<p>So I'm a Georgia student who hopes to pursue physical therapy in the future. I've applied to a few schools but basically my options are somewhat limited due to the financial aspect of getting an education.</p>
<p>My two most enticing options at the moment are: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>University of Georgia Honors: I got accepted to the University of Georgia Honors Program, which is very respectable for a student in Georgia. I know it's a solid program and I'll qualify for Zell Miller, so I'll be paying just around $10,000/year to go to a very well-respected school in the South and I'll be pretty comfortable since I'm close to home. </p></li>
<li><p>St. John's University: It's a less well-known and less respected school, but it's still a good Catholic institution. The big perk is that it's in Queens, New York. I was offered a presidential scholarship which covers full tuition, but I'll still pay around $18-20,000/year. It's more expensive and a less-respected school, but is that worth the opportunity to go to New York? </p></li>
</ol>
<p>Really I'm asking whether going to school up north will be a huge adjustment for someone who's always lived in the south. And will that be a positive or negative change? I'd love to go study in New York just for the experience, but is it worth the extra money and sacrificing name recognition of my university, considering that I'd probably come back down south to study physical therapy? Ahhh decisions, decisions. Please help!!! It's very much appreciated :) </p>
<p>Why would you be paying $18-20K per yer at St. Johns? Room and board is is 1$11-13K per year according to their website. As I am in the healthcare field, I believe that PT’s are not having trouble finding jobs. I don’t think location matters in the job search as much as having the license to practice. St. Johns is well respected in many fields. </p>
<p>The best thing you can do is check out both campuses to see how you like them. St.J is big on basketball but other than that, they may not have much school spirit compared with UGA. Also, until somewhat recently they had no dorms so check out the number of students living on campus. It might be nice to be in a small group. </p>
<p>This may be your one time chance to live in NY for 5 years, so that is something to consider. Best to determine fit the most. My niece was in a sorority and had a great group of friends at St. J. I would expect UGA to have a larger fraternity presence. </p>
<p>Lots of direct flights home for LaGuardia to ATL. </p>
<p>Tough decision. Visit each to determine what will make you happy. PT is a great career. Good luck to you. </p>
<p><<<
but I’ll still pay around $18-20,000/year. It’s more expensive and a less-respected school, but is that worth the opportunity to go to New York?
<<<<</p>
<p>Oh my…kids today need some real life economics lessons…</p>
<p>UGA will cost you 10k per year and you’re asking if you should spend an ADDITIONAL 8-10k per year (about 40k total) so that you can “go to New York”???</p>
<p>How about spending $2k on a vacation to New York and get that out of your system…and save the other 38k for grad school???</p>
<p>And…BTW…what are your parents saying about paying an additional $40k so that you can “go to New York”?</p>
<p>Key is if in the program, you can finish PhD in PT or be in PT program directly.Finishing PT can be very expensive, but if you don’t finish you won’t have a ‘big shovel’ to pay off the student debt. So with UGa would you be able to get into/finish a PhD in-state (thus lower cost for everything)? You have to look at your final goal and what the best way to get there.</p>
<p>Based simply on the quality of education, academic depth of fellow students, and the quality of day-to-day college life the University of Georgia is by far the better choice. And even more so because you’ll be in the Honors program. In practice students spend a very large percentage of their college day on campus or within a mile or two of campus. What is most important, beyond the education depth itself and the location, are the students, the campus facilities and the college ambiance. The University of Georgia is much more highly rated than St. John’s. It will be recognized by employers everywhere in the United States. St. John’s is a regional college. Check to see the percentage of students who are commuters. Also note that Queens isn’t Manhattan. If the choice isn’t clear to you, take a day off and spend it at St. John’s while it’s in session. If it continues to appeal to you then you’ll have something concrete on which to base a decision</p>