Chance me/match me: Rising Georgia Senior (4.0/35 ACT) interested in Computer/Electrical Engineering

[eyemgh]

@Zrt42

Compared to most schools, yes.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say compared to most ABET accredited schools still no. The question isn’t “is it worth it?” The question is…”is it worth it financed with debt?”

There are different opportunities that come with different schools. MIT will unquestionably offer a broad network. The fact is though that the vast majority of MIT undergrads are doing regular jobs amongst engineers trained at all sorts of schools, getting paid similar salaries. Any advantage won’t overcome the debt drag.

[aquapt]

Are you more interested in Korean than in the other languages, or not necessarily?

It might be worth noting that Stony Brook (one of the SUNY flagships, which is highly regarded for engineering) is the campus that shares programming with SUNY’s campus in Korea, and ECE is one of the six majors that can be pursued in either location (or both in combination). https://www.sunykorea.ac.kr/en/html/sub03/0301.html

[brenman32]

Not necessarily Korean. I stopped studying Korean over a year ago in pursuit of other interests. Between then and now I’ve studied Japanese and Portuguese to a conversational level, but I’ve also stopped those and now I’m on to Finnish.

[HPuck35]

150K is too big an obstacle to overcome for an MIT education. That amount is around what a new BS hire would make, gross, in about 2 years, depending on company/major. Too big a burden to overcome.

However, I wonder how you arrived at that figure. MIT does not do merit or athletic scholarships, only financial need. And being as well-endowed as they are, they do fulfil those need scholarships quite well. Federal student loans total around 25 to 30 K max for a BS degree. So, unless you have parents that have the financial means to pay but are unwilling to do so, I don’t see how MIT will cost you 150K.

GT for undergrad and MIT for grad school, if so inclined, would be an option.

[brenman32]

My family’s income bracket —> I get $0 need-based scholarship money. My parents have some money saved up for college, plus GI Bill, and between that and my brother also going to college I estimated a cost of about 150k after 4 years. Could be a bit less, but likely a little more (That is 150k my parents are not willing to pay)

[Metsdad]

I want to commend the OP for being aware and sensitive to his family’s finances, and asking the right questions (whether 150k of debt at MIT is worth the cost). Those are questions I did not ask myself when I acquired 100k debt (since repaid) in school. Contrary to some other answers, I don’t think there is a correct answer to whether hypothetical MIT and debt are worth it - it depends on the intangible benefits as well as unknown tangible benefits. I agree though that Georgia’s schools offer great opportunities that should be considered, whichever way the college process works out.

[HPuck35]

I am assuming that you have talked about money for college with your parents. MIT, along with most colleges, have “net price calculators” that will give you a good estimate of your college costs. It will take into account if a sibling is going to college at the same time. If you (or better if your parents do it) have used this, then do so to get a cost. You still might be full pay, but it would be a better estimate than trying to figure it all out yourself.

If your end game is a job in industry, then your performance on the job will dictate your career advancement more than where you went to college.

If academia or research is your end game, then where you went to grad school would mater to some degree. So, GT for your BS and then a “name” college for grad school would work in that case. GT would actually be a good name college.

No matter where you go to college, there are ways to make it at least a bit cheaper. Both of my kids lived in the dorms their freshman year which meant they were also on the college meal plan. After freshman year, they both moved into an off-campus apartment with several roommates. They both knew how to cook and made their own meals for the most part. Doing so saved a decent amount of money. The cost of college was still dominated by the tuition though.

It is good that you are thinking about the cost of college. I’ve seen too many students that are blind to the costs and just take massive loans and are saddled with them seemingly forever.

[brenman32]

Maybe this is a question that deserves another thread… but in terms of engineering what’s the benefit of going to grad school? Also would it be beneficial to do grad school at MIT over GaTech, and if so how easy would it be to get in?

[eyemgh]

There are two paths, terminal MS and PhD.

Terminal MS deepens your knowledge, and may or may not be thesis based. For most specialties it isn’t necessary to get a job, but with a Masters you will probably stand out in a hiring field and get a pay bump.

PhD is longer and should result in research that adds to the knowledge base of the field. It’s useful for very cutting edge things in industry or can be parlayed into a university career. It’s a major commitment though, probably 3 years at a minimum and 5 or 6 at the longest. It really depends on how your research progresses.

Where you do your graduate work depends on a multitude of factors. Many terminal MS programs are unfunded and course based only. This means you have to pay, so cost and relative return on investment can be a factor in choosing a program. A few are funded and thesis based.

In choosing a PhD program, you find the advisor you want to work under, regardless of the school they’re at. So, let’s say you’re into high speed aerodynamics. Texas A&M might be better than either MIT or GT. You’re picking a person, not a school.

https://www.science.org/content/article/should-you-go-grad-school

[HPuck35]

The benefit of a grad degree is an easy question, but the answer can be quite involved. This could easily be a topic for another discussion.

I assume that you are looking at a job in industry as your end game.

There are many different types of engineering jobs in many different industries, so a general answer that fits all is impossible.

I worked in the aerospace world, specifically on NASA projects. I worked most of my career for one of the BIG aerospace companies but did some long-term consulting for a small (25 person) company. So, my perspective is somewhat limited.

Using my experience as an example:

As I approached the completion of my BS I wanted out of college. I didn’t know what, other than engineering for NASA, I wanted to do. It seemed like starting to get more specialized within a master’s degree program wasn’t the best thing to do. I was offered a job within big aerospace doing analytical work. I wasn’t sure that is what I wanted to do, but it was my only offer. So, I took it. After about a year at work I swapped jobs with another guy and worked in design for about 6 months. When it was time to switch back (I was offered a permanent position in design, if I wanted it), I knew the analysis area was where I wanted my career to go. I also knew that an advanced degree was in my future. I eventually went to grad school in a applied mechanics / applied mathematics department. Something I would have never considered if I had gone straight to grad school from my BS.

So, my advice. Let your interests dictate what area of engineering you go into. If at the end of your undergraduate degree, you know what area you would like for a MS degree, then go for it. Otherwise, you can always work a while and see where your career takes you and whether an advanced degree is warranted.

I ended up in management. The size of my group varied a lot. We worked on some pretty cutting-edge NASA projects. At one point I had about 25 engineers reporting to me; 8 had their PhD, 14 MS and only 3 BS degrees. Many were like me and started work with only their BS. Some took leaves of absence to go full time to grad school while others worked and went to school part time. I did the part time thing and it is a long process. But marriage and kids dictated it be that way. As I was learning new skills in the MS program, I was able to apply them to my job and so my performance at work got better even though hadn’t yet completed my degree.

Other than my group, most of the other engineering functions were dominated by holders of BS degrees. So, it does really matter what is the end game of your career.

The other thing to consider, is that no matter what degree you have, it is your performance on the job that matters most.

One last point, companies (like mine did) will pay your tuition for an advanced degree. Funding is always a question going for the degree right after your BS.