I got into both Cornell (in the College of Engineering, no scholarship or financial aid) and UT Austin (in the College of Natural Sciences for the Turing Scholars program, in-state with a 2.5k/yr scholarship.) Money is pretty much no concern at all, and I definitely anticipate getting an MBA later (not super interested in research.) I won’t be having grad school paid for regardless of the cost of undergrad. I prefer the campus life of UT a little but it’s not a major factor in my decision. Which would be better for CS (with a possible double major in ORIE as I’m somewhat interested in finance)?
I would really appreciate any advice or input - thanks!
Your total price to attend Cornell would be more than 3x the UT net price, right (nearly $70K v. ~$20K)?
I don’t know what would justify such a huge price premium for Cornell, especially if you prefer the UT campus. FWIW, USNWR ranks their graduate CS programs almost equal.
Cornell may offer more opportunities in banks and consulting.
But that is a huge money differential.
My parents are pushing for Cornell and are willing to foot the price difference. However, in terms of a future job, would Cornell Engineering or UT Austin’s Turing Scholars program hold the edge? (Sorry if this comes off as entitled, as that’s definitely not the intent. If money were a consideration for them it would surely be one for me.)
I appreciate your input!
Money not a problem + parents pushing/supportive = Cornell. No question. Take the private education and all the perks it provides. The connections and friends you make there will be for life. It is truly an exceptional experience. When money isn’t the issue and you are accepted, always go to the fantastic private school! It is worth every penny.
It is not sounding entitled to ask, and realize this forum has a certain personality and demographic that doesn’t match your situation. If you do well in engineering you will have no issue getting a job, but the contacts you make at Cornell will be extraordinary in helping you get something. Private school folks help private school folks. I don’t see UCLA alums helping out other UCLA alums for example. It’s more competitive than collaborative in the public schools. While of course competitive, many at Cornell, whether faculty or other students, will want you to succeed because it is like a family or club to be part of, sounds weird but true. And double majoring will be easier at Cornell. Congrats on great choices.
Both excellent schools. So, congratulations on being accepted to both.Your parents must be very proud.
UT Austin offers more employment and internship opportunities being in Austin. As an in-state applicant, if my son gets to make the same choice next year, I’d urge him to pick UT Austin because I do not see the difference between these two schools to justify the additional expense. If it was choice between UT Austin vs MIT/Stanford/CMU, only then I would be OK with the significant additional cost.
Good luck to you!
“Private school folks help private school folks. I don’t see UCLA alums helping out other UCLA alums for example. It’s more competitive than collaborative in the public schools.”
A bit more nuance: Private school alums (but also alums of publics with a strong alumni network) tend to be more likely to help alums theydon’tknow. I saw plenty of UIUC/Cal CS majors help pull their friends from school in to startups, for instance.
And whether a public is competitive vs. collaborative also depends on school. The UC’s seem to be more competitive than UIUC, for example. Actually, even among privates, competitive vs. collaborative also depends on school/major.
In the Turing program you will be a part of a small elite group with extraordinary opportunities offered to you. At Cornell, you will be just another engineer. Without Turing, it is a close call, but with Turing the world is your oyster at UT.
If you’re planning to go the finance / MBA route and your parents are fine with the Cornell price, I think Cornell makes sense here. If money was even a tiny part of the consideration, UT Austin all the way, as it’s CS department is equal or better and after an MBA you’d do plenty fine in finance. But if it’s not a consideration at all, Cornell has the finance edge and the prestige actually has value here (in finance, but not in CS). Make sure that the extra cost won’t affect your parents in ways they are trying to hide.
These two are peers in Engineering and CS. If you are dedicated to pursuing engineering or CS, I would save the money and go to UT. Plus, Austin >>>>> Ithaca
If you are talking about Financial Engineering and related math computation in CS, Cornell would give you more opportunities and internships during your undergraduate time. It would give you easier time to find a position in Wall Street firms.
Strength of area in CS is different among schools.
Your internship in database architecture won’t give you a edge for a job opportunity on portfolio risk management.
If cost is truly no concern, Cornell. Parents with the financial means often see no better investment than their hard-working kid’s education.
If parents are thinking of paying with a loan they take on your behalf (parent PLUS, HELOC), if you have siblings whose college plans would be impacted, then UT Turing.
The plurality of Turing scholars go to Google, Facebook and Microsoft. More than 75% get cs internships starting their freshman year. So if you have an interest in those, UT Turing is better. I agree that if you are committed to Wall St, Cornell is better. My cousin who majored in cs at a comparable ivy found it hard to get paid summer internships until junior year.
I understand the pull. Cornell is a name brand, exclusive. Texas is a large unsexy public school. It’s an Audi R8 vs a Ford Explorer.
However…
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Cornell is expensive.
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The ROI for Cornell CS is 95th. Pretty much every college has a better CS ROI. Texas is in the top 20.
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Cornell is 10th for stem, Texas is 11.
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Turing scholars have exclusive small CS classes with kids who would be in the top 75th percentile at MIT. They also have their own career fair. You won’t have that at Cornell.
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It’s currently 70 in Austin and we are wearing shorts. It’s 22 in Ithaca.
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Austin has tons of start-ups.
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Austin must be Tolkien’s “Undying Lands” because Frodo Baggins lives here.
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Cornell’s campus is much nicer though.
Cornell wins only 1 out of 8.
@applicant00 “My parents are pushing for Cornell and are willing to foot the price difference. However, in terms of a future job, would Cornell Engineering or UT Austin’s Turing Scholars program hold the edge? (Sorry if this comes off as entitled, as that’s definitely not the intent. If money were a consideration for them it would surely be one for me.)”
These are two very different schools. Some top students personal identity is more tied to getting A’s, while others are focused on taking on the most significant challenge possible and learning as much as they can. You will stand out more at UT-Austin, but Cornell engineering will push you to your limit.
Ignore the rankings. They are research focused and not comparing the education you get, salaries, grad school admissions or anything else you care about.
As far as brand, UT-Austin will be the better brand if you plan to live in Texas or the adjoining states. Cornell is going to be a stronger brand outside of that area. That can matter in business.
Also, ROI is a terrible metric. The right way to compare the value of alternatives is to subtract the investment cost from the present value of the returns, not to divide one by the other. ROI will always choose the low investment option, which is a mistake.
I have plenty of friends and relatives graduated from Cornell and Austin and they are working in Silicon Valley with all kinds of high tech companies. The school did no difference in their success and earnings. IMHO, I’d go with Austin all the way.
@Much2learn, if he stands out among Turing Scholars, that would be something. That would be equivalent to standing out at Cornell.
As for ROI, the money you spent, generally, doesn’t just stay under your bed either. I’d say assuming annual real returns of 5% is conservative and realistic.
I see that Cornell publishes this salary survey: https://www.cs.cornell.edu/undergrad/cscareers/placementreport
Is there a similar report available for UT-Austin? I did not see one.
@Much2learn you also need this…
Cost of living is 25% cheaper in Texas.
There are so many benefits to a private education, you can shape your four years into anything you want at Cornell and the social groups you will there have is something you won’t get at UT. And those benefits last a lifetime. Those that don’t go private don’t understand the perks. Your parents do.