Auburn v GaTech

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I feel I have monumental decision to make in March, it will be one of the hardest in my life, and I am working diligently to make it a well informed one.</p>

<p>Background info:
White Male
ACT - Eng: 33, Math: 30, Reading: 36, Sci: 34
GPA: ~3.8</p>

<p>I live in Alabama and attend a mediocre high school. I have participated in all of the possible AP courses Applicable to me, and I have excelled particularly in AP Physics B, Calculus AB, and History. Got by in Chemistry, Psychology, etc.</p>

<p>This coming fall I will be attending college and I plan to major in Aerospace Engineering; have narrowed my choices down to either Auburn University or Georgia Tech.</p>

<p>At Auburn:
I have a full tuition scholarship, Honors college acceptance, many friends, much much better social life opportunities.</p>

<p>At Tech:
I will have to pay for my education using life insurance money from my father's death long ago. Better location, essentially better program, better ranking (according to USNews, which I feel this really doesn't necessarily mean anything), and probably more overall opportunity.</p>

<p>I am really struggling on which to choose. I have toured both, and I fell in love with Tech the first time I set foot on campus. I would truly much rather go to Tech, but I have a paid education at Auburn, which isn't absolutely terrible.
What I really need to know is, do the opportunities/education/location of Tech outweigh attending Honors college at AU (smaller class sizes, etc). Furthermore, If I attended Auburn, I would have ~$125k to my name, while if I chose tech, I would have little to nothing as far as finances go. My family wants me to attend Auburn, but is generally supportive of either one. They just feel that financial security is more valuable than what they see as marginally better education. I am not sure of how I feel about the previous statement as well. Similarly, does the security and benefits of a Tech education outweigh the risk of possible debt while attending graduate school wherever I may choose to do so?
Lastly, by no means do I want to spend my adult life in the Southeastern region of the US. How much more of an opportunity does Tech allow for escaping this terrible bible thumping place? :(</p>

<p>I ask you all for advice, experiences, and opinions on how much a GaTech education in Aerospace Engineering outweighs one at Auburn.</p>

<p>Thank you,
Adam</p>

2

<p>GTech significantly “outweighs” an Auburn degree. Significantly. You have to weigh the costs of attendance though. Some people cannot afford the better degree and that is something you have to factor into your decision. </p>

<p>I would be weary about taking out more than 50k in student loans for any undergraduate degree. If you can keep your student loans under that amount, GTech is probably the right choice. </p>

<p>Really, you have to figure out the finances before you make your decision.</p>

3

<p>Ask this on the Engineering Forum. The perspective may be different and worth considering.</p>

4

<p>The appreciable difference may not be great enough to forgo a full-ride (or near full ride) at Auburn. Also, keep in mind that if you’re diligent and assertive you can be selected for either an REU or a engineering summer co-op/internship that will give you cash for school expenses. Many engineering summer positions pay students at least $4,000.</p>

5

<p>Adam, I’m not too familiar with aerospace engineering programs. I agree that GT has the better reputation…but, like your family, I doubt it’s worth the $125k cost difference. </p>

<p>Did you already get your financial aid offer to Georgia Tech? Perhaps you can tell them about your Auburn offer and see if they can offer a bit more.</p>

<p>Search for user “rogracer”…he has insight on aerospace engineering programs in the South and I would value his opinion.</p>

6

<p>So, if you had a degree from Tech it may aid in a job search or help you land a higher-paying aerospace job? How long would it take for that difference to make up the $125,000 + compounded interest? Would it ever make that up? Though the Tech reputation is bigger than Auburn’s, I think that from a student life standpoint most prospective students would choose Auburn even if the cost was similar.</p>

7

<p>Georgia Tech has always had terrible financial aid, and I don’t think it’s changed a bit.</p>

<p>I would go with Auburn.</p>

8

<p>The student life is different, but I actually think most people would rather be in Atlanta than bumble$$$ Alabama. </p>

<p>However, I completely agree that the cost may not be justifiable. However, if you have any desire to get out of the south, you should probably take a strong look at GTech. If you are fine living in Alabama, then Auburn is a no-brainer.</p>

9

<p>So sorry to hear about the loss of your dad. </p>

<p>Go with Auburn…you’ll have little to no trouble landing a great job after graduation. Alabama has a lot of high tech jobs. </p>

<p>Seriously, I can’t tell you how many kids I’ve known to leave the state to go to GT only to quickly return because of cost. They graduate from school in the state and get great jobs. </p>

<p>Save your money for a nice down payment on a house.</p>

<p>Informative obviously has never lived in Alabama…he’s so uninformative.</p>

10

<p>^ Why would I go to Alabama?</p>

11

<p>"So sorry to hear about the loss of your dad.</p>

<p>Go with Auburn…you’ll have little to no trouble landing a great job after graduation. Alabama has a lot of high tech jobs.</p>

<p>Seriously, I can’t tell you how many kids I’ve known to leave the state to go to GT only to quickly return because of cost. They graduate from school in the state and get great jobs.</p>

<p>Save your money for a nice down payment on a house.</p>

<p>Informative obviously has never lived in Alabama…he’s so uninformative."</p>

<p>That may be true. But cost really isn’t an issue, I have the money to pay for it and come out essentially debt free. The issue is, is having money with a sub-par degree worth more than having to start from 0 with a better one.</p>

<p>Furthermore, there is no shred of my being that wants to live in Alabama as an adult. I would never want to start a family here. NEVER. I loathe our state, and I have since I was about 12. Biggest reasons: close-minded conservative religious racist bigots that seem to be everywhere I go, also, our state government is a joke. I know that’s harsh, and I’m sorry if you find it offensive, but it is simply how I view our cute little state.</p>

<p>So with that in mind, would tech not be a better choice?</p>

<p>Thank you,
Adam</p>

12

<p>It sounds like you want help in justifying the larger spend to your parents. If that is the goal, then you should contact the AE departments and the career centers for both schools and get some data from them. If employment is your goal you should request information on what companies recruit AEs on campus, what the employment rates are at graduation, what the average starting salaries are, etc. If you think you might want to go to grad school, then you should ask what % of the students go on to grad school, which grad schools do they go to, etc. Once you have the appropriate data you can then analyze whether the greater expense of GT is worthwhile.</p>

13

<p>Sleepar,</p>

<p>My D is at Auburn on a similar scholarship to the one you’re being offered. She is an agnostic, politically moderate-liberal girl from California, and she is truly having the time of her life. Granted, we never lived in Alabama, but I really think universities bring out the best in people. In the honors college, it seems like there are more out-of-state students than on the campus as a whole, and D has made friends from all over the US. Don’t let your hatred of where you live taint your college choices. I agree that $125,000 would make a great first home and the difference in degree probably isn’t going to cost you nearly that much money in your career options down the road.</p>

14

<p>sleepar…</p>

<p>I don’t know where you live in Alabama, but what you described does not represent the state…it sounds like more of what exists in small towns…which can be found in any state.<br>
I spent more than the first 40 years of my life in Southern California…and I still spend a good part of my time in that state and in the Midwest. If you think that you can’t find a bunch of narrow-minded people everywhere, you’re very naive.</p>

<p>And…I would not call an engineering degree from Auburn as “sub-par”…that is ridiculous. GT grads do not have higher starting salaries than AU grads.</p>

15

<p>OP,
I realize that this is very late in the day, but did you consider schools such as Cornell and USC? I believe that both provide merit aid, and with your stats I suspect that you would be a competitive candidate for such aid. If you were admitted to either, I suspect that they would be less expensive for you than Ga. Tech.<br>
Normally I would recommend that you save your money, but given your strong desire to leave Alabama, I think this a tougher call (particularly so if you wish to look at careers outside the south).
Good luck with your decision.</p>

16

<p>But Auburn is sub par to tech. There is no denying that. :/</p>