So I have been struggling on making a decision about which college to attend. I want to major in Computer Engineering or Computer Science and eventually get a masters in Electrical Engineering. All of my college expenses will be paid through loans, so the cost is a real factor. My college choices so far are:
I would like to know what the best investment is for me. Also since I want to get a Masters in Electrical Engineering, will I able to do so if I have a Computer Science degree from Vassar? Or should I go to RPI for undergrad and then a cheap grad school? Or the other way around with Stony Brook?
Vassar for 1k a year is a steal. I love RPI’s academic’s for CS and stony brook is respectable, but Vassar will serve you well enough and is easily the best value. RPI is not worth 100k more in loans and I would take Vassar over SB in a vacuum. That one could easily be up for debate though, and SB’s price won’t put you in any ridiculous debt.
For CS, I would say Vassar closely followed by Stony Brook and forget about RPI. If you are more focused on the engineering side then I would say Stony Brook is your best bet, though I would get a second opinion on how the CS to EE transition is as I am not too familiar with that (for Vassar).
Thank you for the reply. and yes what worries me about Vassar is whether I will be able to get into a graduate school for engineering, since there really are no engineering courses offered there. Also do potential employers frown upon a CS degree from a liberal arts school?
OK, you got into 3 good schools, so you must be smart enough to answer your own question:
I would like to know what the best investment is for me: BORROWING $4000, $32000, or $100,000 to pay for my undergraduate degree from 3 reputable colleges, with the highest ranked one costing the least?
It must be time for my afternoon tea b/c my usually patient self is feeling cranky at the question.
If you want to study engineering, why did you apply to a college that doesn’t offer it?!
If you think that employers “frown upon” degrees from (highly ranked!) LACs, why did you apply to one?
As it happens, plenty of Vassar grads (including some who post here on CC) have gone on to great engineering grad schools. And there is loads of evidence (just ask our friends at Google) to say that LAC’s are well regarded by both grad schools and employers- assuming of course that the student has done their part.
@collegemom3717 Sorry, I know that it seems like a silly question, but I have made a lot of wrong decisions in my life and I wanted to do my research thoroughly for this one.
I applied to Vassar for because I was interested in Computer Science as well as Computer Engineering but now I have heard that its much harder to get into a Masters for Electrical Engineering program through an undergrad in Computer Science than through Computer Engineering.
I asked about employers frowning on liberal arts degrees because I read that on some of the forums while I was looking more into Computer Science program at Vassar.
Finally thank you for posting, because your post was helpful in clearing up some of my doubts. Thanks again.
Vassar and Stony Brook are the two within range of student self-funding (up to $5,500 federal direct loan and a few thousand dollars of part time work earnings). Obviously, Vassar requires a relatively small amount of loans or work earnings, while Stony Brook would likely require both the federal direct loan and some work earnings. RPI is too expensive if you must self-fund all of your college costs.
Vassar does have CS courses like computer architecture and digital electronics, and electromagnetic waves and optics courses in physics, but not really any courses relating to other areas of EE. So Vassar’s suitability depends on what areas of EE you would be looking at doing graduate work in (of course, you may decide not to go to graduate school, or do it in CS or some other subject besides EE).
@ConfusedToNoEnd, ucbalumnus asks a useful question: what is your goal?
Also, have you visited either/both? If not, move heaven and earth to get there over the next week. Seriously.
Stony Brook has great resources, and will have the specific courses that you are interested in (or at least, for what you are interested in now). You will be able to go straight into a Masters in EE, if that is what you want to do.
Vassar also has great resources- just different ones from Stony Brook. Imo, it is a fit school: it seems to really suit people- or it really just doesn’t.
The two experiences would be very different, but the good news for you is that neither would be a ‘wrong’ choice. You will get different things out of the experiences, but what will matter much, much more than any specific class you take is what you do with the opportunities and the resources that are available to you over the next for years.
$25K/year is too much to borrow for YOURSELF, but we don’t know your parent’s situation. This does seem like a logical choice for what you want to do. The question of is it worth it can only be made in the context of their finances and values. I have high income and think paying for my children’s private college is worth it. Others have lower income and don’t think so. Others have higher income and don’t think so. Others have lower income and think it’s worth going into risky debt.
If your parents, who know more about their own finances than anybody here, deem $25K/year too much, then you have two choices.
Vassar - well respected liberal arts college, no engineering, you can study CS.
Stony Brook, large impersonal state university that clears out on weekends, offers CS and EE.
These choices couldn’t be more different, so you need to decide for yourself whether the better learning environment but more limited path offered by Vassar is better for you than Stony Brook.
As ucbalumnus noted above the important question is why are you interested in obtaining a Masters in EE? If you have never taken an EE course are you sure you will have any interest in a degree? It’s difficult to make a college decision based upon a belief that getting EE might be a good idea.
The difficulty with the Vassar path to EE is that you won’t have a foundation of elementary EE courses to handle the masters EE course load. Also, if you are doing a research based Masters you won’t have any opportunity for applicable research at Vassar.
On the other hand, if you know you like CS and Math you should be perfectly fine with a degree in CS from Vassar. I’m not sure the added benefit to you of a Masters in EE.
Vassar also has a very interesting combined engineering program with Dartmouth. Unlike the 3-2 programs you find everywhere else, Vassar has a 2-1-1-1 program, meaning: freshman & sophomore years at Vassar; junior year at Dartmouth (kind of like a junior year abroad, only you’re in New Hampshire!); senior year back at Vassar (so you get to graduate with your friends); followed by one more year at Dartmouth. End result: B.A. from Vassar, plus a B.S. from Dartmouth.
I’m generally not a fan of 3-2 engineering programs, but this one allows you to do both your B.A. and your B.S. without compromising either one. You have to be admitted to the program (and it’s not easy to get into!), and you’d have to look into the availability of financial aid at Dartmouth for that 5th year, but it could end up being a good option for you.
I wouldn’t have chosen Vassar for science a few decades ago, but things have changed a lot since then! Among other things, it has a first-in-the-nation interdisciplinary robotics program . . . and because of the focus on undergrads, you’ll have opportunities for research at Vassar that you just wouldn’t have at a larger university. I’d accept Vassar’s offer and not look back!
Vassar for $1K/yr is an unbelievable opportunity. If you decide that you need a more EE oriented undergrad degree, you could do the 2-1-1-1 program or decide to transfer out after two years.
But if for some reason you decide that you want to focus on CS, Vassar is a solid degree and I think the Vassar name will make up for some perceived weakness in CS, especially compared to Stony Brook. RPI is just not worth 100K more than Vassar.
And if instead you decide you want to study Contemporary French Philosophy, well, you would be in the right place.
Thank you everyone for the replies. I have checked out the engineering program with Dartmouth and think its a good option. I’m going to enroll in Vassar and if I really decide I want engineering and don’t get into the 2-1-1-1 program, I’ll consider transferring. Thanks to all.
Be aware, however, that merit scholarships are much less common for transfer students than for frosh.
Also, when looking at the 2-1-1-1 program with Dartmouth, check on its financial aid policy for students in that program (and the net price calculator).
Vassar appears to have a larger selection of CS courses than some other LACs. Some of the more common ones, like operating systems, compilers, algorithms, and theory of computation, appear to be offered yearly, but some others appear to be offered less frequently, according to its archived schedules. So if one of the uncommonly offered courses shows up, take it, because you may not have another chance while you are there.
For the Vassar/Dartmouth program the 1st year at Dartmouth (year 3 or 4 of the progam) is covered under whatever financial aid you have from Vassar; the 2nd year (year 5, the BE year of the program) requires you to apply to Dartmouth for their financial aid package.