<p>I have been admitted into both universities, and I plan on majoring in political science and economics. I got a $22K scholarship from American, but at the same time, I’m a Texas resident, which means both colleges cost more or less the same. Which college would be better for a double major in political science and economics at the undergraduate level?
According to the US News Rankings, UT Austin is ranked much higher than American, but I am not sure about the rankings in the Political Science or Economics department.
Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>My son was admitted to both schools, also. He has elected to attend American, and one reason is that he wants a different experience than everyone else he’s graduating with. He feels that one of the great adventures is going “away” to college.</p>
<p>He is double majoring in international relations and computer science and feels the opportunities in DC outweigh ranking.</p>
<p>American’s lower ranking is mostly due to it’s lacking science and engineering departments. It’s political science program is top-notch, if not top 10.</p>
<p>Mine had exactly the same issues with University of Washington (and virtually the same financial situation), and chose American hands-down for better opportunities to build her career.</p>
<p>Political Science rankings are ridiculous at the undergraduate level. You are not going to be doing complex graduate level research at either school, so basing rankings of departments on endowment or research papers(basically every ranking) is ludicrous. What will matter the most in your undergraduate career as a political science major is your ability to network politically and your ability to land fulfilling political internships. AU trumps UT in so many ways with regards to this. Additionally, you are coming to a school where it is essentially all politics, all the time. If that is what you want out of your undergraduate experience, then you should come here.</p>
<p>Joven17 and I have exchanged PMs, but I think some of what I shared privately will be useful to others who stumble on this thread:</p>
<p>Having grown up in Illinois, I faced a similar choice: I had the chance to go free of charge to the University of Illinois, but I chose AU (at considerable expense) instead. Essentially, my choice came to this: I could study politics in the middle of a cornfield in Illinois, or I could study it in Washington, DC. That was an easy decision.</p>
<p>I live in Dallas now and I’m surrounded by UT grads. If you intend to return to Texas after graduation, you should realize that AU will never be known as well as UT. If your focus is on life in Texas, you should give UT a hard look. If not, then strongly consider AU–it will open up your eyes to opportunities that you don’t even know exist. Plus, I believe that there is great value in moving away from home to go to college–you’ll grow up and figure things out for yourself a lot faster than if you stay close to home. But not everyone is ready for that, I guess.</p>
<p>Regardless of the relative “prestige” of the institutions, I think you are smart to think about costs. In the end, it’s a big cost-benefit analysis, and from the viewpoint of today, the only known quantity is the cost. You won’t know the true value of your college experience until you are well past graduation.</p>
<p>Everybody: Thank you so much for the input. American seems a lot better now compared to UT Austin, even though one is at 44 and the other at 85 (USNWR 2008). Internships and relevant experience count for grad school and for future employers. Does anybody know of a good site where I can find acceptance rates for American/other graduates into different law schools, other grad programs, etc.? Thanks again.</p>
<p>As several others have mentioned, AU has wonderful programs for both of your prospective majors- and the opportunities that living in DC will open for you definitely make it a more worthwhile choice than UT-Austin.</p>