Help me choose some great private schools for Computer Science?

College Search & Selection
1

Hey guys, I’ve applied to several public schools but I believe I have really overlooked private schools in my college search. Ideally cost would be sub 50k after scholarships. I’m a Michigan resident but don’t really mind moving elsewhere. I want a great CS education. Do you have any suggestions? What do you think about WPI, RPI, RIT, or Northeastern?

Stats:

GPA: 4.01W, 3.73UW

Class Rank: 39/530

SAT: 1420 (700M/720R&W)

APs Taken/Taking: (9/14 offered) Physics I, US History, Calc AB, Statistics, Calc BC, Composition, Literature, CS Principles, Chemistry

Dual Enrollment: CS classes Junior year at Eastern Michigan University (3 credits) and Senior year at UM Flint (10 credits).

Extracurriculars: Guide Dog Breeding Stock Host (raise and care for litters of future guide dogs), Piano, Cyber Patriot, NHS, Varsity Cross Country, Internship at Farm Bureau Insurance, Track Camp Volunteer, Club Baseball, Gleaners Food Bank Volunteer, Link Crew.

Thank you so much for any help in advance!

2

Those are great schools to apply to: WPI, RPI - especially, RIT, or Northeastern. Also – Case Western is strong.

3

Any of those schools may be much more expensive for you than UMichigan at in-state rates. After need-based aid, private school costs can range from nearly zero to full sticker price; you’d need to run the online net price calculators to estimate. Even if Rensselaer (or one of the others) offers a merit grant sufficient to drive the cost below $50K, that still would make it ~$20K more expensive than your fine in-state public options.

If you do qualify for n-b aid and can cover the Expected Family Contribution, you might want to take a chance on Cornell, JHU, or a liberal arts college that claims to cover full demonstrated need (https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2017-09-21/colleges-that-claim-to-meet-full-financial-need). Why go for a private school if it’s not competitive, for both cost and quality, with public universities in Michigan?

If you want to go out of state with enough merit money to drive costs below Michigan public rates, look at colleges that are less selective than any you’ve mentioned (or that are located in places considered, rightly or wrongly, not too attractive to many HS students).
http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/

4

If I am unable to make it into the University of Michigan, do you think Michigan State is still a better choice than out-of-state flagships and private schools?

5

I certainly won’t qualify for need-based aid by the way :frowning:

6

I toured RPI and WPI with my daughter, both not the fit she was looking for but could work really well for you. From what I recall I think RPI has a much greater chance of merit based aid and should definitely be considered.

7

Depends on the alternative and its net price, your family finances, “fit”, etc.
To me, Michigan State at ~$25K looks like a pretty good value compared to ~$50K for one of the schools you listed.