<p>If money was not an issue, I would probably be going to BU. However, $60,000 compared to under $20,000 creates an obvious problem. If I went to BU, I would do Bio-medical Engineering which is what I truly want to do. In UMass, I'd be doing pre-med. Ultimately, I want to be a doctor and plan on going to medical school so i'd rather go to the school that gives me the greatest chance of getting into a really good medical school. I am not much of a partier so that part of UMass does not appeal to me. Anyway thanks in advance.</p>
<p>BU is just as big a party school as UMass. And there are plenty of kids at UMass whose lives don’t revolve around partying.</p>
<p>If med school is in your future, you want to come out of undergrad with as little debt as possible, preferably none, because you will almost certainly be taking on a ton of debt to become a doctor.</p>
<p>Engineering degrees are the hardest majors, and you want as high a GPA as possible when you apply to med school. So you should give that some thought too.</p>
<p>My son is at UMass and is able to concentrate on his schoolwork. My only advice is that you probably should not live in the Southwest residential area because that is the bigger party area. Save the $160k for med school.</p>
<p>With a difference of $160,000 over four years, the clear choice is UMass! The honors dorms are fantastic!!</p>
<p>It’s JUST undergrad. Save your money for grad school. People from umass get into med schools, so why spend almost tripple the money on an equivalent degree at a cheaper school?? </p>
<p>NO SCHOOL IS WORTH CRUSHING DEBT!!! Being in Boston may be cool, but Amherst and Northampton always make the lists of best college towns. BME is a very specific field, and most need MS degrees to get into that field. You can do chemical engineering and get into BME that way. This would give you many more options.</p>
Money aside, you will know where you fit best. A good fit is very important!
I have heard from a handful of parents and recent grads that an undergrad BME degree is relatively useless if you actually want to do BME. If you plan to go to medical school, why go for BME instead of pre-med? I know a recent grad from BU BME program who said her best job opportunity was healthcare management consulting, something she probably could have done with a pre-med track.
@ormdad - Well pre-med seems a bit all or nothing to me. lol (not everyone gets into a good med school) Also I hear that many med schools today like to see students in majors besides bio and things like pre-med. (BME included) In addition, writing/English skills are also apparently considered very important when looking at possible med school students, as med schools are used to students who specialize so much in the sciences that they loose balance in their academic outlook. (This makes for potentially narrow minded doctors)