Choosing between two peer universities: UIUC & Purdue

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

<p>I am a prospective engineering student from India and based on my stats, I expect to get into only these two universities. However, after doing a lot of research I have found that these two universities are very similar. They are similar in the following aspects:</p>

<ol>
<li>Both are public</li>
<li>Both are HUUUUGE (32K+ undergrads)</li>
<li>Both are not very selective (70%+ acceptance rates)</li>
<li>Both are in the middle of no-where.</li>
<li>Both have an engineering focus.</li>
<li>Both are not very highly ranked undergrad institutions. (UIUC- #40, Purdue- #60)</li>
<li>Both have a large number of international students.</li>
<li>It seems that almost all Indian students get accepted to both these universities. (Every year almost everyone who applies to UIUC, Purdue from my high school get accepted.)</li>
<li>Party schools</li>
<li>Huge greek scenes.</li>
</ol>

<p>These are the similarities. I have not yet found any differences between them, but after speaking to a couple of people I have found that Purdue has a better global reputation.
Could any current/former students help me make a decision by pointing out some differences between these two universities.</p>

2

<p>Well for starters, UIUC is not engineering focused. It is their best known and highest ranked department, but it is a very respected overall university as well. I would also argue that top 40-60 is still a very good overall ranking considering how biased those rankings are towards private schools and how many schools there are in the US.</p>

<p>Anyway, what type of engineering are you looking to do? The two schools are VERY similar so it may just come down to your interests. I went to UIUC so I would obviously be biased, but you honestly will get a great engineering education at either place.</p>