I am currently choosing between the two different schools. If cost were not a factor, I would be choosing UC Irvine without hesitation. That being said, cost IS a factor and although Syracuse was a safety school, it is also free for me to attend. I would like to add that my parents are financially equipped to pay the 16k a year it would cost to attend UCI, they have enough money saved to pay for UCI without going into debt or being extremely burdened by it. I feel that I will be happier at UCI (based mostly on bias because I am familiar and in love with the area and school), but Syracuse is also fantastic and I can definitely see myself there as well. UCI has the major that I am interested in, Cognitive Science, but Syracuse only offers Cog Sci as a minor. UC Irvine also has a better reputation than Syracuse, it is ranked higher overall and I feel will provide more opportunity because of its location in Orange County. If you were in my shoes and financial situation, what would you do?
Also another important note, I’ll be going to the schools on the Army ROTC so if you guys have any information on how the two units compare that would be great as well!
$16k per year meaning that you live within commuting distance of UCI and your parents will cover your live-at-home and commuting costs?
What would you major in at Syracuse?
Do you want to end up back in California after you graduate?
If you would be a psych major with a cogsci minor at Syracuse, and you would want to come back to CA and get a job after graduation… I think I’d probably make the investement in UCI. It could be hard to make the leap back to CA jobs with that degree. It depends what you want to do. Syracuse does have a Linguistics department with a Computational Linguistics masters program, so that specialty area is well supported if you wanted to do a Ling major, CogSci minor, and get enough CS background to work in the Natural Language Processing field. Or you could do one of the fast-track Info Science masters programs. Basically, anything that gives you a more tangible CS/IT/UX/NLP skill-set could make that SYR degree marketable, but if it’s more of a plain-vanilla psych/cogsi bachelors and you aren’t looking to go straight to grad school, getting CA jobs could be a bit of an uphill battle vs. coming out of UCI.
I say that as the parent of a Rice University CogSci major, who ended up working in Houston after graduation because the “reach” of Rice, recruitment-wise, is just fine for getting STEM jobs back in CA but not as much for the social sciences. I would expect similar but more so, at Syracuse.
If you were doing one of the preprofessional programs that are particularly strong at Syracuse, like business or architecture or journalism or fashion design, then I’d tell you to jump on the free ride and not look back. But for CogSci, for a CA student who hopes to stay on the west coast, I’d think UCI would probably be worth the $16Kx4 if your family can afford it, which is seems they can. OTOH if you hope to end up on the east coast then go to Syracuse and work the internship and recruitment connections there. So… it depends.
$16K/year for UCI really isn’t bad, if it’s manageable.
If your parents can afford it, go to UCI. Even if you have to borrow a little, you will have a job/commitment right out of college so loan payments should be manageable. $16k is not a lot to pay every year for the school you want. You also may be able to cut that down a little in subsequent years if you live/eat off campus, get a job, pick up more grants and scholarships.
16k per year meaning the cost of room and board. I do not plan to commute as we currently do not live in the area. We will not be pulling out any loans as they already have enough money saved up to pay it off. Because my scholarship is tied to ROTC I will be commissioning into the Army straight out of college, making about 40k a year for the first two years. If I were to go to Syracuse my plan would be to major in Computer Science and minor in Cognitive Science. Thank you all so much for the help by the way!
You’re saying that you’ll do ROTC at either school, correct?
If you’d do CS with a CogSci minor at Syracuse, vs. CogSci (maybe with a CS minor, or at least the equivalent in terms of coursework) at UCI, and your postgrad employment picture is fully settled either way because of ROTC, then I feel like you’re pretty set and can really base the decision on where you’d like to be.
I mean, sure, the $64K that you’d save by going to Syracuse is real money, and it bears thinking about whether your preference for UCI is on that order of magnitude. But it doesn’t sound as if spending that money on your education is going to put you or your family in a bad position going forward. You’re earning the majority of the cost with your military service so IMHO you shouldn’t give up a school you really prefer over the $16K/year differential. Go where you see yourself thriving!
I’d assumed you were in-state for UCI but if your low COA is because of ROTC then maybe I was wrong - are you in CA?
I ask because the other question is what position you’d be in if, after a year in ROTC (and a presidential election, and etc.) you had second thoughts about passing the “point of no return” at the beginning of sophomore year, and wanted to drop out of ROTC, being at a school you could potentially afford without the scholarship would have value as well.
Yes, regardless of the school that I attend I will be doing ROTC. I am not currently a California resident, but because my dad is an Active Duty in the military the out-of-state supplemental tuition is waived. So, if I were to drop out of ROTC the cheaper option for me would be UCI.
Sounds like UCI is the better option for your criteria.
That being said at UCI you’ll mostly have very large lecture classes v. Honors at Syracuse which will be more personalized, that’d be my main worry.
OP: You have already received great advice in this thread.
SAD (seasonal affective disorder) can be a concern for some in overcast Syracuse, New York.
CS majors are in demand, so Syracuse University is a very attractive option with respect to establishing a career path.
Earthquakes and wild fires can be a concern for some in sunny & dry Southern California. ? ?
Depending on where you live, airline travel costs could factor in - especially if family plans to travel to visit you. Depending on how many times you travel (Thanksgiving? Spring break?), a lot of the savings at Syracuse could be eaten up if you live out West. Something to think about.
SAD is a near certainty for the afflicted in central New York, while earthquakes and wildfires are not even though quite common. Regardless, the surfing is better in Southern California than it is in Syracuse, New York.
I’m not sure whether that was in jest, but ROTC kids aren’t typically preoccupied with surfing and SAD.
@zippittydoodah : look at what ROTC entails at each university (location of courses and fieldwork, how many complete Advanced Camp…)
Is the OP one of the “afflicted”? If not, why are we even talking about it? And why are we not talking about it for everyone in the Great Lakes region?
Climate change is having severe affects on California in the form of drought and landslides as well as wildfires. You don’t have to have a particular condition to be one of the ones affected if the effects of these conditions hits your area. Occidental and Pepperdine are justtwo of the colleges in the LA area to have wildfires come within just a mile or two of campus just a couple of years ago. Both were faced with decisions about whether to evacuate.
You might also have noted by my emojis that my comment was a little tongue-in-cheek attempt at humor.
I was & am serious about my evaluation of which school offers better access to surfing.
Getting up early in January for PT and flag duty at Syracuse does not sound appealing. The choice already sounded pretty obvious. Good luck.
If you would find that you need to withdraw from ROTC, which of these would still be affordable for your family? Both? Neither? Include that in your decision-making. Every year there are students who find themselves in that situation through no fault of their own because of unexpected health issues.