My son is interested in Computer Science and Engineering. We are so thankful that he has been accepted to all three colleges (Clemson, University of South Carolina, University of Alabama)/ and to Alabama Honors. (Clemson Honors and USC Honors he has yet to hear.) He has a chance of getting nearly full tuition from USC and Alabama as he is a strong candidate for National Merit… and a very good possibility of a strong scholarship (likely NOT full) from Clemson. Should he be lucky enough to get into all three Honors colleges, which one stands out? What are your thoughts on the strength of major, honors programs and school experiences?
ACT 36
GPA 4.0 UW/ 5.249 W
Strong STEM (AI and VR) extracurriculars, research and internship
These are his targets… reach schools are being treated as such at this point. We haven’t been blessed to hear back from any of the reach schools as of yet.
Thank you for any opinions, or shared experiences that you might have.
Kind regards!
I have had kids attend both Bama and USC. Did he apply to RRS at Bama and for Top Scholars at USC? My perspective of both schools is through those specialized honors programs. Both of my kids would tell you that their UG experiences were/are fabulous and that they were/are definitely happy with their choice.
Ds at Bama was a physics and math major with most of his friends being engineering majors. His friends all had internship/co-op opportunities with job offers at graduation. Bama has invested significantly in their engineering programs and the facilities show it. I never heard any negative comments about Bama and it’s science/engineering dept. (Ds had great UG research opportunities and REU experiences. He is now attending his top choice grad school, so Bama served him well.)
Dd at USC is a humanities person. Her friends are mostly pre-med, so I don’t have any insight into their engineering program. I can share that in general that USC’s HC seems more organized. But, I don’t know that I see so much difference in classes that I would base my decision on that. She loves her professors and has attended countless presentations given by various professionals. She has definitely utilized their career presentations/fairs/career counseling services and they have been great for her bc she is less “degree to career-focused” and more just knows what she enjoys. (I can’t compare that to Bama’s opportunities, though, bc ds knew he wanted to pursue physics from the time he was in 8th grade.)
Both schools honors dorms are great, but Bama’s are nicer with more of an apt type of layout.
Has your son visited all 3 campuses, and toured the specific programs he has interested in at each university? Where would he feel most comfortable going? I ask that because if he gets into the honors programs at each school, there are probably no bad choices at that point, and his opportunities at each school are probably going to be plentiful; so it may come down to where he feels the most comfortable.
Thank you @Mom2aphysicsgeek ! He did apply to Top Scholars and to RRS… as well as University Fellows. Also to Lyceum at Clemson. We have a bit of application fatigue going, but in the home stretch hopefully! It’s an exciting time. Those are positive comments and make me feel like he doesn’t have a bad choice in the bunch here. Good to know!
Everyone thinks getting accepted is the hard part, but when you have a high stat kid, picking among your acceptances is the hard part! If you haven’t already, make a spreadsheet of all the information you’ve gathered (every detail).
Really think about how far away he wants to be. This is a big issue that doesn’t get enough attention, in my opinion. Are flights direct or are there layovers? Will he be able to come home during breaks like Thanksgiving, and if not, is everyone OK with that? Go to a site like Kayak to estimate travel costs and include those in your spreadsheet.
If he wants to attend grad school, then minimizing undergrad cost is important (if finances are a concern).
As a follow-up to the above, the high stats kids often have lots of acceptances when the apply to the right range of reach/ match/likely (safety) schools, as it sounds like was done here. Good planning!
As others have suggested it is a good idea to compare the offers – price, perks, etc
But I’m going to make a contrarian suggestion. All these are fine schools. At this point the differences in outcome for your son are unknowable and essentially random, so at this point there is nothing you can do to pick the “best” among great choices. He meets a group of friends at one school and turns out one has a uncle with a summer opening at Google – impossible to predict this. He ends up with a roomate he detests and his unhappiness affects his study habits – impossible to predict. And so on.
To build upon @mikemac’s pt, I would say that the likelihood of acceptance to USC’s HC is probably quite high; Bama’s is a given. But, becoming a Top Scholar or being invited to join RRS is far from a given. If the student is a SC resident, the SC scholarships outside of Top Scholars are significant meaning that that difference might be negligible in terms of cost. (For us, TS made the difference between affordable and unaffordable, but many if dd’s friends are SC residents and their stacking scholarships mean essentially full ride.) I am also not familiar with the Carolina Scholar process vs. the Top Scholar. The probability of acceptance might be much higher, but TS should not be presumed for any student.
But, at this point, the comparisons are really going to be based on generics. Once he knows if he is invited to join RRS, UFE, or Carolina Scholars (or possibly Stamps?), then he will have a better idea of each school’s extra mentoring, supports, etc. Then he can make real comparisons.
Also, interview weekends will probably give him great insight to the different programs and possible peers. They might reveal to him everything he needs to know. (My Dd went to a couple of interview weekends that made her lower those schools on her list. TS weekend shot USC directly to the top.)
@Mom2aphysicsgeek True enough. All the information is still coming in. I agree that it is premature to make a decision at this point. However, sometimes anecdotes that others post reveal other data points to consider. Or at least… other conditions to consider as @chercheur pointed out. Also, your share was very helpful too. Thanks again! We are humble in predictions. Nothing is a given. He just may be in the hunt. We are thankful for anything coming our way.
A student with a 4.0 GPA and a 36 ACT or 1600 SAT will be selected as a Presidential Elite Scholar and will receive:
Value of tuition for up to four years for degree-seeking undergraduate and graduate or law studies
One year of on-campus housing at regular room rate
$1,000 per year stipend for four years
$2,000 one-time allowance for use in summer research or international study (after completing one year of study at UA)
$2,000 book scholarship ($500 per year for four years)
Value of tuition for up to five years or 10 semesters for degree-seeking undergraduate and graduate (or law) studies
Four years of on-campus housing at regular room rate* (based on assignment by Housing and Residential Communities)
$3,500 per year Merit Scholarship stipend for four years.**
One-time allowance of $2,000 for use in summer research or international study (after completing one year of study at UA)
$2,000 book scholarship ($500 per year for four years)
Clemson is the STEM school of these and has the highest rated engineering programs (and highest overall per US News). I would put it at the top of the list.
@jllmtw Students should not make their decision about 4 yrs of college simply based on USNWR rankings, a magazine with its own filters that don’t necessarily match employers’ needs. Engineers from a wide variety of UG programs end up working side by side for the same pay. Our oldest ds graduated from a school not ranked by USNWR and has worked with engineers from top ranked programs. His best friend from work is a UCB grad. No difference in their careers.
I’m going to share our experience with the caveat that it’s just one family’s experience.
I have one daughter who is a computer science major at the University of Chicago and another who is in the honors college (Calhoun) at Clemson (bio major.) The experience at Chicago has been extraordinary, and I’ll put Clemson in the very good category. The difference is not so much in the classroom experience which has been generally very good at both campuses. Advising is an example of differing services. Advising at Clemson is basically perfunctory, “yes, your schedule looks good, yes I can help you get into a class.” The advising at Chicago has a “what can I do to help you follow your dreams” theme. For example my daughter’s advisor helped her secure funding for a women in technology conference which she attended and walked away with three internship offers.
I’ll also add that the market for comp sci/engineering majors is very good, and after my daughter’s internship at a fortune 100 company this summer (for which she was paid handsomely) she feels like she was well respected for surviving the academic rigor at Chicago, has great job prospects and a reasonable expectation that her future employer will contribute to her grad degree costs.
I’ll also add that both of my students would tell you that a college experience is greatly influenced not only by the faculty but also by the students in the seats next to you. My daughter’s peers at Chicago are simply extraordinary. They help her see the runway. My daughter’s peer group at Clemson is also very good, though like any state school there is a wide range of interests, motivations and talents. My Clemson daughter would tell you that the most valuable thing that she has learned is how to advocate for herself in a big crowd (and she is right, that is valuable!)
Hope that helps. Opportunities are plentiful for comp sci and CS and engineering majors. Your son should get the best education he can and know that it’s worth it.