Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
This is what Wikapedia had to say about both:
Chicago:
Quote:
Since the 1890s, Chicago has been a world center in higher education and research. Six universities in or immediately adjoining the city - the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, DePaul University, University of Illinois Chicago, Loyola University Chicago, and the Illinois Institute of Technology - are ranked among some of the top educational institutions in the United States.
Philly:
Quote:
Philadelphia is one of the largest college towns in the United States and has the second-largest student concentration on the East Coast with over 120,000 college and university students enrolled within the city and nearly 300,000 in the metropolitan area. There are over 80 colleges, universities, trade, and specialty schools in the Philadelphia region. The city contains three major research universities: the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University, and Temple University.
Its all in the WORDING.They use specifics using numbers in mentioning Philly.Chicago,they just say "one of the top".Well Chicago is a city that should place in the top.Its a major WORLD CITY.Philly is not even half the size of CHICAGO!
It seems Philly has a lot more students which means it would have more institution.Its about quality and accessability.The same ranking some of you that profess so much faith in also say that Philly has more in the top Liberal Arts colleges than any city in North America other than Boston.By FAR.There is no way anyone who knew anything about higher education in each city would pick Chicago or even my beloved Atlanta over Philadelphia.Philadelphia was founded in 1662 for crying out loud!!Many of its schools predate the existence of Chicago(1837).The oldest city in Chicago is Saint Xavier.It was not even founded until 1848! Northwestern U. which its main campus is in the suburbs of Chicago is the second oldest.it was not founded until 1851.
Come on people who are voting for Chicago,lets be truthful.Im sorry Chicago is great but its no contest.Philly easily wins hands down.I agree with the poster that Ivy League does not always mean the best,but overall Philly has many smaller colleges that no other city except Boston can match.I gotta give Philly props on that.
Now if this were skyline competition....CHICAGO blows the pants off Philly!
This is what Wikapedia had to say about both:
Chicago:
Philly:
Its all in the WORDING.They use specifics using numbers in mentioning Philly.Chicago,they just say "one of the top".Well Chicago is a city that should place in the top.Its a major WORLD CITY.Philly is not even half the size of CHICAGO!
It seems Philly has a lot more students which means it would have more institution.Its about quality and accessability.The same ranking some of you that profess so much faith in also say that Philly has more in the top Liberal Arts colleges than any city in North America other than Boston.By FAR.There is no way anyone who knew anything about higher education in each city would pick Chicago or even my beloved Atlanta over Philadelphia.Philadelphia was founded in 1662 for crying out loud!!Many of its schools predate the existence of Chicago(1837).The oldest city in Chicago is Saint Xavier.It was not even founded until 1848! Northwestern U. which its main campus is in the suburbs of Chicago is the second oldest.it was not founded until 1851.
Come on people who are voting for Chicago,lets be truthful.Im sorry Chicago is great but its no contest.Philly easily wins hands down.I agree with the poster that Ivy League does not always mean the best,but overall Philly has many smaller colleges that no other city except Boston can match.I gotta give Philly props on that.
Now if this were skyline competition....CHICAGO blows the pants off Philly!
This is true, Chicago does not have the sheer number of highly rated and historically important institutions that Philadelphia has.
Yes, because the criteria is by sheer number or per capita of "highly ratedness" or historical importance.
The topic asked for which city has the best institutions of higher education without much specificity. If we take the best to mean its current-day impact or how acclaimed its top-ranking institutions are (Drexel and Temple are nowhere near the caliber of UPenn, UofC, or Northwestern), then Chicago is certainly the better choice. Having a greater number of colleges and universities is a separate criteria altogether.
But Chicago has the University of Chicago in its city limits. Honestly I think too much emphasis is placed on the label of "Ivy League". Ivy League is northeast exclusive and just because Harvard, Princeton, and Yale are in the list doesn't make all 7 schools automatically better than everywhere else. For example Stanford and the University of Chicago are arguably far more prestigious schools than Brown, Cornell, and perhaps Upenn despite not being part of the Ivy League.
For a few of them, sure, in the case of Princeton, Penn.. they are tops and should get higher rankings. Clearly you are undervaluing what the ivy league or the few top schools get you over the bottom. I.E. it is generally said not to even bother unless you get into a T14 law school, Top few business schools, Top few philosophy schools, the list goes on. Not to mention all the liberal arts strong undergrad institutions in Philadelphia.
I voted for Philadelphia, it is probably 2nd only to Boston.
I'm surprised Chicago is winning this one.
This is true, Chicago does not have the sheer number of highly rated and historically important institutions that Philadelphia has.
1. Looking at the Top 25 national universities ranking...
Chicago has 2: University of Chicago (#8) and Northwestern University (#12)
Philadelphia has 1: University of Pennsylvania (#6)
2. Looking at the Top 130 national universities ranking...
Chicago has a total of 4: University of Chicago (#8), Northwestern University (#12), Illinois Institute of Technology (#102), and Loyola University of Chicago (#116)
Philadelphia has a total of 2: University of Pennsylvania (#6) and Drexel (#89)
What makes Philadelphia so competitive are UPenn combined with a trio of very prestigious liberal arts college (Swarthmore, Bryn Mawr, and Haverford) which generally don't show on these national rankings lists. Even with that though, my vote's still with Chicago.
I think, to clarify, if you are basing your vote off which city has the most larger, nationally-regarded universities, then Chicago appears to be the better choice. However, when you include smaller liberal arts colleges and speciality schools (i.e., arts, music, medicine), the Philadelphia area is the clear choice.
"According to the 1997-1998 study by the United States Department of Education, the Philadelphia region has the second largest number of colleges in the nation. Within the five-county region there are more than 50 colleges and universities. Top schools include The Art Institute of Philadelphia, Arcadia University, Bryn Mawr College, Chestnut Hill College, Drexel University, Haverford College, La Salle University, Moore College of Art and Design, Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science, Philadelphia University, Rosemont College, St. Joseph's University, Swarthmore College, Temple University, Thomas Jefferson University, University of the Arts, the University of Pennsylvania, Villanova University and Widener University."
I think, to clarify, if you are basing your vote off which city has the most larger, nationally-regarded universities, then Chicago appears to be the better choice. However, when you include smaller liberal arts colleges and speciality schools (i.e., arts, music, medicine), the Philadelphia area is the clear choice.
"According to the 1997-1998 study by the United States Department of Education, the Philadelphia region has the second largest number of colleges in the nation. Within the five-county region there are more than 50 colleges and universities. Top schools include The Art Institute of Philadelphia, Arcadia University, Bryn Mawr College, Chestnut Hill College, Drexel University, Haverford College, La Salle University, Moore College of Art and Design, Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science, Philadelphia University, Rosemont College, St. Joseph's University, Swarthmore College, Temple University, Thomas Jefferson University, University of the Arts, the University of Pennsylvania, Villanova University and Widener University."
1.) Wikipedia includes community colleges as well, while the source I provided is simply based on private and public colleges and universities -- no community colleges included.
2.) How many colleges do you believe have opened up/closed in the past 11 years in both areas? It's a pretty valuable figure, and colleges/universities don't just tend to open up/close overnight.
I also wanted to clarify that the "second highest concentration of colleges in the country" figure is not simply based on the amount of colleges/universities overall, but simply a measure of the number of these institutions in a specified area -- or a per capita measurement.
In other words, while it may be true that the Chicago area has more colleges (if one counts junior colleges) than the Philadelphia area (Southeastern Pennsylvania segment, based on the figure I provided), that does not mean it has a higher concentration. There's simply a much greater land area and population in Chicagoland than there is in the Philadelphia and its for 4 PA "collar counties," which explains how that figure is derived.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
