<p>My son is Interested in studying biomedical engineering, but may wind up changing to computer science, physics, math or some other engineering. He has been accepted to GT, and should be accepted to RPI. They will be about the same price, because of RPI scholarship. I know GT is ranked second only to JHU for BME, but RPI is smaller, seems like students may get more Individual attention, And classes will be smaller. He is very introverted and I'm worried that GT may be too Type A for him. Any advice regarding the two universities. I know they are both very good in the STEM fields. He is I treated on doing a semester abroad and will come in with close to 50 credits if he goes to GT, but RPI only let's freshmen bring in 32. I'd like to hear perspective of students and posters with more Information about the schools. THanks</p>
<p>Georgia Tech for BME or computer science.</p>
<p>Are you in NY or Georgia at the moment?</p>
<p>We are in Maryland. He has been accepted to UMD and Case Western (with substantial scholarship), but GT and RPI seem like the best overall. Why do you say GT for BME and computer science? Thanks</p>
<p>Georgia Tech is #2 as you mentioned for BME but also #6 for computer engineering which usually reflects a very good CS program. </p>
<p>Computer science itself is ranked #10, UMD is #14 for graduate school rankings.</p>
<p>[Best</a> Computer Science Programs | Top Computer Science Schools | US News Best Graduate Schools](<a href=“http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-science-schools/computer-science-rankings]Best”>http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-science-schools/computer-science-rankings)</p>
<p>Georgia Tech is also #5 in engineering overall. So given a choice between GTech and RPI for any field in engineering, GTech has to be given the edge.</p>
<p>I just dont know enough about Physics and Math. Quantmech is a faculty member in Physics somewhere if you are interested in PMing her.</p>
<p>They are both great schools with great reputations. You can’t go wrong with either. You gotta decide which is the better fit for your son.</p>
<p>Judging by the Shanghai rankings and by the quality of the students we see entering RPI from here in the Northeast, there is no comparison. Tech is a major global university in the top tier of engineering universities and very tough to get into. RPI is a strong regional engineering program that is very expensive, is very committed to diversifying into non-engineering majors to attract more women into the school and available to good, but not great, students. RPI’s competitive set is RIT, Worcester Polytech and Lehigh. Tech is competitive with the very best, ranking number five in engineering and CS globally in Shanghai, and it costs a lot less than RPI, even out-of-state.</p>
<p>Very confused by the previous post.</p>
<p>Georgia Tech has 67% in state, while RPI only has 31% in state (per College Board). It looks like Georgia Tech is more the local regional school than RPI.</p>
<p>Also, Georgia Tech has an acceptance rate of over 50%, while RPI’s is 40%, and RPI’s SATs are actually higher than Georgia Tech’s (for example, RPI’s Reading SATs are 620 - 710, while Georgia Tech’s are 600 -690).</p>
<p>So, it looks like it is harder to get into RPI than Georgia Tech.</p>
<p>In addition, here are the most common majors at RPI:</p>
<p>Engineering: 53%
Computer and Information Sciences: 9%
Business/Marketing: 8%
Architecture: 5%
Biology: 5%
Engineering Technologies: 5%
Physical Sciences: 5%</p>
<p>and here are Georgia Tech’s:</p>
<p>Engineering: 57%
Business/Marketing: 14%
Computer and Information Sciences: 6%
Biology: 5%</p>
<p>So, I don’t understsand the comment about RPI diversifying into other majors.</p>
<p>Very confused by the previous post.</p>
<p>Georgia Tech is certainly a very good school, as is RPI. I think deciding which one to go to is more a personal decision on which one fits best for you, on such factors as one school has 14,000 undergraduates, the other 5,300, and Georgia Tech’s larger class sizes (121 class sections and 29 subsections with a size of over 100, compared to a total of 12 class sections at RPI with a size of over 100).</p>
<p>Remember, you’re posting on the Georgia Tech forums. People are obviously going to be a little biased. </p>
<p>I’d take rankings with a grain of salt. They’re both great schools.</p>
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<p>When looking a “regional” vs. “national” school, you have to look at the employers that visit and where graduates are placed. If you have no other data, usually the top 15 or so in a field will recruiters from all over the country while the lower ranked schools tend to pull most of their recruiters regionally. </p>
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<p>You can’t compare acceptance rates between private and public schools. As the top public school in Georgia, virtually every top student in Georgia applies to GT. Even the obvious Ivy League-bound students (i.e. the 2400 SAT / 4.0 UW GPA / president of every club at school types) apply to GT, which skews the admission rates. You see the same thing at other flagships, which is why a top public school will have a 35-50% acceptance rate while a top private school will have a 5-20% acceptance rate. Also, GT’s acceptance rate was 47% last year, so not sure where the >50% comes from. </p>
<p>Comparing a first tier school and a second tier school depends on where your student ends up in the class. The bottom of the class from both schools will end up in the same place: back at home and living with you. The average students will also have a similar outcome on salary and employment, though GT will place more in the Southeast / Texas / California areas while RPI will place in the Northeast. The real difference are the top students. At the high end, GT students simply have access to graduate schools and career options that RPI students don’t have, even at the same company. It’s one thing to be hired by Boeing, it’s another to get hired into Phantom Works. GT will also give access to management consulting firms, bulge bracket banks, and venture capital careers which are basically closed to RPI graduates.</p>
<p>I did not go to either school. I have a couple of engineering degrees and believe that if one is serious about engineering, the ranking of the program ultimately matters if one wants to stay in the field and not do something else after undergrad that is no longer engineering. </p>
<p>It is no mean feat to be ranked number 3 in BME, ahead of MIT and ranked number 6 in Computer engineering, ahead of Caltech. The programs need to be really strong to beat two of the best engineering schools in the world. </p>
<p>RPI does not figure in either of those lists in top 10.</p>
<p>@CFB53B Very informative thank you.
“GT will also give access to management consulting firms, bulge bracket banks, and venture capital careers which are basically closed to RPI graduates.” and other information about post graduate fate is also informative. Can you direct me to where you can find this sort of information? I would like to read more about it with my daughter to help her decide. Thank you.</p>
<p>Yes, I would also be very intereted in getting source data on GT’s access to management consullting firms, bulge bracket banks, and venture capital careers.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone. Clearly people have strong opinions about the differences between these 2 schools. Can anyone speak to the travel abroad experience, internships and/or coop opportunities at each school?</p>
<p>I do not understand why parents are getting so defensive over their son/daughter’s school choice in this thread.</p>
<p>Both universities are world-class education centers. If your child works hard it will pay off. Go with whatever school they like more.</p>
<p>Keyword: “They”; not “you”.</p>
<p>Th</p>
<p>“They” have no income. It is upto the parent to ensure the parent’s money is being spent wisely.</p>
<p>If that is your parenting style, sure, go for it.</p>
<p>I’m glad my parents trust me. :-)</p>
<p>Joshua - Believe what you will and assume your parents did zero background research to understand the various choices you made.</p>
<p>There is not a single parent who is on college confidential because they are here talking to each other to kill time. They are all interested in ensuring their kids are making the right decisions. It has no bearing on their parenting style when they go around asking questions of other people.</p>
<p>Now you have read this, ask your parents if they asked anyone else to ensure you are making the right choices about colleges etc when presented with several college admissions.</p>
<p>Joshuaguit,
Are you at RPI? I think I’ve seen your name on RPI posts. If so, can you talk about your experience there? Did you coop or intern, or travel abroad? In the end I am leaving the decision up to my child, because all of the schools he’s considering are within the range I’m willing to pay for and all seem like pretty good to great schools. He has to live there for (hopefully) the next 4 years, so he will make the final call.</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>I am a senior who applied to both RPI and Georgia Tech and will be attending Tech next year (haven’t heard from RPI). I have visited both schools, and I highly recommend you do the same. Troy and Atlanta are nearly polar opposites. I found Troy to be a pretty bland city with little to do. Atlanta on the other hand is a booming metropolis. That said, some people still may prefer the quieter atmosphere of Troy.</p>
<p>Also, coming from OOS, Tech is costing about $16k less/year. I can answer any questions about either school’s campus and general admission information.</p>
<p>Thanks Propane. Why did you make the decision before hearing from RPI? We have visited both, and my son did a connect with tech overnight session. He doesn’t care about the weather, and he is an RPI medalist so we will pay about the same amount for either school. I like them both, and want to help him to a good comparison. Right now I’m leaning slightly towards RPI, because he has scholarship and it’s a smaller school, but GT is an awesome school also. I’ll be happy with whichever he picks. He has said he does NOT want to go to our state flagship, but he’s got a couple of months to change his mind on that too.</p>