Cmu or Pitt for Computer Science?

<p>Hi! I hope I'm not putting this in the wrong thread, but I felt it was appropriate here. Also, I apologize if I seem confused with anything. I'm not getting much help from anyone in real life about this, and I decided here would be a great place to look.</p>

<p>I will be a junior in high school this year, and have started to tour colleges that I'm interested in. The two colleges I have thought seriously about are cmu and pitt. I have taken college in high school classes for Pitt, and they will count as credits for cmu as well from what I have heard.</p>

<p>Ive looked at their costs and other threads on the site about the same questions, and it seems like people root for cmu here. I read that Pitt students that had a chance to go cmu lament about how they don't have the opportunities that a cmu student does. I don't want this to happen to me, although I'm not sure if I will be appealing enough to cmu. I understand that I'm comparing a public college to a private college with the best computer science program in the world, but I'm lost about what I should do next.</p>

<p>Like many, cost is a serious factor. My parents want me to be accepted into cmu, although im not sure that they want me to actually go there. They have jokingly teased that if i went there, they would buy me my own kilt because of the college colors. I've read that they are pretty generous in the financial aid side of things, so i'm not as worried, and from what I've heard from students who went there and the parents of those students, the price is worth it.</p>

<p>My other issue is actually getting accepted. I suffered a concussion my first year of high school and was kept home for about half the year. The school didn't exempt me from the extended period of time I missed, and I had trouble recovering from it. I understand that is what my college essay is for, but I just don't know if it will be enough. Secondly, I'm worried about the standardized test scores. I took the psats last year, and found out once i read my test scores that I missed a bubble on the answer sheet, and most of the answers after that were incorrect, silly me. If getting into cmu is even an option, I would like to know how I can improve myself in any way to look more appealing, I'm willing to work it out.</p>

<p>I know I didn't leave much information about my grades, or activities, so if that will help, just ask me to put it up. Thanks for your time, any information will help me.</p>