<p>In terms of finance, i received a full ride to University of Maryland, College Park, and Cornell did give me generous financial aid but I would also be saddled down with 12k (in a low income bracket) in loans by the time I graduate. I've been told that its best to finish undergrad without any debt, because I'd rack up a lot of it in medical school. In terms of academics, I'm not sure whether the price of Cornell is worth it.. Which do you think is the best decision?</p>
<p>IMHO 12K in loans is a small price to pay for the difference in education. UMD is a big school with a lot of students. Lots of big classes with tons of students in them.</p>
<p>UMD was one of my D top choices last year. in the end she chose Cornell and i think you will come to the same conclusion when all is said and done.</p>
<p>She didn’t have a full ride at UMD and that would have made the choice a little tougher, but i think it still would have been the same.</p>
<p>hows your daugter coping at cornell, is she able to manage the workload and all?</p>
<p>Cornell is also “a big school with lots of students. Lots of big classes with tons of students in them.”</p>
<p>I haven’t been in any small classes (like 40 or under students) with a professor leading it and I’m a sophomore. this hasn’t bothered me but I didn’t really know it was different at other schools. I guess if that’s something that you care about you don’t get it a bunch here. perhaps it will be different in my last two years, but looking at my anticipated schedule I don’t think it’s likely.</p>
<p>I think the difference in debt would actually be pretty important. think about the atmospheres and locations of the schools too, though.</p>
<p>cornell for sure. 12k is nothing compared to what most kids have to pay to come here. i’d take the 12k in a heartbeat</p>
<p>@goopy</p>
<p>My D is doing fine. I think she was really nervous at first but she. But She has gotten adjusted to it all. I don’t think this would have been any different regardless where she went.</p>
<p>@faustarp</p>
<p>40 is small, 50 is small.</p>
<p>UMD has 25,000 + undergrads. Cornell has 13,000 +/- That is practically half as many. There is no doubt the classes at UMD will be much larger, if you can get enrolled.</p>
<p>Large universities everywhere are having to cut back. Students are having to pay higher tuition and having to stay 5-6 years just to graduate because they can’t get in the classes they need.</p>
<p>I’m not saying Cornell is perfect and I am not saying their classes are smaller than say a small school with only 5,000 students. I am just saying compared to UMD.</p>
<p>if you live in the area that UMD is in…i’d stay there…</p>
<p>12k is actually very little debt. I personally think up to $40k in undergraduate debt is okay. And that’s speaking as a med student.</p>
<p>If you like UMD substantially better than Cornell, you should go there.</p>
<p>But, all things being equal, it is better to go to Cornell. In general, there will be a better academic environment, more research opportunities, etc. The health careers advising at Cornell (from Judy) is absolutely on the money. And, despite what people say, undergraduate name does play a role in med school admissions. It’s not the most important thing but it’s not meaningless. If you plan on attending a top med school and you don’t plan on winning a national award (like Rhodes Scholarship or Fulbright Scholarship), it’ll be FAR easier to get in if you come from a top college.</p>
<p>In terms of difficulty, Cornell has a better student body but UMD, I presume, has more grade deflation so those two things should cancel themselves out. In addition, I can tell you that med school is substantially harder than the academics at Cornell. People complain about all the weeding out. Trust me. Weeding out is a GOOD thing. You don’t want to find out your first year of med school that you aren’t cut out to be a doc. You’d rather find out your freshman year of college. If you can’t get a 3.4 at Cornell, you are going to have trouble in medical school.</p>
<p>Thanks for the useful information guys! I’ve just enrolled in Cornell. Hopefully I’ll get above and beyond a 3.4 at the school.</p>