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</p>
<p>If the OP had been a female, I would have said the same thing about the male students.</p>
<p>It's not like I didn't hear any girls complaining that the guys at CMU weren't as good looking as the ones they'd meet down at Pitt.</p>
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You made the right choice; probably going to see a lot cuter girls in your chem classes at UMD than CMU, too.
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RacinReaver, speaking as a female who majored in engineering at a tech school, a wink does not excuse the remark. That is a nasty thing to say.
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<p>wooow. someone's overreacting like an old grandma. i don't understand what's so nasty about calling girls "cuter." it's not like he said "sexier girls" well, even then, w the heck</p>
<p>OP:</p>
<p>So here's the deal. Let's say you go to CM. You graduate, in debt, and have only loans or grad school (more loans) to look forward to. </p>
<p>OR</p>
<p>You go to Maryland. You graduate. Debt free. And you can look forward to: grad school (a nice expensive one, since you're debt-free :)] or an exciting gap year to pursue interests... (no loans to start paying off)... or a trip around the world (ditto) or buying a cool car (ditto.)</p>
<p>CMU gets you an education. Maryland gets you an education. And freedom.
Which to choose?</p>
<p>Lots of misinformation in this thread. It definitely depends on what school at CMU but CMU is not just an education, it is basically a career/trade school that will get you the highest job salaries and opportunities (again, if your school/major is one of the marketable ones) if in engineering/cs/business/IS/IT/etc. </p>
<p>Even the honors post grad surveys at a better public, my state flagship UVA, does not match the opportunities and job salaries of some of CMU's schools/majors.</p>
<p>Whether one particular person can make more money or not is total speculation. Graduating with at least $80k in debt is not. Advising someone to stay far away from that debt is not misinformation.</p>
<p>Years of collected data of thousands of graduating students is not speculation. In fact, such data has a margin of error of only a few percent if that. Ask some of the many alumni who graduated with debt, it is not hard to pay off 80k when your salary is 80k (Last Year's ECE average) or even 100k (a student graduating in the top of the class who lands near the max).</p>
<p>By now its a personal choice for MCS (science) but for CS, making 90k -100k easily pays off low-interest government 80k loans.</p>
<p>I do understand if you claim dropping out to be a risk or to only want a certain specific company and role (I want Goldman Sachs Ibanking!), but salaries and mode (top hiring) companies are VERY consistent and to call postgrad surveys "speculation" is absurd and an insult to any statistics major and/or the statistics field as a whole.</p>
<p>Also I was not referring to your post alone when I made mine, so no need to be defensive. I agree debt should be avoided if possible.</p>
<p>Good choice, mahn!</p>
<p>LOL @ tech school girls hating cute girls</p>
<p>Feel good about your UMCP decision. As a recruitment manager for a major aerospace company, we consider CMU and UMCP to be effectively equivalent...and salary offers to graduates of both schools are statistically the same.</p>
<p>By the way...I hope no one expects having just an undergraduate degree from either of these schools (or MIT for that matter) will grant you some sort of assumed entitlement. You will get low-level, relatively menial assignments until you prove yourself. Additionally, for real advancement, we would expect advanced degrees as well.</p>
<p>If its where you WANT to go and where you will FIT IN THE BEST, then you made the RIGHT decision. Prestige is highly overrated especially if you are unhappy.</p>
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I think you made a huge mistake for not going all out to have the best college experience possible.
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<p>How easy it is to spend other people's money! Whose money are you using next year when you go to college, jman? Money YOU worked for personally, or your parents' money?</p>
<p>"salary offers to graduates of both schools are statistically the same."
"You will get low-level, relatively menial assignments until you prove yourself. "</p>
<p>I disagree, here is the CMU ECE example <a href="http://www.studentaffairs.cmu.edu/career/employ/salary/ECE.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.studentaffairs.cmu.edu/career/employ/salary/ECE.pdf</a> mean/median of 80k with an additional avg 25k stipend.</p>
<p>I suggest talking to the alumni of both schools to best base your decision instead of listening to random people talk about schools they never attended or are just speculating upon. Bill Gates gave a few interesting talks over here at CMU before/after donating the Gates Center so I would try to youtube the questions asked rather than listening to random person A or random person B.</p>
<p>Pizzagirl- You're being ridiculous. The OP hasn't even mentioned his parent's money in the entire equation, it's implied. The OP has made it clear that the afford ability of his/her family does not cover the tuition cost for CMU, thus the issue with the debt.</p>
<p>THINK ABOUT IT: even if somehow the OP did not like the school and transferred into CMU, the debt and the responsibility of paying it off would be ON him/her, not the parents.</p>
<p>And just so you know, when you say "spending other people's money," an undergraduate education is NOT like going shopping. Please. Of course the OP has the unalienable right to make a decision that is best in terms of fit, salary yield after graduation, etc. A lot of parents nowadays underestimate the importance of planning and come time for college- "OH NO, you're spending our money!"</p>
<p>It's not like you didn't know this was going to happen!</p>
<p>"OH NO, you should have started a savings account/been financially stable and considered your financial stance before you had me because GUESS WHAT? I'm GOING TO COLLEGE, and the best one that will fit my needs at that."</p>
<p>Perhaps you should have edited a bit more.</p>
<p>She was talking to Jmanco or w/e, not the OP.</p>
<p>Ferrel, please re-read. I was addressing my comments to jman, not to the OP.</p>
<p>While I <em>personally</em> will spend whatever it takes for my kids to go to the college of their choice, it's also easy for me to say that I'll go all out when I can without compromising my retirement, savings, etc. While I would do everything possible to have my kids have "the best college experience ever," I can't be ignorant of the fact that debt is indeed a very big deal and it can be a very prudent decision for someone to go to a less expensive school.</p>
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OH NO, you should have started a savings account/been financially stable and considered your financial stance before you had me because GUESS WHAT? I'm GOING TO COLLEGE, and the best one that will fit my needs at that.
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<p>Are parents obligated to fund *every college choice their kids make? I wouldn't particularly feel great about funding my kids the OOS cost of going to Arizona State, for example, when I have a very good state flagship that would be both cheaper and better.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I disagree, here is the CMU ECE example <a href="http://www.studentaffairs.cmu.edu/ca...salary/ECE.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.studentaffairs.cmu.edu/ca...salary/ECE.pdf</a> mean/median of 80k with an additional avg 25k stipend.
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<p>The mean salary for undergraduates is $60k, not $80k. The $80k is for students graduating with a master's degree.</p>
<p>My old roommate from CMU took a job at Raytheon up in Boston. My girlfriend from UCI was offered a job at Raytheon in Irvine. Both were offered the same amount of money and were going to be hired in at the same rank.</p>
<p>I understand the weight of debt and the impact it has on where students go to college, that it's a prudent decision, probably a lot better than most students. I turned down my "dream" college because of debt. And the truth is, I'm ever so happy that I don't have that financial burden on my back. And I love my current school! </p>
<p>In terms of your second post, the example you put forth is not logical. Please re-read yourself: </p>
<p>"Of course the OP [any student] has the unalienable right to make a decision that is best in terms of fit, salary yield after graduation, etc...and the best one that will fit my needs at that." In terms of the scenario you offered, neither one of the factors I suggested fall in Arizona State's favor. Of course you wouldn't feel great about funding that kind of education, neither would any other parent [or any participating student thinking clearly at that].</p>
<p>Ferrel812, I think you're confused about what I authored and what I didn't. </p>
<p>I was not the author of the "Of course the OP has the unalienable right to make a decision that is best ..." quote you attributed to me.
I didn't even address that comment.
My comments were directed at jman, who thinks that the person made a "huge mistake in not going all-out for the best college experience," by reminding him that it's easy to spend other people's money.</p>
<p>There are always exceptions, and even Harvard grads sometime work with CC grads, such as at Lockheed (same rank/job). Also, if one Temple grad gets Goldman, do we assume all Temple grads will get the same? </p>
<p>That is why Mode companies and avg salaries are useful here.</p>
<p>"By now its a personal choice for MCS (science) but for CS, making 90k -100k easily pays off low-interest government 80k loans."</p>
<p>What low-interest government loan for $80k can you get? Let me know - and I'll go out and have my daughters get it tomorrow! </p>
<p>The lowest government loan for $80k available for the OP is the PLUS loan, at 8.5%, but he can't get it - only his parents can. Other than that, it doesn't exist. And NO bank is going to loan him $80k even at 11% when it would take an average salary of more than $130k over the first 10 years after graduation to pay it off. (and the average CMU graduate doesn't get anywhere close to averaging that - but it doesn't matter, as all that matters is what the bank thinks). </p>
<p>The OP "thinks" he made a decision. In fact, he didn't. But his non-decision was a terrific one, both educationally and financially.</p>