<p>Hi, First post, sorry if it doesn't go here!
So I was accepted into these schools plus Purdue, but due to costs I narrowed it down to these three.
I am an international student from South America, looking to major on Mechanical, Aerospace or Automotive Engineering. I seek for a school with a strong engineering program, but also one with a nice campus (I don't care if urban or rural). Also a factor I seek is that the school has a decent formula SAE, Baja, etc programs, as I am interested on joining that types of teams.
From these three schools, I am leaning towards Wisconsin and Penn State, but still I am unsure which to pick. I know Schreyer is a huge plus for Penn. I feel like Penn has stronger academics than Wisconsin, but I do like more the Wisconsin campus (based on pictures, probably will go there).
One of my major concerns, is the capability of both schools to later get a job. Is there a real difference between what they can offer me in terms of future employment, with regards to employers?</p>
<p>Still I am curious to hear what people have to say, hopefully maybe another international student attending these schools can pitch in some interesting point for each school.</p>
<p>Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>This website has some basic information about the schools:
<a href=“http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-engineering-schools/eng-rankings”>http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-engineering-schools/eng-rankings</a></p>
<p>Penn State might not be better than Wisconsin. The difference in rankings (#17 vs #25) is not worth paying attention to. However, notice that the costs appear significantly lower at Wisconsin by over $7000 per year (or almost $30,000 for four years).</p>
<p>The difference in employment is mostly about the location of the employers. Penn State students are more likely to get jobs along our East Coast (basically from Boston down through Washington DC). Wisconsin graduates are more likely to get jobs in the Mid-West. The people in those two regions are very different from one another. Except for living in Chicago, the cost of living in the Mid-West is cheaper than the East Coast. Aerospace and automotive jobs are generally more plentiful in the Mid-West compared to the East Coast.</p>
<p>Also, keep in mind that Penn State is one of the most football crazy colleges in the U.S. If you like football this is good, but if you don’t it could be a problem.</p>
<p>So, maybe Wisconsin has an edge, unless you like football. 
</p>
<p>Oops… I was looking at the engineering graduate schools. The tuition difference is much smaller for undergraduate students, less than $4,000 per year for Wisconsin… but Minnesota is much cheaper, $10,000 less than Penn State and $6,000 less than Wisconsin. </p>
<p>The rankings of graduate schools with engineering is probably still a good reference for undergraduate engineering, however, because rankings are not very precise and sometimes not accurate. At best, they are rough estimates. With that assumption, it appears that all three universities (Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Penn State) are all very similar in quality. I would choose the school which you like most, or which gives you the kind of employment opportunities you hope for.</p>
<p>I’d just like to mention Wisconsin students are just as “athletically crazed” as PSU students - they’re both large public schools with successful sports programs. They are culturally very similar schools (along with academically). </p>
<p>The honors college here is extremely selective and you should be proud you were accepted to it. There is additional scholarship money available to you for being in Schreyers along with priority class scheduling. Both will be able to get you a job, they are both very respectable public universities. Madison is a city atmosphere and State College is a classic college town, depends on which you like more. </p>
<p>If you got into Shreyer, I’d go with Shreyer. It’s really an accomplishment so you should be proud of yourself.
Did you get into the honors college at UWisconsin or UMinnesota?
If not, choose Shreyer because your educational experience will be that much better, with small classes, field trips, opportunities you wouldn’t have elsewhere…
Although all three universities are roughly equal in quality, Shreyer is a deal breaker, it totally changes the level of your classes, the prestige of your degree, the quality of the experience. If you got into honors colleges then we’d need to compare honors college to honors college (but be aware that Shreyer is one of the best honors programs in the US, after USC’s and Barrett).
Even though Madison is an awesome town (one of the best in the US), State College is a really nice college town too, and campus wise I’d say that both are good, pretty, well-maintained, and ofter covered in snow and ice. 
Between UWisconsin and UMN, the choice is more location: UWisconsin is in a great town, UMN is in a great city that’s host to the largest number of Fortune 500 companies in the Midwest. It’s also an “edgy” city, with a good music and theater scene and with lots of green space, parks, lakes, and a rather “green” sensibility.
All three towns are not too expensive, but for your career the Eastern Seaboard is definitely more expensive than the Midwest. Your degree may not be so restricted as this university will take you to work there, although it’s likely your first job will be within the larger region, so if you want to work in Boston/NYC/Philadelphia/Baltimore/DC vs. Chicago, Minneapolis/St Paul take that into consideration. For what it’s worth, Penn State is supposed to have the largest alumni network and to be the most recruited college in the country.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the responses! They have really opened my eyes to some of the broader issues of each college. I was aware Schreyer was important, but not as important as some of you have talked about it! Regarding jobs, I don’t have really a problem with working in either places. Also there is also the possibility of going further than just those regions. Ultimately, I feel Penn State might be the completer package; Great Academics, Great Campus and a Great Alumni Network that will help to get a job.</p>
<p>Question for a Penn State Student: I have heard some bad stuff from Penn State in terms of the social life in the college. Heard some people who study there saying that there is not much to do, away from going to sports games or going to parties. That there isn’t much to do in state college (movies, etc.). How much of this is true? can someone please comment on this.</p>
<p>As an international student, you will be limited by the rules for CPT while in college, and by the rules for OPT after college. It would be a very good idea for you to contact the international students office and the career center on each campus and ask specifically about where students like you find internships during college, and where they get their first jobs after college. One or more of these places may be more successful at placing international students in internships (under CPT rules) and first jobs (under OPT rules). Ask what they know about the success of students like you in eventually finding permanent jobs in the US with H1B visas, or whether those students return to their home countries after their OPT visa extension expires.</p>
<p>To get an idea of what there is to do, you can read the campus newspaper:
<a href=“http://www.collegian.psu.edu/”>http://www.collegian.psu.edu/</a>
and the local paper:
<a href=“http://www.centredaily.com/”>http://www.centredaily.com/</a>
Based on a cursory glance, this weekend you’d have 3 or 4 movie theaters to choose from, each with multiple screens and one that is apparently more art house, there are various concerts, and a theater play.
In addition, all big universities organize free screenings of recent films and activities. And Penn state is near mountains so there must be hiking in the Fall and Spring, skiing in the Winter.
I’m sure that for someone who doesn’t think much, all there is to do is go to parties or to games, but for students with friends who have a bit more initiative than that, such a huge university must have plenty to do. The hardest part would be not to fall into the trap of thinking “weekend = party” that some students fall into. You’ll need to find friends who will be interested in doing all these things with you rather than fall into the lazy thinking that since there are parties, that’s all there is to do.
A friend of mine told me that the Shreyer kids get to go on awesome field trips to NYC, DC, etc, each semester and also get to meet important people. Check and see if there are special Shreyer activities planned, perhaps contact a Shreyer adviser or current Shreyer freshman to see what “special activities” they got to do this year.</p>
<p>Or within a 5 minute bus ride to the Minneapolis Entertainment/Warehouse district of downtown Minneapolis if you are at the U of Minnesota and its highly ranked Engineering school. </p>
<p><a href=“http://mplswarehouse.com/”>http://mplswarehouse.com/</a></p>
<p>I went to PSU and there is PLENTY to do. No, it’s not a city, but it has theatres, concert venues, shopping, gyms, pools, school clubs/activities, etc. Parties and football games are just a small part of it (if you want them to be.)</p>
<p>Thanks for all the feedback on PSU, much more calm now!</p>