UNC-Chapel Hill or USC-Columbia? (Georgetown: 2009, headhunters, houses)

[chapelheels23]

I have a family member who may have a chance to go to either UNC or South Carolina to play golf. We are from Tennessee. Just looking to see if y'all could compare the 2 schools, or cities. Thanks for reading and for any help.

[professor_4_ever]

Originally Posted by chapelheels23

I have a family member who may have a chance to go to either UNC or South Carolina to play golf. We are from Tennessee. Just looking to see if y'all could compare the 2 schools, or cities. Thanks for reading and for any help.

It depends on your family member. What will be his/her major? UNC has a better national reputation. However, USC is a great school as well (though not as strong as UNC). I think your family member should visit both and choose based upon what fit him/her...if he likes living in Chapel-Hill or Columbia. I've lived in both and they're quite different. I think it's a matter of preference. I'm not a athlete. But, will him/her be a top player at UNC or USC. I'm not an expert at golf. But, UNC has A LOT of top players and your family member may have more "visibility" at USC...again, not sure about the specifics of golf.

Hope that helps!

[IBrakeforTailgaters]

I love USC and the part of Columbia around the university...but man, oh man, I LOVE UNC and Chapel Hill! As Professor said, both are great schools, but UNC is stronger academically. USC has some very strong programs, too (Business, Journalism, and Music pop off the top of my head). UNC has very strong programs in the same areas and maybe some more. Chapel Hill is more of a town and has that townish feel, whereas Columbia is more spread out. Chapel Hill is also quite expensive. There are more options in Columbia...though UNC is close to Durham and other more reasonably priced areas. You may have to play paper-rock-scissors on that one Good luck! I'd love to be in your family member's position!

[davey123]

I have only been to Chapel Hill once, and have only lived in Columbia for a short time. So, I am not the best to answer which city is nicer; I will leave that to other people in this forum. However, I will take a stab at the two universities. The Univerity of South Carolina is a good university; UNC-Chapel Hill is an excellent university. In fact, UNC is considered to be one of the best research universities in the nation -- and definitely one of the absolute best public universities.

Ultimately, it will depend on what you are looking for in a city and in a university -- and also on your major. If the university is the most important part of that equation, then UNC will be the better choice.

[waccamatt]

I'd look at te preferred major and also the coaching staff since those 2 areas will mold your family member for the next 4 years. I don't think they can go wrong at either school. USC has a more urban campus, but it is still very nice. UNC has a beautiful campus, as well. I would narrow it down to the personal relationships in the major and the golf program, however.

[Columbiadata]

I've never been to Chapel Hill, but I've seen beautiful photos of it. USC's campus is historic and beautiful as well and has plenty of green space within an historic and urban setting. But I agree with Waccamatt that it should be about the major and the rapport with the coaching staff first and the settings second.

[CarolinaBredChicagoan]

UNC is generally considered the better of the two schools, but I think the difference in quality is negligible, to be honest. There are some programs for which USC is better. (In fact, if your kinsman happens to be planning on majoring in international business, USC has the best program in the nation, bar none. Better than Penn, NYU, Georgetown, etc. Undergraduate business specialties: International Business - Best Colleges - Education - US News and World Report)

At the end of the day, however, it's about visiting the programs and feeling out relationships, weighing ROI, and picking the best fit. After visiting and getting into both UNC and USC for undergrad, I chose a different school, altogether, just because it felt right for me.

[Al555]

The consensus here seems to be that, while UNC is a better school than USC, the difference is minimal ("negligible" CarolinaBred Chicagoan says), and that the choice should be reduced to major, rapport with coaches, etc. Let me offer a dissenting view. I earned a PhD at USC, lived for many years near the university both as a student and then years later as a professional, and am married to a former USC professor. I also have lived in Chapel Hill. Aside from their stellar international business program, USC, in fact, compares quite unfavorably to UNC. The 2009 US News and World Report college rating ranks UNC Chapel Hill 30th in the nation. UNC obtained a ranking comparable to such schools as U of Michigan, Tufts, Brandeis, and William and Mary. USC, on the other hand, received a ranking of 108 which tied it with such acadamic powerhouses as the University of Dayton and well below, for example, the U. of Alabama which was ranked at 83.

On a purely personal note, my wife and I would not and did not send our children to USC, at least partly because of our first hand knowledge of the (in our view poor) quality of undergraduate education there. USC draws most of its students from South Carolina which, year after year, has one of the nations poorest education systems.

There is no question that the small, historic portion of the USC campus is quite beautiful. The campus as a whole, however, is not, and especially when contrasted with UNC which is widely thought to be one of the nations more attractive campuses. And, sadly, USC finds itself in the middle of downtown Columbia, a tawdry city perpetually on the edge of a revitalization that never comes. The research triangle, by contrast, is vibrant, highly educated, culturally rich, and aesthetically pleasing.

The pro-USC, pro-Columbia folks who dominate this board will no doubt take issue with my views on this issue, some of which are admittedly subjective. From my perspective, though, if your child has a choice between USC and UNC ( a school that the vast majority of USC students could never earn admission to) then they really have no choice at all. UNC would be the place to be.

[waccamatt]

Al555, your bias against the city of Columbia is evident. A tawdry city? Please. Columbia has been named the number one mid-sized college city in the country by e-podunk.com and has compared quite favorably to other cities in the region in many areas. The research triangle is a fast-growing and very nice area, but is very much one big suburban sprawl. I would much rather go to school in an active, urban area than a suburban quagmire.

[PawleysDude]

As a native of SC who lived 20+ years in NC before returning to my home state, I must agree with most of what Al555 says regarding the two universities. USC is a decent school, but if your family member has the intellectual power to handle UNC, there really is very little reason to consider anywhere else. He will be far more challenged and stimulated intellectually, and far better prepared to face the real-world prospects after graduation. The entire Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area is an attractive and exciting place to live, either for 4 years or a lifetime. Finally, he/she will find himself/herself smack in the middle of Tobacco Road basketball. Life don't get no better than that....

Of course, all you're going to get on here are subjective, biased opinions. Find yourself a few good headhunters or corporate recruiters and ask them whether they would prefer to be interviewing USC or UNC grads. I would be extremely surprised if 1 out of 10 picked USC.