I’m undecided engineering right now, probably something like computer science or biomedical engineering.
I got full tuition to Case, whereas I’ll be paying basically the whole cost of attendance at Cornell.
Is going to an Ivy League like Cornell worth the debt when Case is already a really good engineering school?
No.
My daughter just had to make the same tough decision. Almost full ride at Minnesota versus paying full price at Cornell. She chose Minnesota (because it’s the only real choice available, since her dad won’t pay, and I can’t, and students just can’t take out that much debt – only $5,500 the first year and $7,500 each year thereafter – nor should they take out so much debt).
Congrats on Cornell, but you should also feel very proud of the fantastic offer from Case! Do what makes financial sense, since your parents cannot or will not pay for Cornell out of pocket without debt for you or them.
Depends how much money you have saved for college, but since Case Western is a great college and you have a full ride it would be best to go with them unless your going to be very unhappy.
Spending a lot of money on an undergraduate degree (for any school) is way over rated.
No, Cornell is not worth it. Short answer. Case may not be a full RIDE, but there’s a “full” word in there somewhere and for what you want to do, Case is definitely a strong choice.
Unless your family has so much money that $250K just isn’t a big deal, I don’t see how Cornell is the smart choice.
From a cost/benefit perspective, there’s almost no circumstance under which Cornell will make up the difference in cost with Case.
Go to Case and don’t look back.
The “ivy” thing is way overrated. Not that the ivies aren’t great schools, but with the choice you have, there’s nothing that the ivy offers that’s worth that price differential.
Definitely go to Case. You will have much better access to your professors, especially for the first two years. Comp Sci and Biomedical Engineering are two of the strongest programs at Case. Go to Case and don’t look back. You’ll be richer, in every sense of the word, for it. Cleveland is so much better than Ithaca, too. My D goes to Case and loves it. The students are nicer and more collaborative at Case. I know- I went to Cornell.