<p>Hi everyone!</p>
<p>After reading this thread I felt it was time to finally register and share my own experiences.</p>
<p>I, too, was accepted into multiple universities with higher levels of "prestige" than UMass. In my case, those universities included Northwestern, WashU, Bucknell, BU, Northeastern, RPI, and of course, UMass Amherst (Commonwealth College). I was also waitlisted at Harvey Mudd, Harvard, and Cornell. When I applied to all these schools, I really didn't know what I wanted to do, and (as you can see) applied to a wide variety of colleges. I figured that I'd get a "better" education at a "better" school because...well, that's how it works, right? A couple weekends ago I attended UMass' College of Engineering's Open House and had the chance to explore the classrooms, labs, and buildings associated with the College of Engineering. I also had the chance to talk with many different engineering students, all of whom seemed as if there was nothing they'd rather be doing than talking to me about their beloved university. What really struck me was that these students seemed "real." They didn't hide anything when they were talking, and told both sides of being a student there.</p>
<p>As for the strength of the programs, admisscouns already has highlighted some of the better ones on campus, but I really feel that college is what you put into it. UMass has PLENTY of opportunities to give you a high class education--you just have to take the initiative. Especially with Comm. Coll, MomMary, your son will have all he needs to get a great education. Concerning you son's interests, I don't know much about UMass' robotics program, but I can tell you that they're heavily involved in nanotechnology.</p>
<p>When I went to the open house, I attended the Chemical Engineering portion, and was surprised to see the statistics for placement into grad school and jobs. Of the 35(+/- 3) members of this year's ChemE senior class, 3 were accepted to MIT, and many others were accepted to other fine schools. Also, of those who decided to go into the job market, many were receiving high-paying jobs from the get-go (some $70K+). I did happen to speak with a MechE major, who will have a job with a local company as soon as she graduates. She received multiple offers but ended up choosing the one that offered to pay for grad. school. She told me that because the job market is so strong for engineering-related positions, everyone has a job who wanted a job and who worked to make themselves attractive to employers.</p>
<p>For me, money was a factor as well (also not the deciding factor). To me, it just didn't make sense to pay $130K more to go to some "elite" private school where I'll get a similar education. Sure, the name will look better to future employers, but as soon as you land a job out of college, those employers won't be looking too closely at where you went for undergrad.</p>
<p>MomMary, I can also tell you that one of my friends, who is considering majoring in engineering, was also deciding between Lehigh and a state school (Penn State). He ended up choosing Penn State because of the resources and opportunities that a large state school offers. However, everyone is different and a large university like UMass is not for everyone.</p>
<p>I'd like to add that once-upon a time (before I got rejected) I thought I'd end up at a small, rural school (Dartmouth). However, I'm going to be joining the ranks at my state school, and I'm proud of my decision. UMass is big, but as you become more and more specialized within your college, the school becomes smaller and smaller.</p>
<p>After the open house (on a Saturday) I cancelled my trip out west, which would've included visiting Northwestern and WashU. I got my vacation week back and didn't have to draw-out my decision any longer.</p>
<p>I'll be at UMass this fall.</p>