<p>I'm not trying to get into Ivy League. The tuition and admissions process is completely ridiculous, if you ask me. I have 3 state schools to choose from here.</p>
<p>School 1 is a state university; I've earned a full-ride scholarship. No engineering program. I'll go after a physics degree because I like math. But I like it better when it's applicable to real life.</p>
<p>School 2 is a slightly more expensive school, but I have a potential free ride scholarship from there. I wont know till February. Their program seems to be a bit better than School 1, but I can't say that with certainty.</p>
<p>School 3 is also a state university, but is an engineering specific school, pretty much. Yeah, they offer English degrees, but it's a "Science and Technology" school. I will have somewhere from 35k - 50k in student debt, even with scholarships. It's not cheap. The nuclear engineering program interests me there</p>
<p>Which one should I pick? The job market, apparently, seems to favor engineers over anything and everything else. When people use that tired acronym "STEM" I say it should just be "E".</p>
<p>I see that you just got an ACT 34…congrats!!!</p>
<p>When you say that School 1 has given you a “free ride,” what exactly have you been awarded? Free tuition? or free tuition, room, board, books, fees, etc? </p>
<p>If School 1 is giving you free tuition only, then how will the rest get paid? </p>
<p>Is School 2 private?</p>
<p>Is School 3 Missouri S&T? </p>
<p>What are the schools? </p>
<p>You can only borrow $27k by yourself. (You can only borrow $5500 your frosh year). </p>
<p>Are your parents going to borrow the rest? or are they going to co-sign the rest? (most parents won’t do this) Have you asked them?</p>
<p>How much will your parents contribute each year? </p>
<p>@mom2collegekids Thanks for the response and congratulations. All 3 are public schools, and yeah, you guessed correctly on 3. </p>
<p>The two were SE Missouri State and the second was Missouri State (university). I’m just mainly concerned with getting a job out of graduation. The free rides are absolutely everything.</p>
<p>And I’m just mainly concerned with getting a job out of graduation. Nuclear engineering is almost a guarantee from what I hear, but a natural science degree -not so much</p>
<p>Physics is not so bad for getting a job. You will be competing for engineering jobs mostly. If you have a strong interest in Nuclear Engineering, you might be better off in the Engineering Physics program at SE Missouri State.</p>
<p>You don’t have to reply yet, right? You will get to see the award from school #2 in February? Does that school offer an engineering degree? It will be a lot of freedom for you to escape that debt (and as mentioned your parents will have to take some of it on.) Instead of servicing your loan you can be banking that money.</p>
<p>It’s nice to have a job, but even better to study and aim for a job in what you like. You might find this survey very interesting and maybe a little unexpected.
<a href=“Hard Times 2013: College Majors, Unemployment and Earnings - CEW Georgetown”>http://cew.georgetown.edu/unemployment2013/</a></p>
<p>7.0 - engineering
5.9 - mathematics
8.7 - computer science
6.6 - general science</p>
<p>@BrownParent You have to apply by Dec. 1st, but that’s okay because I already did.</p>
<p>And yes they offer electrical engineering, but only if you’re from a certain 8 counties from the state of MO. That’s so dumb, for I wouldn’t mind electrical either. Has anyone ever heard of a program like that?</p>
<p>And thanks I’ll take a look at it.</p>
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<p>I agree that an eng’g degree will be far more marketable…even with just a BS. </p>
<p>Will your parents contribute to college? If so, how much each year?</p>
<p>What is MS&T offering you? Do you not like this school because you think it will be “all work and no play”? Does it have an uneven male/female gender balance? </p>
<p>What do you want in a school?</p>
<p>There are other schools that will give you large merit awards. </p>