<p>What is a better option with different merit scholarships and no financial aid?
Duke 4 year cost: 220K, Merit scholarship: None
Case 4 year cost: 204K, Merit scholarship: 110K (4 yrs)</p>
<p>Larry, my son goes to Case and is completing his degree this year. We had visited at Duke four years ago and it wasn’t for him so take what I’m saying with a grain of salt. My son has enjoyed his four years at Case. Case has a really excellent bio med department which is apparently really tough. Lots of students start in it and many transfer to other majors. With the scholarship they gave you, I wouldn’t hesitate to go there.</p>
<p>I’m not sure what your financial situation is, but if I was making this decision it’s a no-brainer: go to Case Western. The BME programs at both Duke and Case are among the best in the country. And while I think that Duke’s current national ranking in this field is slightly higher than Case’s (#2 vs. #6) I can’t believe it would justify spending an additional $126K.</p>
<p>Sharon, Lonestar, Thanks for your replies.</p>
<p>Financial situation is not great. Lost one of our jobs in February. New annual income is about 60K. Monthly expenditure is about 2K greater than income but none of the colleges are willing to offer any financial aid.
D1 worked hard and got into JHU, NW, CMU and Wash U also. CMU is offering about 10K merit scholarship. Any other advice would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Save 100 grand and go to Case, which is a Great school.</p>
<p>If your income is 60k, how is Duke not offering any aid? Normally, if you can prove that you lost your job, they will reconsider your package. It is possible your package might not kick in until the spring semester, though. My family makes nearly twice that, and we pay only half price.</p>
<p>My experience with Duke financial aid has been really good, but if they are not willing to work with you, I guess that I would have to say go to Case.</p>
<p>Case Western at $90K > Duke at $220K. There is no way Duke is $130 better than Case. If money is tight, I would definitely recommend Case, which happens to have a top 10 BME program in the nation.</p>