Aerospace School with nice campus (UIUC/UM/UI/CU/MU/IIT...?)

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I have yet another question about what colleges I should try to attend. First a bit about me.</p>

<p>I have a somewhat unique set of circumstances and criteria for school. First of all, I've been out of high-school for six years - I graduated in '03. I spent the intervening years dabbling in community college, work, even a bicycle ride across the nation. Now it's time I settle down and get on with life. I'll be transferring from the community college where I live (College of DuPage, in Illinois) to a four year school - two or three years from now. I'm pretty set on an Aerospace degree, or at the very least an engineering degree of some kind. High-school grades were average, at best, however standardized tests ranked me above 97% of my peers. I won't say COD will be a breeze, but seeing as how most students consider it an extension of high-school - I plan to do fairly well.</p>

<p>At this point in the selection process, I'm most concerned about the vibe of the place. Academic prestiege, tuition, selectiveness - none of those value very highly in my criteria of colleges. I'd like a college with a beautiful campus - I'm very much the outdoor enthusiast (thanks in no small part to the bike ride). So a school with a more natural setting is something I would value greatly. I would also prefer to avoid going to school in a cornfield. I'll be spending two or three years of my life here and don't want to feel like I'm living in a bubble. A major city in or near the school grounds would be great. And also I'm not huge on the Greek scene.....at all. Even if I was, an engineering major leaves little time for any frat crap. Not to say I don't want to go to a school with frats, but rather not one that is particularly dominated by them. The label of GDI will get old pretty quick. I would also prefer a larger school. The private scientific based colleges seem to be dead as far as social life goes, and the male/female ratio is wayyy off (see: IIT).</p>

<p>These are just a few that are closer to where I live and have caught my eye for one reason or another.</p>

<ol>
<li>University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign</li>
<li>University of Michigan - Ann Arbor</li>
<li>Iowa State University</li>
<li>University of Colorado - Boulder</li>
<li>University of Minnesota - Twin Cities</li>
<li>Illinois Institute of Technology</li>
</ol>

<p>So I'd like to hear from current/past students from any of the above schools about what the campus and surrounding area is like. Or any other school that offers aerospace and has a beautiful campus and lively social interaction.</p>

<p>If it makes any difference, not interested in religious-based colleges.</p>

2

<p>Based on your criteria, I’d say Boulder is the way to go: Absolutely BEAUTIFUL campus and I believe Denver is about 45 min away (however, boulder is also an awesome city).</p>

<p>However, I’d also recommend UW - Madison, even though it’s not on your list.</p>

3

<p>You live in the wrong part of the country for avoiding cornfields. Look at the following:</p>

<p>Colorado School of Mines
CU Boulder
U Utah</p>

4

<p>Well U of Illinois has one of the largest Greek scenes in the country so i guess that is out of the question. although it is quite a nice university, quite rural, with a small urban environment (between Urbana and Champaign). i think chicago is about 3hrs away.</p>

<p>Michigan is also a huge school, so i’m sure you’ll find something to interest you… plus michigan is huge on sport.</p>

<p>You should really visit the universities. Nothing can beat experiencing the atmosphere first hand. You’ll get a better understanding of which uni you want to go to</p>

5

<p>Is money no object? Those OOS publics won’t give you the aid you to cover OOS costs. And, the cost below for UMich is actually higher for junior and senior years and is higher for engineering students. Also, some privates don’t give great aid packages to transfers.</p>

<p>But…if money won’t be an issue, then great! :)</p>

<p>here’s the OOS costs of many popular schools…</p>

<p>Private National Universities Cost of Attendance per year
$43,288, Rice
$47,934, Yeshiva
$49,968, Caltech
$50,100, Syracuse
$50,806, SMU
$50,620, Princeton
$55,312, U Miami
$50,436, Case Western
$55,160, Fordham
$50,550, Yale
$52,000, Harvard
$44,278, Worcester
$52,000, MIT
$48,750, Pepperdine
$52,623, Stanford
$52,394, Cornell
$52,132, Emory
$53,000, Boston University
$53,608, Northwestern
$51,300, Notre Dame
$55,368, Vanderbilt
$52,082, Wake Forest
$51,050, Lehigh
$52,973, Dartmouth
$51,140, U Rochester
$52,162, Brandeis
$53,793, NYU
$52,030, Brown
$55,866 Wash U
$53,095, U Penn
$53,390, Duke
$53,618, USC
$54,300, Boston College
$53,390, Johns Hopkins
$54,160, Rensselaer
$55,330, Georgetown
$54,047, U Chicago
$53,660, Carnegie Mellon
$55,125, George Washington
$53,200, Tufts
$52,996, Tulane
$53,644, Columbia</p>

<p>COA per year for OOS students , State University
$25,787, U MINNESOTA
$31,500, U ALABAMA
$31,872, VIRGINIA TECH
$33,750, AUBURN
$34,812, U IOWA
$35,029, U WISCONSIN
$36,210, OHIO STATE
$35,311, U N CAROLINA
$40,086, U GEORGIA
$36,977, RUTGERS
$34,696, TEXAS A&M
$34,922, U DELAWARE
$36,094, U FLORIDA
$32,752, U PITTSBURGH
$37,416, U MARYLAND
$36,985, U WASHINGTON
$37,548, CLEMSON
$36,848, PURDUE
$39,146, U CONNECTICUT
$38,120, GEORGIA TECH
$40,130, U ILLINOIS
$39,510, PENN STATE
$37,644, INDIANA U
$38,566, MICHIGAN ST
$48,041, UC IRVINE
$49,193, UCLA
$50,306, UC BERKELEY
$38,974, WILLIAM & MARY
$43,742, U TEXAS
$49,926, UC S BARBARA
$46,699, UC SAN DIEGO
$48,049, UC DAVIS
$39,483, UC S CRUZ
$42,570, U VIRGINIA
$47,188, U MICHIGAN</p>

6

<p>Of the schools on your list, Michigan has the most to offer. Top 3 Aerospace Engineering, awesome college town, nice campus, great athletic tradition, top 25 university overall.</p>

<p>I agree with mom2collegekids though, at almost $50,000/year, Michigan comes at a price. Is money not a coinsideration for you?</p>

7

<p>^^^</p>

<p>Actually for a transfer student, and an engineering student, UMich would be well over $50k per year…especially when the OP won’t be going until about 2012.</p>

<p>Frankly, I think it’s too early for the OP to be deciding where he’ll be transferring to when that won’t happen for 2-3 years. Right now, he’s about 24 years old. In 2-3 years, he’ll be 26-27 years old and could be in a relationship that won’t lend itself to transferring to any place in the country. </p>

<p>He lives in Illinois, a great state with UIUC at instate rates. That will likely be his best option. He’ll be almost 30 years old when he graduates. Not a good age to have 10 years of big debt to pay off ahead of him.</p>

8

<p>I agree 100% mom2college kids. Engineering students from California (Cal, UCLA, UCSD, UCSB), Georgia (Tech), Illinois (UIUC), Indiana (Purdue), Michigan (Ann Arbor), Texas (Austin, A&M) and Wisconsin (Madison) have amazing Engineering options at incredible prices.</p>

9

<p>Clemson doesn’t have an aerospace engineering major</p>

10

<p>UIUC has a surcharge for the College of Engineering that most people forget about, making in-state about 32k for this year. Not exactly a huge savings for an in-state. Have you considered Iowa State University. Still midwest, beautiful campus and I understand they have a fine engineering reputation.</p>

11

<p>Boulder has an excellent aerospace engineering program. It is an enrollment limited major and it’s admissions are very competitive. Boulder is a great city for an outdoor enthusiast. Whether you ride mountain bikes, road bikes or both; it’s one of the truly great bike friendly cities in the country. Boulder offers lots of opportunities for all types of outdoor fun and the weather is great. Denver is close and it’s a great city. If I read your message correctly you will be nine years older than the average freshman. Look for a school with a good number of graduate students and a city with a young average age population. I believe Boulder has both. Colorado School of Mines is a great engineering school that meets your criteria except it does not offer aerospace engineering.</p>

12

<p>Iowa State does have a fine engineering rep, but the savings wouldn’t be that much for an OOS student…the OOS COA is around $30k per year. Also, at age 27, his living costs may be more than COA since he won’t likely be living in a dorm.</p>

<p>If at the point of transfer, if Sectrix is able to leave the area, his best bet may be to choose a school that will have the best co-op/internships so that he might be able to get some tuition help and perhaps have a job immediately after graduation.</p>

13

<p>Minnesota may be a good fit. It’s in the twin cities but “a state of a thousand lakes” should have plenty to do for an outdoor enthusiast. The lower OOS tuition is a bonus.</p>

14

<p>Does the OP, a one time poster from 8 months ago, still care?</p>