<p>Excluding a waitlist surprise, my S will have to decide between Arizona St, with a full ride for national merit finalist, or GaTech, financial aid TBD but we won't get a lot of need based. However, we can afford GaTech without undue hardship. He's not sure what he wants to major in, but definitely technology oriented: computer engineering, math, physics, etc. But no big passion for anything yet.</p>
<p>My S is stuck on the idea that he should go to the free one because its free. I'm stuck on the idea that he should go with best school and the cost will be counter-balanced by earning capacity. </p>
<p>I'm a NMF that is sort of regretting not applying to Arizona State.... eh. However, I'll still be paying less for college than the full price of GA Tech: $35,300 a year. I have a high school friend with the same attitude as your son who is going to ASU: "It's a good school and it's free!" If you don't get any aid, I can't fathom your son earning $120,000+ more in his lifetime just because he went to GaTech instead of ASU, especially in a technology oriented career.</p>
<p>Ultimately, I think he should decide where he'd be happier, if you really can afford the full price tag.</p>
<p>OK, I am biased, I live in Georgia. GaTech grads have fabulous reputations in this part of the country.
Every kid I know that has graduated from there has two or three job offers when they graduate. (Don't ask me what fields)</p>
<p>My D's boyfriend is there now as a ChemE major. As a sophomore, he is working part-time in a lab on campus. He started at $14.00/hour, but has since gotten a raise. He will co-op at the lab during the summer and will be able to live on campus. Tech is well known for the co-op opportunities these kids get. </p>
<p>I will say it is a rigorous program. A friend of mine summed it up when she was discussing her daughter (industrial design major), people do not understand how intense GaTech is!</p>
<p>All the Tech students I have met have been articulate and knowledgable.</p>
<p>He can be just as geeky and successful graduating from ASU, I'd think. It's the honors program, right? The only drawback I've heard of there is having to keep a 3.5 GPA to keep the scholarship. If you put aside the money you'd be paying for Georgia Tech, think of what a nice fund you'd have for grad school or even a downpayment on your house. Or a more comfortable retirement.</p>
<p>Your son should visit both schools (if he hasn't already) to get a feel for which he likes better. I know one NMF student who only lasted one semester at Arizona State because he didn't like the social scene at all. It was a long way from home and he didn't find a group he felt comfortable with as friends. He ended up within 100 miles of home at a much smaller, less prestigious school.</p>
<p>EMM1 - We found salary data from two different sources, neither with good methodology or statistically significant. </p>
<p>bethievt - If I was at risk for retirement, I'd definitely encourageAZ, but I'm a young mom, probably 25 years to retirement with a good job and happily conservative lifestyle, so the cost difference between the two can be absorbed. Not that an extra $100K wouldn't be cool, but I can make that up in sticking to a Mini Cooper instead of a Mercedes Benz. Not that we're rich, we just live simply.</p>
<p>hah, my whole life I've worked to make sure my kids could pick their college without worrying about cost, and here we are, back to a cost decision! So you see why I have absolutely no perspective in being able to advise him on this. <gets up off therapist's couch and goes back to yardwork).</p>
<p>GeeksRule
Count me as the parent of a very successful NMF who graduated from the Barrett Honors College at ASU. Had a wonderful 4 years as opposed to another posters kids story. Found the social group within the Honors College very compatable.Was very far from home (NYC suburb) but loved the desert and the Tempe area.
Shes a musician/scholar(now in Grad School for PhD) but has very many successful techie friends..engineers,med students,dental students,Physical therapy,computer science,pharmacy,law school students,etc. Very successful outcomes.Lived on a floor with all engineers freshman year!NMF kids come from all over the US due to the largesse of the award.Tempe more cosmopolitan than we had thought.
Visit this month and keep an open mind. D graduated with no debt to her or us.She was able to do Honors summer study abroad due to no debt.She had great mentoring in her dept and from the Honors counselors. Visit the depts your S is interested in.Engineering has had a great infusion of $$(big big benefactor) and new facilities there.Lots of great science stuff going on there in the desert.Lots of internship and research possibilities.
Easy access due to Phoenix airport being virtually next door.</p>
<p>Have kids from your son's high school enrolled at both? What have the outcomes been? I don't know much about either school except that the 2 or 3 kids I know from this area who started there didn't stay at GaTech. All "firehose" and no stress relief. Not that 2 data points make a trend, but see if you can find current students or grads and see how happy they were.</p>
<p>dragonmom, great idea. We're a small, newer HS (75 kids in graduating class, this is the 6th grad class), but maybe we've hit those schools. They've had a ton of merit scholars.</p>
<p>personally I believe a lot of engineering hiring is local and ties and internships are built between local industry and the local colleges.</p>
<p>If he wants to live on the West coast go ASU. East Coast or South go GA Tech. If grad school is in the works no debt for undergrad is a huge thing.</p>
<p>I'm NMF and got some generous and not so generous packages from a variety of schools, including GTech. I opted to go to my flagship for free(also highly regarded for my major)and will possibly look at GT for my grad degree. GT gave me only $7000 in FA, which barely makes a dent in the $36000 oos costs. Since grad school is in my future, it makes sense to save my money for a top notch school then.</p>
<p>'drizzit' beat me to it - I was going to make the same point about opportunity local to the college. Of course, it's not exclusive, but local businesses tend to be more familiar with local/regional college programs. If you already live in Az or your S wants to end up in Az or California, ASU might be preferred - especially with the cost differential. I'm not saying there wouldn't be opportunity for GaTech grads out west - just that ASU may be more familiar to some companies. Also, a lot of internships turn into job offers and recruiting often happens locally so there's a fair chance of getting good internship and subsequent job offers in the area of the school.</p>