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<p>What if the private offers a generous merit scholarship (that is not unreasonably hard to keep) making the net cost significantly lower than the public? (That is assuming that the private is otherwise suitable, academically and otherwise.)</p>
<p>Older son, a junior, is at a third tier state, SUNY Plattsburgh, and is a physics major. He wanted a smaller school not a university within 3 hours of home and at the time wasn’t certain of his choice for a major. He has been incredibly nurtured and guided at this school. Last summer he did research with one of the physics profs and this summer has a paid Physics research internship elsewhere. In addition, he tutors both math and physics. We’ll see this Fall when he applies to grad school, but his mentor at college and a physics prof we know from church, both said that for physics grad school 3 things will matter: grades, GRE scores and 3 great recommendations. They both stated where you attend for undergrad is not that important. I’ll report back next Spring when he finds out his fate. So far, he and we are ecstatic with his choice and the opportunities afforded him by being a “big fish in a small pond”.</p>
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<p>Stonybrook being a weaker school than BU or NEU??? Am I reading this right?? Especially for heath related sciences???</p>
<p>Coming from someone who grew up in NYC…frankly…that’s so far off-base it isn’t believable.</p>
<p>Back when I was in high school in the early-mid '90s…the STEM/pre-med kids would be clamoring to get into SUNYSB unless they got near-full/full-rides from privates at the levels of Oberlin, Brandeis, URochester, Clark, Tufts, Barnard, or other schools at that level or higher. </p>
<p>BU and NEU? They were both regarded as schools for those at the very bottom of our graduating class for wealthy or lower-middle class kids respectively who “must be in Boston” or the few who won outstanding full-rides at the latter. </p>
<p>Unless they were the exceptional full-riders…nearly all of them wouldn’t have had the stats…even as in-staters to get admitted to SUNYSB.</p>
<p>“What if the private offers a generous merit scholarship (that is not unreasonably hard to keep) making the net cost significantly lower than the public? (That is assuming that the private is otherwise suitable, academically and otherwise.)”</p>
<p>Sure, if the amount of money is enough to counter-weigh the “stigma” 
of going to a lower tier private…</p>
<p>Our kids have the “stats” to get into the top 25 schools, however, not even considering them with the exception of one school. None of the top 25 schools have DS’s intended major, they don’t want to go “out east” at all (which is where many of them are). They are looking at pretty close to full rides at the “tier 3” schools with various merit aids available and those schools have much better programs for what they intend to major in so, why would you go somewhere else, that will cost $50,000/year more?</p>
<p>Won’t consider any state flagship school, WAY, WAY too big for them and quite honestly, with the exception of one Flagship, they don’t have as good of programs as the private schools they are considering.</p>
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<p>It’s funny how these things change. Right now, I think this is probably quite accurate. But ten years ago (or maybe even five), UMass would not have belonged in this group–admission has gotten much more competitive there since the recession hit, for reasons that are pretty obvious. And 20 years ago, Northeastern would not have belonged in it either. Now, they are probably the most competitive of the three. I worked in marketing at UMass Boston for most of the 90s and 00s, and from a competitor’s perspective, we were blown away (and not without envy) at the job Northeastern did of reinventing itself during that period. They spent an unbelievable amount of money doing it, of course, but they had a plan and it has paid off big for them.</p>
<p>Hmmm… At least at DD’s school (well regarded suburban school in Boston area), the stats of kids who got admitted to NEU, and, especially, BU are much higher then SB and especially UMass. UMass is considered the safety school for pretty much everyone. </p>
<p>I would say full rides from Brandeis, URochester or Tufts, would take a near ivy league statistics for kids from our school.</p>
<p>Like I said, for some reason it’s much easier to get into SUNYs from Mass than from NY. </p>
<p>As you can see below, Binghamton and Geneseo, which is a LAC, are quite a bit above UMASS. There is certainly no public LAC in Massachusetts of comparable quality. </p>
<p>Binghamton’s OOS tuition plus fees is $15,326. UMASS In-state tuition plus fees is $12,797. The difference is $2525. </p>
<p>Binghamton - 41% admitted, 50th percentiles CR 600-680, M 620-710, W 580-670
Stony Brook- 38% admitted, CR 540-640, M 590-690, W 530-640
Albany - 51% admitted, CR 500-580, M 520-610,
Buffalo - 53% admitted, CR 500-600, M 550-650
SUNY College at Genseo (honors LAC) 43% admitted CR 590-690, M 600-690</p>
<p>UMASS - 66% admitted, CR 530-630, M 560-650</p>
<p>Clearly Binghamton and Geneseo have higher scoring students than UMASS. At Binghamton, your D would still be in the upper quartile, but not terribly so</p>
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<p>Northeastern is often accused of abandoning its blue collar, working class Boston roots. But the truth is that by 1990 blue collar, working class Bostonians had abandoned Northeastern. By 1990, UMass Boston had evolved from the liberal arts school of its 1960’s origins to a real multi-school university. While coop was still a draw for NU, they discovered that a no frills private school could not compete with a no frills public school like UMass Boston. Northeastern had to upscale to survive and as Nightchef says, they did a remarkable job of it.</p>