Hello everyone!! I have gotten into a few schools these past few monthes for engineering and I’m super excited. I was wondering which one of these programs is my best bet as of now. So my choices are Univerisity of Wisconsin, Penn State, Purdue, University of Michigan and Northeastern.
Congrats, you have great options!!!
Some things to thing about - What is your home state and is one your state flagship? Relatedly, is one of these schools more affordable than the others? What is your intended major and is one of the school stronger for that major? How do you feel about FYE programs instead of direct admit to major? Mandatory vs voluntary co-op? East coast vs midwest?
All things being equal, I’m totally biased as my daughter goes to Purdue and loves it, but you’ve got awesome options! Michigan is probably best regarded of the list.
Thank you for your response @momofsenior1 Some more information.
Intended Major:Biomedical Engineering
Home State: NJ
I think that co-ops are a great oppurtunity and would do one (or more) if they were mandatory or not mandatory. I’m a little scared of weed out programs such as Penn state where only the select top percent continue on in the program. I’m willing to go far away from home or stay close. I don’t think that I will be getting any financial aid based on the first couple of tuition packages I have recieved, so as of now I’m looking at what will be the most affordable but also pay off the most after college. I’m also very interested in studying abroad and know that can be difficult with the course load of engineering so any information on that would be great.
You have no bad, or even mediocre options. @momofsenior1 has some great suggestions for things to think about. Take your time. Visit/revist schools if you can.
If you need a tie-breaker after considering financial and academic issues, think about ECs. Is there an intramural program for a sport you like? Are there music programs that welcome non-majors? Do they have a Volgon Poetry club? Stuff like that.
OK, so you are out of state for all these schools so far. Can your parents afford to be full pay? I’m specifically thinking of Michigan which is $20K+/year more than Purdue. You will get a great education at any of these schools so I would definitely keep affordability at the forefront.
I can give you some specifics about Purdue. They are like U Penn and Wisconsin in that there is a first year engineering program with a minimum GPA required to transition to your major. I believe the threshold at Wisconsin is the highest for BME at a 3.5. It’s a 3.2 at Purdue. Purdue uses an engineer admission index (core engineering courses) as well as overall GPA. The majority of students do successfully transition to their major. We were told by the chem e department that 94% of their students successfully transition (this was two years ago when we initially toured). Not sure what the stats are for BME but you can contact their undergraduate office to get the information.
As far as study abroad, there are a ton of opportunities from everything from one week to a whole year. That said, my dd was told that it’s a bit more challenging for engineers to go abroad for that length of time, mostly because the academic supports are different abroad. You definitely can make it work though if it’s a top priority. The academic advisors suggest you tell them immediately if you want to do study away so it can be properly planned. My daughter is opting to do study abroad as a “Maymester”. She’s leaving the day after finals to study in Italy for a month. It’s a 6 credit experience.
Northeastern may offer a bit of that less weedout environment as well as probably the most flexibility of those here. Engineering is tough everywhere but there are no competitive secondary admission processes at Northeastern and co-op is a big part of the school which also sounds like a plus in your case. You’ll still have a general first year curriculum in case you want to switch as well. There’s also a wide variety of study abroad options like trips (dialogues of civilization, similiar to Purdue and “Maymester”) over the summer that don’t interfere with your Fall/Spring classes and have two classes worth of gen-ed or subject-specific credit.
As others mentioned, weigh financials and revisit as well. Don’t be afraid to take fit into account as well as academics.
Congrats on the great options! You should be able to succeed at all of these A+ schools 
Picking a college is a very personal thing, but that does not mean you don’t need guidance through the actual process.
Essentially, we can break the student decision process into 4 main parts:
I. What do you want to do with your life? (Identifying your passions, strengths, and choosing your future career)
II. What does this school offer that no other school can? (How to analyze and find the “best fit” college)
III. Can this school pass the “5-5-5” test?
IV. How to choose the RIGHT college! (and are you sure this is the right college?)
Here is the link to the full article providing more detail on every step that might help you by providing a guideline for how you can figure out which is the right school for you: https://tolivetobe.com/how-to-choose-the-right-college/
Hope this helps!
I love all your choices. But I’ll offer an anecdote. The son of a good friend started at Northeastern this year. He spent his first semester studying in and traveling through Europe. It’s apparently a popular option, to do your study abroad before beginning your engineering curriculum. But great choices!! I had a great time as an undergraduate following my school’s Division I sports programs, so I’d likely go Michigan, but the Northeastern experience has been a good one for Nick thus far.