After taking many college tours and spending a year looking at his options, my son had firmly decided that he wanted to apply to WPI early decision. He’s interested in being a game programmer, and he really liked the school’s combined CS and IMGD-tech degree. He also really liked the campus, felt like he fit in with the students he met, and the fact that they don’t have a mandatory COOP. He was a little intimidated by the term system, but was reassured by the fact that, with WPI’s NR system, he literally couldn’t get an F on his transcript if the term system turned out to be totally overwhelming at first.
Then, a few weeks ago, at the advice of his high school counselor, we went to visit RIT. We had originally eliminated it from our list of schools, despite their highly rated game design program, because my son was adamant he did not want a mandatory COOP, and he did not want to be in the suburbs. So imagine our surprise when he loved the school on visiting it. Even though on paper it doesn’t tick nearly the same number of boxes that WPI had, he loved MAGIC studios, he thought the overall game design program was better, and he loved the larger university feel of RIT. He is even willing to reconsider his prior stance on COOPs.
A decision has to be made today, since he really wants to apply ED to maximize his chances of getting in to his first choice school . . . but he’s really torn. His main concern about RIT is that they seem to have less flexibility in terms of curriculum, so he may wind up having to take a number of art-focused classes in which he has less interest, and that they don’t have enough programming classes in the game design curriculum. To what extent can that be overcome by just taking CS classes as part of his electives?
And his main concern about WPI is that, as a smaller school, it won’t have all the clubs and activities and diversity of people that RIT has. He’s also concerned that the game design program will not be as robust as the one at RIT.
Does anyone have any insights to share on the two schools? Anything would be useful at this point.
You don’t have to fall into the ED trap - that’s a choice.
Both have high acceptance rates so if the stats are right, both may be feasible RD. RIT would be an easier admit.
In the end, there are likely “many” schools that would be right for your student. It sounded like WPI was a pull and it doesn’t sound like anything has changed that…just he found another he liked. Go visit another school - then he’ll have a third he likes :). They have much shorter terms - does that matter?
Co Ops in general are a good thing - and often lead to jobs.
Maybe it’s a hard choice - but maybe neither one is wrong??
If you want merit, both may be wrong - no one can say for sure, but anecdotally, why would they spend their merit…i.e. marketing budget - on kids that are bound?
What are his stats, if you don’t mind sharing? Neither school is suuuper tricky for admission, so I’m wondering how much of a concern there is that ED is necessary.
Both schools offer ED1 and ED2. Only WPI offers EA.
What if he applied EA to WPI and RD to RIT to get the ball rolling (nothing lost there). Last year my kid got his EA acceptance to WPI mid-Jan. That wouldn’t be in time to decide on ED2, but it would buy him time to make a decision.
He could have until January 1 (ED2 deadline for RIT) to decide on which school to do ED2. Either RIT or WPI will be delighted to convert his app to ED2.
Or he could just wait until the ED2 or RD deadline and apply to whatever school(s) he’s interested in at that point.
I do agree with a lot of the things you said about the different characteristics of the campuses. We loved RIT and my son got a good offer, but it sadly didn’t offer one of the majors he was considering. We have friends who attended there and loved it. It seems like such a neat community for certain kinds of students (of which my kid is one).
I do think RIT’s strength in the arts is an asset. Game design is not an easy career to break into, and the integrated COOP could give him a huge leg up in the job market. They do not lack programming classes, so like you noted, even if they’re not a requirement for his program, he can always take them to supplement.
Thanks so much for your thoughts. Tuition is not a factor in the decision, luckily enough, as he has an education trust and won’t qualify for aid.
His SAT is 1510. His school is a specialized NY HS that sends about 30% of its kids to Ivies or Ivy equivalents. They don’t do GPA, but having done my own calculation, unweighted it comes out to about an 88.5 (all honors and AP classses). He’s definitely in the bottom 50% of the grade, but it’s a very high-achieving class. Not great on extracurriculars, but he did do debate all four years. His main hobby is designing games, so he does have a decent portfolio.
Although RIT overall is not superselective and should theoretically be a good target school for him (also helped by the fact this his high school has a very good record of placing students at RIT), the acceptance rate for game design is much lower than the overall admit rate. So the head of the program told us that last year only 25% of game design applicants were admitted. It is one of their top rated programs. And you can’t transfer into game design from another program like the Computer Exploration program. So he really wants to apply ED if he can, to maximize his choices at his top choice school. Assuming, of course, he can settle on a top choice!
Thanks so much, this was very helpful! I replied elsewhere with his stats, but basically Sat 1510 ad GPA unweighted 88.5 (but all honors and AP classes).
My son went to RIT for Game design. Had similar stats . I really think that its more than 25% accepted, especially with his stats. Also they have a “soft” ED, in that if you are not happy with with the offer, you can then go into the RD pool. You could probably also switch, but read the fine print. For WPI I would EA right now.
RIT is great school, but keep in mind that for the COOP requirement, your son will have to work hard to get that COOP., My son only had 1, but luckily they allowed his first job to count after 10 weeks, and then he got his actual diploma for the 2nd one. Yes, they have career services and job fairs, but its up to him to get the coop . Also he needs to have an open mind about Game Design and what he wants to do with it. Currently my S is working for a government contractor. Not everyone can get a job at EPIC games and the such.
Also while I am thinking, my son really did like that he had to an an immersion that easily turned into a minor. He chose Economics. he enjoyed his classes outside of his major, and his last semester got to even take the popular "beers of the world " class .
Rereading your post, my son did take a few graduate classes his last year in Game design. He liked those. He could have taken CS classes if he wanted to, but he did not.
Thanks so much! This is very helpful. One of the things he prefers about RIT is that they have a broader range of humanities courses than WPI, so this is very useful to know! Did your son enjoy his time at RIT?
up until spring of freshman year when Covid hit. That spring he was finding his footing, was doing clubs, etc. Then March came. He managed with AP credits to graduate in 3 years. Year 2 he had a few hybrid classes so he went to NY , but their rules (not RIT but NY) about quarantine before arrival were awful, and there was very little social interaction. His last year, which was his Junior ad Senior year in one, by the Spring of 2022 he was getting his footing again and had a good roommate. So the answer is that he would have, if Covid did not happen.
Classwise he seemed to enjoy most of his classes. His last year he really had a great rapport with one professor in particular.
Note that my son is also ASD, and RIT is known for the Spectrum Support program.
Many students change majors. Which school provides better options for your student if they don’t stay in game design? Would they go to a different CS discipline? CE and hardware? Other Engineering ? Math? Physics? What about dual majors?!
WPIs curriculum is very flexible but also has the strange short terms. Which one is a plus?? Or a minus??
Both schools seem to climb people’s list when they visit - no surprise there. But what about more mundane things that matter to success at college like: distance from home, tutoring, and life/mental health support.
This is so so so helpful. One of the things I most liked about RIT was their Spectrum Support program and the coaching/small seminars they offered. It also seems like it has a strong disability office.
Thanks for your thoughts. Agree on those other factors. And on the dual major – WPI has the edge there, because it is much easier at WPI to do combined degrees. That has been one of the things that he liked most about it. As for the term thing, we’re not sure if it’s a plus or minus. He thinks it might be a plus, because he likes the idea of doing three classes intensely for seven weeks, then getting a break. He likes a fast pace. But also scary in that, if you have a bad week, that could ruin your term because you’ve basically missed 1/6 of the material. So just not sure. Hard to know without actually doing it, i guess.
He can cross-register at nearby colleges/shuttle, such as Holy Cross/Clark.
I took a Mandarin class at HC, to fulfill my Arts/Humanities requirement (used to be a Sufficiency Project).
I’m biased since WPI is my alma mater.
One of the best part of WPI is the IQP study abroad project.
I did mine in Thailand
roommates went to Ireland, Scotland, Puerto Rico
my niece (a Jr) will be going to Greece next term
Loved the 7weeks term, only 3 finals/papers at the end of each term.
Love the accessibility of Worcester;
there’s nothing around RIT.
Sorry I did not see this yesterday. My daughter is doing game dev at USC, but she looked at WPI and RIT. If your son did not decide to do ED, take a look at Clark. They are opening an incredible new building for the game program: Media Arts, Computing, and Design | ClarkNEXT | Clark University and we were really impressed with everything about the program, school, and application process with them.
We also really liked WPI and their unique curriculum. RIT felt a bit remote and maybe not as social as the other two. However, RIT had the best food of any school we visited (and we visited a ton!) We had three DELICIOUS meals there!!!
I would definitely visit both schools before making a decision. Worcester isn’t for everyone. It’s a dying city and, IMO, absolutely depressing. (I worked at Clark University.)
Worcester is one of the fastest growing cities in MA. Quite the boomtown. And a great college town with lots to do. I would choose WPI for location alone.
