected more in the rigorous core curriculum than any religious atmosphere. The Rose Hill campus feels very traditional and some kids like that. The LC campus has a lot more quirky kids including a lot in the arts. The respected Gabelli business school is now on both campuses. The LC campus feels pretty confined though. It is small. The benefit to going there is your quad is Central Park and the city is the campus. You have to apply to one or the other campus depending on what your major is.

There is a noticeable difference between the Fordham students and the NYU students and the Columbia students, though, and oh, and especially the Barnard students. DD was not feeling the Barnard students at all. She did not want the same sex experience and was not as impressed by the proximity to Columbia as so many seem to be. We visited them all and NYU was the only school in NYC where she could see herself, not counting Columbia, which she didn't apply to, but seemed to like.

Out of time to continue...but there is more about most of the other East Coast urban schools,too!

I am not sure how respected the Gabelli business school can be when Gabelli had a very chequered history with securities regulators. Better than the "Bernie Madoff School of Business," but even so....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:REALLY look at these schools. My D thought she wanted this big city experience too, we visited Columbia, NYU and Fordham and not only did she realize she did not want to attend any of them, we cut our trip one day short!
It was overwhelming, dirty, noisy and crowded. There was zero indication you were on a "college campus" and that was the biggest surprise to her.

Fordham is not in a very good location and frankly i would not have felt comfortable sending her there. NYU was the least interesting to her and is for a very specific kind of kid, be sure your kid is that kid.

I think this review is helpful if you/your kid thinks he/she wants a big city experience, but doesn't really like big cities and needs to be disabused of that notion.

There may be urban schools that have larger campuses, but they often are islands in the midst of areas far more dangerous than Greenwich Village or Morningside Heights.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - does it have to be NYC? My DD thought she really wanted NYU, but ended up choosing Northeastern in Boston over it in the end. She wanted an urban setting, but then realized that NYU may be too urban and not enough traditional college experience. Northeastern is right in Boston, but has an actual campus and Div 1 sports (detail, but can make a difference in the school spirit experience). Boston is such a great college town and yet it is smaller and more manageable than NYC. She has found that many of her classmates also originally wanted NYU, but ended up choosing Northeastern. Also, if Northeastern is not for her there are still tons of other great schools in Boston that she should consider.

She should also consider schools in Philadelphia and Chicago. Great cities with some great schools. As I told my DD, save NYC for graduate school.

Just a thought - Northwestern is a great school that's right outside Chicago, and Evanston itself has an urban feel.

For OP's daughter, with her stats, Boston University might make more sense than a Northeastern or Temple.

"Evanston itself has an urban feel" - in a Bethesda sort of way.

Evanston is older, bigger and more diverse than Bethesda, so it basically knocks it out of the water when it comes to having an urban texture - and you're also a short distance from Chicago, which is a far more interesting city than DC.

+1. Northwestern is definitely on DC's list when the time comes.

[Anonymous]

Fordham accepts 42.9% of its applicants. It sounds like your child could aim for something higher OP. Fordham is for middle of the road students.

[Anonymous]

Fordham accepts 42.9% of its applicants. It sounds like your child could aim for something higher OP. Fordham is for middle of the road students.

Nothing wrong with checking out a few safeties.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Fordham accepts 42.9% of its applicants. It sounds like your child could aim for something higher OP. Fordham is for middle of the road students.

DCUM is for middle of the road adults.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Fordham accepts 42.9% of its applicants. It sounds like your child could aim for something higher OP. Fordham is for middle of the road students.

Nothing wrong with checking out a few safeties.

Exactly. Fordham is a common safety school - that's why it accepts so many students and it's yield is so low. But that does not mean its a good school for the right kid. Fit matters!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We just went through this same choice with DD who had slightly higher stats.

First, Fordham has two campuses. One at is at Rose Hill in a walled off community in the Bronx. It is not the suburbs by any stretch of the imagination. It is 100% NYC, just not Manhattan. Fordham's other campus is in Manhattan right at Lincoln Center around Columbus Circle. This campus is more Manhattan than NYU. You could quite literally spend an entire semester there without ever setting foot outside. It is an urban vertical campus with an unbelievable new freshman dorm building also attached to the other ones. Security is tight to get "on campus."

Fordham is Jesuit, but that is reflected more in the rigorous core curriculum than any religious atmosphere. The Rose Hill campus feels very traditional and some kids like that. The LC campus has a lot more quirky kids including a lot in the arts. The respected Gabelli business school is now on both campuses. The LC campus feels pretty confined though. It is small. The benefit to going there is your quad is Central Park and the city is the campus. You have to apply to one or the other campus depending on what your major is.

There is a noticeable difference between the Fordham students and the NYU students and the Columbia students, though, and oh, and especially the Barnard students. DD was not feeling the Barnard students at all. She did not want the same sex experience and was not as impressed by the proximity to Columbia as so many seem to be. We visited them all and NYU was the only school in NYC where she could see herself, not counting Columbia, which she didn't apply to, but seemed to like.

Out of time to continue...but there is more about most of the other East Coast urban schools,too!

I am not sure how respected the Gabelli business school can be when Gabelli had a very chequered history with securities regulators. Better than the "Bernie Madoff School of Business," but even so....

Gabelli is well-respected in NYC. It is no Stern, but Businessweek ranks it #40 in the USA - higher than Smith ( Maryland) by the way.