Engineering Schools in the Northeast ( Rutgers vs Rowan vs TCNJ )

College Search & Selection
1

Hello, i am a senior in NJ and i have been accepted to Rutgers, Rowan, TCNJ, Stony Brook, and NJIT.
I have narrowed it down to Rutgers, Rowan, or TCNJ and i need guidance deciding between them since they are fairly similar ( to me at least) … Now here are the facts
Financial aid would be about the same for all three school, so i would not have to take out loan for any. However, Rowan is giving me a merit scholarship so housing would be free as well.

I would like to dorm, and if i decide to go to Rutgers my parents would probably not allow me to dorm since it is fairly close to my house so commuting would make the most sense to them.

Here’s what i know about each school and anyone with better knowledge can chime in to correct me

Rowan:
Medium size school
Diverse Student body
Small suburban setting but close to big cities
small student-faculty ratio
Fairly recognized Engineering School
impeccable Engineering facilities
Unique designed based curriculum seems to provide the opportunity to be hands on from freshman year
Overall not as well known as the other two

TCNJ:
Small size school
Most selective out of the three
Engineering is not their best program ( i heard it’s more of a liberal arts college)
Most academically challenging
small student-faculty ratio
Well known in NJ only

Rutgers:
Very Large University (too big)
Very diverse
Good Engineering Co op program and connections
Engineering program not as hands on as Rowan’s
Larger student-faculty ratio
Most well known of the three

I am in the process of visiting each campus now and taking a closer look at their engineering programs… But some perspective from people with knowledge about any of these schools would be very much appreciated

So far i’m kind of leaning towards Rowan for multiple reasons ( I want to dorm, and a hands on engineering program is VERY important to me), My parents however are worried that Rowan’s little reputation will greatly affect job placement after graduation, and for this reason are leaning towards Rutgers… How much of a difference is there between these schools in terms of job placement and what do jobs generally look for ( well known university vs. better gpa etc. )
Also is there a website where i can view data such as % of student that graduated from each school and found a job within a certain amount of time or anything like that ? i know payscale lists them by average salary after graduation but i’m more concerned about finding a job at all.

Any help would be appreciated as i have to make my decision soon and each school offers advantages over the others and i’m having a hard time deciding, Thank you !

2

“…it is fairly close to my house so commuting would make the most sense to them.”

No. College is supposed to be a time of expanding your horizons and getting away from home. Unless financially unfeasible you should live in the dorms your first year at least.

Which engineering discipline interests you? It’s likely that Rutgers will be the school with the most desirable engineering assets and facilities, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the gap between RU and the others is significant for your purposes. As far as student employment goes, engineering tends to be fairly regional. That is, not many west coast firms recruit engineers from NJ schools etc., but again your career options will depend on your career objectives.

3

I completely agree but yeah its mostly due to money… rowan is giving me a merit scholarship + financial aid so housing would not cost me much (non actually just personal expenses) … Also i am planning on studying either mechanical or biomedical engineering. Any idea if companies even in the tri state area would prefer one of these colleges over the others ?

4

Check the Rutgers et al websites career section to see which recruiters come calling at those specific campuses. The good news is, biomedical and pharma firms are numerous in your region (New England, New Jersey and Pennsylvania).

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I am a 25±year recruiter. For you, Rowan is the way to go, if you can envision yourself succeeding there. Not too big, not too small. Hands-on approachable professors, not teaching assistants. You will far more likely get out in four years (not as easy to do at Rutgers). For whatever reason (class availability #1 from my experience), Rutgers will cost you at least another semester or two.

Rowan has a very good engineering reputation and brand. Better than TCNJ. TCNJ has a nice facade, but it’s core isn’t as good. Admission standards for non-engineers are slightly higher than Rowan’s. For social life, TCNJ students are more likely to visit Rowan or Rutgers than the other way around. If you need to attend big football and basketball games, go to Rutgers for football and Philly for basketball.

There is an increasing private, political, and public commitment to Rowan, centered around engineering and healthcare.

You are a number at Rutgers NB. For engineering placement, there is no edge over Rowan, Stevens, or NJIT. It’s on you.

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Is an in-state senior with 3.6 GPA and 29 in ACT a competitive candidate for Rowan Engineering?

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SAT > ACT for Rowan Engineering, particularly the Math & Critical Reading scores (writing not really a factor). I’d say 650+ in each, especially math, is what you are shooting for.

Advanced Placement classes, with scores 3-5, move you up in line.

Class Rank > raw GPA, which is being factored in less and less. A class rank in the top 5-15% will earn grants and scholarships.

Good luck!

8

Rowan needs 2 or 3 more years of development before NJ residents wake up to the school.

I think the Rowan Boulevard project is a game changer for the school in terms of street acceptance.

Good option for instate students.

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My best friend attends Rowan. I’d say it’s a good school, equal to Rutgers and just under TCNJ and Stevens for overall academic quality. Very underrated school, it’s almost as good as mine lol.

But for real, I’d consider Rowan and TCNJ before I consider Rutgers. It seems that you don’t want a super big school, and Rutgers is exactly that. You’d be better served by going to either of the other two.

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I don’t know of any TCNJ students that “visit” Rutgers for student life. That was a totally ignorant comment. TCNJ has the "happiest campus " status in NJ. They also just broke grown on a brand new $70,000,000 STEM facility to be completed over two years. (and they have a history of completing ahead of schedule). That with the brand new Campus Town $120,000,000 plus the other projects … well the place was beautiful to begin with and now its no wonder they are the top ranked public. True Rowan probably gets the slight nod on the engineering dept but with this
new facility I would expect that to change as well.

Also TCNJ is widely known in the Tristate area.

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broke ground . sorry for typo

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TCNJ is the most widely known.
Rowan isn’t a bad school, but it’s not well-known.

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Go for TCNJ and Rutgers. Just choose based on fit. What do you want more? Large school with sports or small, relatively quiet school. Rowan is nowhere close compared to TCNJ and Rutgers.

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@SternBusiness I’d contend that Rowan is as good as Rutgers, actually. Rutgers isn’t great at all lol

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@LBad96 Rutgers New Brunswick isn’t great at all? Rutgers blows Rowan out of the water in pretty much everything. They shouldn’t even be comparable imo.

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@SternBusiness Why don’t you visit all three and take the Rutgers bus from campus to campus like the students do everyday. Then compare them.

Rowan continues to get better while Rutgers gets worse.

In terms of undergraduate engineering they are probably equal but Rowan has better facilities and is much more pleasant especially now with the Boulevard project.

17

Undergraduate engineering at Rowan may be decent, but it is not as good as rutgers. That I am sure of. “Better” facilities does not make Rowan higher ranked.

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What is the basis for saying Rutgers gets worse? It is a nationally recognized and ranked engineering school that is not easy to get into nor to graduate from. It is ranked in the 50s nationally. Rowan is still not as well regarded as Rutgers for engineering. They are up and coming, but not quite there yet.

As to the current question, you should be competitive for admittance to Rowan engineering. Based on our school’s naviance, you would be an easy admit to the school. But check with your own school to see. If Rowan is rolling, apply early. Rutgers is on rolling admissions and applying early will help your chance (if you are interested).

Good luck!

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The way I rank: What firm would view an average Rutgers engineering student ahead of a superlative Rowan engineering student? I haven’t met that company yet.

How many Rowan engineering grads on-the-market are without job offers? Haven’t met one. Will the Rowan grad’s resume be screened out in favor of a Rutgers grad’s? From my experience, nope. Will the Rutgers grad get offered better money and perqs than a Rowan grad at the same company for the same job? Nope.

Rutgers’ engineering/science school was established in the mid-1860s. Rowan’s was in the mid-1990’s. I would hope that Rutgers would be more established. Heck, with that history, why isn’t Rutgers #1?

As far as “well regarded”, it depends on the Regarder. A couple of years ago, I placed a Rowan grad with a company based in North Carolina. The person worked out well. They recently called me and asked if I had any interested Rowan grads. I assume they would have asked me for a Rutgers grad, had the previous success been a Rutgers grad. Would they have screened out a Rutgers grad if I didn’t have a Rowan grad? Don’t think so, unless other Rutgers grads they interviewed were perceived as “duds”. Would they have considered a Rowan grad if I didn’t have a Rutgers grad? Probably, but it might’ve required a little selling/education on my part. “Regarded” and “established” is a two-sided coin.

Both schools are good in totally different ways. No need to disparage one to boost the other.

Besides, after just a couple years in the “real world”, one’s project list (and one’s role in the project) is far more important than the name on the diploma.

SternBusiness shouldn’t be so sure of what he/she is “sure of”.

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@SpacemanEd Your sharing an example of one student who received an offer. I never once said Rowan was a bad school, I’m just stating that Rutgers is a more recognized school and places significantly better. Rowan is up in coming, but to state that Rowan == Rutgers at this point in time isn’t true