“Where?”
“Is that a community college?”
“I’ve never heard of it.”
“Emory?”
These are some of the many responses I got my senior year of high school when I told people I chose to attend Emerson College in the fall. No one at my school seemed to have any knowledge of the school I was going to, but why? I knew I had picked it over other schools, such as UC Berkeley and UC Santa Barbara in sunny California, for very valid reasons that not many recognized. I don’t regret it in any way, and here are a few reasons why:
1. According to U.S. News, it’s ranked #13 Best Regional University of the North
If one of your worries was that Emerson might offer a great education because of its lack of fame, then you may start getting sleep again. Emerson is very focused on the areas of communication and arts, and it’s good at what it teaches.
2. Location, location, location!
How many times have you heard that during your college search? Probably many, many times. I lived in one of the biggest cities in the world and I also lived in the suburbs of Southern California, and I just needed a balance. Boston is an urban city where you can get just about anything you may need, but also small enough that you can walk to the other side of the city without complications. Also, I still think it’s great that it’s a college city. There are so many people from all over the world who come to Boston to get an education, and it gives us a great opportunity to get to know people from places and of backgrounds we may have never had the chance to get familiarized with.
3. It’s the #1 LGBT friendly school in the nation
I wanted to go to a school that would give me a valuable education, but I placed a lot of importance in going to a school that would be a good home to me. I’m not a part of the LGBT community, but it just indicated to me that the Emersonian community is very accepting of people of all sorts. This isn’t limited to sexuality, but also of culture, other personal preferences, and the many unique quirks of the students here.
4. Our award show is an award-winner
The EVVY Awards is prepared and performed by Emerson students to award Emersonians for a job well done in their respective fields, and this awards show has been awarded two national Telly Awards and a National Association of College Broadcaster award. Did I also mention that it’s the largest student-run production multi-camera award show in the nation? Well, now you know.
5. The list of alumni is impressive
Here’s a list of some alumni you may recognize: Jay Leno (Tonight Show), Bobbi Brown (make-up artist), Sam Presti (general major of Oklahoma City Thunder), Kevin Bright (producer of Friends), Vin Di Bona (producer of America’s Funniest Home Videos), Kate Boutilier (screenwriter for Rugrats), Alex Tse (screenwriter for Watchmen), Eric Drysdale (writer and Emmy Award winner for The Colbert Report), Jeremiah Zagar (2010 Emmy Award nominee for In a Dream), Seth Grahame-Smith (author of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter), Jennifer Coolidge (actress, a.k.a. Stifler’s mom).
I could go on a much longer list, but I’ve already made a solid point. Cheers for rightful lion pride!