Not sure where this thread should be placed… but curious what folks think about where would you “gently nudge” your child to attend … GT or VT ???
We’re leaning towards GT. Cheaper. Slightly higher “ranked” whatever that’s worth (not much, just parent ego I believe, right?).
Yes yes, our kiddo need and will decide on his own, but curious what everyone would do …
My kid is going to Virginia Tech, but if he got into Georgia Tech and it was cheaper, then I’d nudge him there.
Since we live in Virginia, Virginia Tech is much cheaper, so if we had the choice between the two, I’d encourage that.
There’s a definite theme - cost. These are two very good schools, but they are different. Virginia Tech is in a very rural area with a very small town. Georgia Tech is in the middle of Atlanta. So you have a very different feel.
I don’t know too much about Georgia Tech’s campus culture, but Virginia Tech’s students tend to be very enthusiastic about loving their school. On tours there, the amount of students wearing VT merch was very high, and the students seem very happy. I did not tour Georgia Tech, so I can’t speak about that – @VirginiaBelle should be able to answer that though.
I’m assuming engineering major – you can’t go wrong from an outcome perspective or rigor perspective with either choice. GeorgiaTech being in a major metropolitan area might give more breadth of internships right there than Virginia Tech. But speaking to VT alum and students, they don’t seem to have a problem getting summer internships either.
Congrats, this is a nice problem to have…
I don’t think you can go wrong with either (if you’re stuck on rankings, GT nudges VT there).
My D is at VT (in a non-STEM major) and is very happy with the campus culture, friendliness and unpretentiousness of the students. It’s a very low-key, come as you are type of campus with TONS of school/alumni/sports spirit. If your kiddo likes the outdoors, you can’t beat the New River Valley area of VA!
I don’t have a kid at GT but have known students there and while they have loved it, they have remarked that it does seem to have an intense, more academic-focused vibe.
Depending on the difference in cost (e.g., if I were in-state for one or the other), I would stive for the best overall fit.
My dd is at GT and loves it! It is challenging, but she has the support she needs, the fun she wants and loves being in a big city (we are from a small town).
Major ?
They are not the same - one is in the middle of nowhere (cool town tho), arguably both the nicest campus (IMHO) and best rated food in the country. And food should matter - you’d be amazed at how many kids get low blood sugar for not eating or spend big bucks eating out.
The other is in the city but people on here speak highly of the actual campus if you’re inside it. The food - just going by niche - is not rated well.
Each school will be higher rated in certain majors. Both are great schools but Ga Techs rep for some majors is in the stratosphere.
But in the end it’s a lifestyle difference. And I think it’s pretty pronounced.
No point in choosing a school due to rank if you’ll be miserable.
You should visit both and see if one environment is more comfortable than the other.
Outcomes will be solid from both schools. I’m a huge Va Tech fan but it’s because it’s a traditional type college - albeit really big. And the campus is gorgeous. I hate downtown Atlanta and Ga Tech is very close. I just don’t like the city.
But that’s why you need to visit both. Your student will have preference for one over another based on visiting. Your student may love the city and not like being in the middle of nowhere. Everyone is different.
Good luck.
How small of a town?
We’re from a rural outside of a county/city that if mapped out includes a total total of 300,000 people.
We’ve exposed him to bigger cities like Cleveland, NYC, Rome, Florence, … but ATL is huge and way different than visiting. That written, being on campus should be pretty insulated if want/need.
Biomedical Engineering… of which GT is #2 in country … but I don’t think for Undergrad that really matters.
I just know GT in general… is on page-one of schools where as VT, CWRU, RPI, etc., are not… but very very great schools.
Plan to visit GT shortly.
Agree with that comment on ‘page one.’ My son is at a way lesser than Va Tech school but got into a page one or one point 5 engineering school (Purdue). I hated the decision but frankly he’s likely done just as well as he would have outcome wise.
So you’re looking at US News. They list 33 schools Va Tech isn’t one of them. That said, I’m not sure a magazine should dictate lives.
Given where Ga Tech is located, it’s probably stronger for that reason alone - lots of related activity in Atlanta.
All said though, what if your student doesn’t like the environment? You don’t want to be somewhere for four years that you don’t like.
Glad you are getting to visit. Hopefully it goes well - ie it cements a decision one way or another. Good luck.
I have visited both and have one current GT student and one future GT student both engineers. We are in state for GT. Have you been to both? They are very different! While I loved VT, it is very rural! My current GT kid thought it was too rural for him, with very little outside the campus to do. He is a big mountain bike rider and likes the outdoors so that was appealing but Blacksburg is tiny (!) but very charming. He also is an urban kid (working in NYC this summer) so it was really not his ideal setting.
My HS senior never visited but I think he would have liked it more than the older one. He was admitted but is going to GT.
Some other differences:
As mentioned, VT is super rural. GT is in the middle of midtown Atlanta - very hip happening area with tons of great restaurants and very desirable place for young professionals to live. Internships seem easy to come by at GT and many are available in Atlanta so you can live on campus and work - my son has done this both in the summer and in the fall, living on campus both times to save money. GT campus is very safe but you need to be aware when you go off campus like you would in any major metropolitan city. Students know they are in an urban area and treat it as such so I don’t hear as much about off campus crime at GT as I do at UGA in a college town.
GT is 70 plus percent STEM - which gives it a nerdier vibe with lots of tech-y things happening all around. Their homecoming parade has student made engineering contraptions which are always the highlight. The park outside the civil engineering building is based on a mathematical formula. The bridge to the computing building has ASCII binary code on it as decoration - your guess is as good as mine as to what it spells out! You will never mistake that you are at a STEM based school, for sure! It also means it is challenging - and everyone on campus is working hard. Contrast that to VT which has STEM but also other majors that are less time intensive. Engineering/CS is hard everywhere and to do well you need to put the time in. I personally think it is a plus to be somewhere where everyone is working - work hard play hard environment - vs somewhere where you are working and your roommate is going out every night 
The flip side is you are surrounded by STEM kids and being around diverse majors could be a plus.
You will have snow in Blacksburg and likely won’t see it in Atlanta!
GT is smaller and super walkable. You can get from one side of campus to the other in 20 minutes.
Both have great school spirit!
If you have a chance to visit both I would recommend! We are going to an admitted student tour at GT even though my son has been and has a sibling there. We found it very helpful for our oldest - plus Atlanta in the spring is lovely! My guess is if you do your child will have a distinct preference - very different environments but both great schools.
If she ends up liking GT after the visit, and can tolerate the Atlanta area, and it’s cheaper and has the higher ranked program in her major then it would seem like a no-brainer.
Has she visited VT/Blacksburg yet? Curious what her impressions were.
What state is she coming from? If she has to fly, getting to VT would be less convenient than flying into ATL.
Something else to keep in mind, Virginia Tech’s biomedical engineering program is still relatively new (I think 4 or 5 years). So, Georgia Tech has a definite edge there.
There was a good point about travel… Blacksburg is not easy to get to.
GT, hands down , especially since you said BME.
This made me laugh.
Should have clarified - I meant from a traffic/congestion standpoint - no other shade intended!
For BME undegrad matters. Gatech BME is very different from the rest.(What they cover in Bachelor usually students study in Grad school.) They study real things. They do not even use books. What they study is not in the books.
Mom of GaTech BME student.
We are from a small town in middle GA - so Atlanta is the closest large city. The total population (city, surrounding county) is about 50K. The plan is for my GT student to live on campus for at least 3 years. Campus is extremely safe! No car needed.
Unless cost is a major, major factor I would choose GT hands down. Virginia Tech is an impressive place but it reaches nowhere near Georgia Tech, which is tier 1 for industrial engineering, mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, cybersecurity, BME, comp sci, and others. It’s #1 in the US for industrial, civil, aerospace, and cyber. The other engineering disciplines are close behind. Virginia Tech can’t touch those kinds of numbers.
If GT is cheaper AND your child likes the school that would be my “nudge.”
~$10K-$15K cheaper per year to attend GT.
9 hour drive to Blacksburg (I’ve been there, loved the charm)
13 hour drive to Atlanta*
We think the visit will do him in one way or the other…
why? Or just funny moment?
My view… we’re purposely going to “land lock” our kiddo no matter where the go to college… no car… and ATL being a 13 hour drive from our home, yeah, no car, not even senior year… just not going to happen. So we think this keep kiddo 98% of the time on campus. No? So if the campus is nice, so be it.
Weather is a push… lots of snow when home on winter break! 