Hi, and thank you so much in advance for taking your time to read this. I’m in a bit of dilemma, as the title suggests, and I need advice! I was recently accepted to Penn State — University Park and NJIT. I’m stuck between these two for the time being.
As of now, I have not received any update on my application to NJIT’s honor college, and I did not apply to Penn State’s honor college.
NJIT — Major: HCI
No financial aid
In state tuition
Much cheaper
Relatively smaller
Very strong academic program, but HCI is relatively new, I think
Not much sport life, which I’m fine with
Penn State — Major: Information Science
Out of state tuition = unfortunately much more expensive
Decent chunk of financial aid, ex: Provost’s Award
Small grant for housing, not much honestly
Greater chance of internships
Their school of IST is full of opportunities
Very big !!
My goal is to work in the field of UI / UX Design.
I like both schools a lot and I will soon contact admissions for help. Regardless, any comment is appreciated.
You love them both but one is mid size in a big major metro and the other is enormous in the middle of nowhere.
Penn State obviously a nationally known name.
The differences are pretty stark to love both equally.
What do your parents feel about the cost differential? Are they ok paying it. NJIT looks about $32.5K and PSU looks $18-20K higher - so are your parents ok spending the extra $80K over 4 years.
Maybe they can help you decide - most people would prefer to save $80K - but not all
Apologies for the late reply, but I have taken all of your thoughts into consideration and sat down with my parents and asked them again about the cost.
Prior to this, my parents have repeatedly said not to worry about finances, but ever since I filled out the FAFSA with them, I have gotten more aware of our ability to pay for college. I appreciate them willing to say such a thing to ease my worries, but knowing we also have my younger brother next in line in a couple years makes me hesitant to go to Penn State - because the truth is, I really do like Penn State more. I guess I just wasn’t willing to admit it to myself for a while because I was worried I’d be a financial burden ;w;
So I told them all this, and they were okay with it as long as my grades stay high and I’m able to make the most of my time there. I guess that answers my question for now. We’ll still be discussing it for a while about costs, but I do feel a lot better about choosing PSU.
Thanks again everyone for being a tremendous help! I’ll still be waiting for regular decision notifications just in case, but I’m set on PSU for the time being.
Perhaps ask them this question: if you choose Penn State, will your parents be able to pay a similar amount (+ college cost inflation) for your younger brother to go to college without taking parent loans or compromising their retirement savings?
Congratulations on the Provost’s Award and the housing grant. They should go a long way toward cutting into the difference in the cost of these 2 options.
What are the other choices you’re waiting on? Is Rutgers one of them?
Thank you for this! I did ask them and they said they will be able to ask family members for help in the event that his college fund is not enough + they set a separate fund for each of us
So, I’m curious. If you want the big college experience, why not Rutgers? I understand the preference for Penn State over NJIT the extra expense. But why not Rutgers?
Because I was deferred to Regular Decision and I just got waitlisted a couple hours ago, so there’s a chance I might not even get in to the school - whereas I got into Penn State pretty quickly.
Wow! I’m surprised that you were wait listed at Rutgers. I can understand better why you’re looking at PSU. You have 2 great choices nonetheless, so best of luck with your decision.
