Help! UIUC vs Purdue vs UW-Seattle

College Search & Selection
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<p>Need some advice deciding between UIUC/Purdue/UW-Seattle
I'm OOS for all three.</p>

<p>I was accepted into EE for UIUC (honors program, but unsure if I can keep the GPA to maintain it), and CS for Purdue, no direct admit for UW</p>

<p>I will probably end up majoring in either CS, CE, EE, or AeroE, unsure yet though</p>

<p>I know engineering at all three are pretty strong, but for UW I would need to be admitted to a major after I go there, and from what I've heard, the majors I'm interested in are extremely competitive to the point where you need a 4.0 in the required classes if you want to get in to the major. I do like the city of Seattle. Unsure about the cities of the other two because I have not visited the campus/cities.</p>

<p>I also got 5k a year scholarship for UW and Purdue, but nothing at UIUC, I also (most likely) receive no need based financial aid due to my parent's income. They are not paying for my education, but I do have a bit over 30k saved up. (that won't last a year :/ ) They might help me out a bit if I do well though in school but they want me to take responsibility in my life so I don't expect much. </p>

<p>My parents encourage me to go to UIUC because of their engineering rank, but I wanted to hear some second opinions.</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

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<p>Net price at each?</p>

<p>Debt at each?</p>

<p>If they are wealthy enough so that you get no financial aid, but won’t pay anything (and presumably won’t cosign any loans), it is unlikely that any of them will be affordable to you. If that is the case, then your likely options are:</p>

<p>a. Go to community college, then transfer to an in-state public, such that the combination is affordable over four years on your $30,000 + Stafford loans + whatever you can earn working during school. (Or, if you have other choices that you did not mention whose four year costs are within that limit, those are options as well.)</p>

<p>b. Do not attend college until you are 24 years old or married, or during/after military service. After these events, your parents’ income no longer counts against you for financial aid purposes.</p>

<p>c. Do not attend college next year (gap year) and apply to some of the <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships-16.html#post15557250[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships-16.html#post15557250&lt;/a&gt; schools and others where you have a good chance at competitive large merit scholarships.</p>

<p>d. See if any of the schools in the post linked above has a late application deadline, apply there, and attend.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the reply ucbalumnus, while I know that your suggestions are definitely the best for graduating with minimal/no debt, my situation is a bit different from most people.</p>

<p>Not exactly sure about netprice/debt, but it should be about this according to the oos prices stated online:
UW- 38k/year (haven’t really looked into loans or anything yet lol)
Purdue- 37k/year
UIUC- 42k/year</p>

<p>Very expensive :(</p>

<p>I’m pretty sure my parents are willing to cosign loans though, I might be able to borrow some money directly from them as well, haven’t really talked about it much. </p>

<p>I’ll probably get a part time job while attending.</p>

<p>Community college is not a choice I can make, my parents would never let me go to one because they have a very negative view on them, and because of some asian values they hold (i’m first generation, born in China. I’m sure a lot of others know what I’m talking about)</p>

<p>Not attending until 24/no longer dependent on parents is also not possible because of above reasons. I also probably can’t join military because of a problem with my lungs (and parents wouldn’t allow it either)</p>

<p>Gap year is also something my parents do not take kindly to. They would probably just see it as me being lazy or something.</p>

<p>As you can see, my parents are pretty influential on my decision…
Their view on life is that you have to be able to suffer hardships. They give me their speech on it every day pretty much, telling me how I have to suck up whatever misfortunes I go through and work hard to become a proper adult. They grew up in poverty as farmers/workers in China during the cultural revolution and tell me every moment I’m awake about how I should be studying 24/7. I believe they have a great misconception of the American school system, since they went through the Chinese system back in the day when education was free for them. But I respect their decisions, they moved to the US and started from scratch to give me a better shot at life so I guess I should make it count. </p>

<p>In terms of other schools I was accepted to, they are all to expensive (either in comparison to the above schools, or when considering the level of education I would receive/opportunities at the school. i was thinking about the above three because of the great connections and education i would get).</p>

<p>I was accepted into one of my state’s flagship schools, but its not that great and I am not a fan of the area/campus at all. A lot of my friends are attending, which is a plus, but I guess I have a prejudice against it I can’t really explain. Cost of attendance is 23k/year (too far to travel from home)</p>

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<p>They are being unreasonable (even by the standards of tiger parents) by telling you that you have to go to a too-expensive college without any help from them and without any financial aid that their income prevents you from getting.</p>

<p>Also, it won’t end well if you default under unsustainable debt levels and your debt becomes their debt.</p>

<p>With respect to community college, lots of immigrants from China and Vietnam start at community college because they cannot afford to start at a four year school. Then they transfer to the state flagship, do well there, and graduate. I saw this when I was in college, and it still happens today. Even some families in China send their kids to community college in the US in hopes of transferring to a good university in the US.</p>

<p>Not an immigrant from China, but here is an example of a student who started at community college and did well there and at other schools he attended afterward:
[Top</a> graduating senior a rags-to-academic-riches story](<a href=“Berkeley News | Berkeley”>Berkeley News | Berkeley)
[Aaron</a> Benavidez | Department of Sociology](<a href=“http://sociology.fas.harvard.edu/people/aaron-benavidez]Aaron”>Aaron Benavidez | Department of Sociology)</p>

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<p>In terms of realistic financials, the four year cost would normally be limited to:</p>

<p>$30,000 that you have +
$31,000 Stafford loans +</p>

<h2>$12,000 assumed earnings for four summers and school years</h2>

<p>$73,000 (of which $31,000 is debt and $42,000 is your savings and assumed work earnings)</p>

<p>Of course, you can try to earn more, and you may land well paid internships in later years, but it would not be wise to plan on best-case scenarios.</p>

<p>Four year costs, assuming some tuition increases:</p>

<p>$100,000 ($58,000 of debt) – unnamed state flagship
$156,000 ($114,000 of debt) – Purdue
$160,000 ($118,000 of debt) – Washington
$176,000 ($134,000 of debt) – Illinois</p>

<p>You can probably save some on the living expenses by living very frugally, but that is unlikely to bring the debt down to reasonable levels at the more expensive schools.</p>

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<p>Would any of these allow you to qualify for in state tuition after you have lived there for a year or so? I think there are some state universities that will allow you to be in state after a certain time, and it’s definitely worth considering, it it’s a possibility.</p>

<p>I live in Seattle, and I really love it here. But…I highly discouraged my older son from going there, due to the difficulties of getting into the CS program. I’ve heard horror stories, of kids with 4.0’s not getting in, because they accept so few kids. It is crazy, and wrong, with so much demand to limit it that much, but that’s what they do. I would think very, very long and hard about going to a school that I might never get into my major, even if I extended a year. Purdue and Illinois have excellent reputations, that will probably give you a boost for any tech job you’re looking for. I don’t think that honors matters much.</p>

<p>You can get some great summer tech internships. My kid got paid approx 10K/summer, and some of the big name companies pay more. That would surely help with tuition. I hope your parents give you some help.</p>

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<p>Wow, Aaron Benavidez’s life story is incredible. That is like the very essence of what my parents lecture to me about put into action. </p>

<p>Despite that though, I doubt my parents would be persuaded into community college. They are very hard to convince of anything. Hell, it took me months to convince them that buying things online was not a big deal.</p>

<p>To be honest, I believe a reason why my parents want me to go to a more expensive/prestigious school is because of “face”, which is hard to explain. The closest thing to face would be honor or reputation in terms of family.
They want me to go to a higher rated school because of job connections and future success, which is what they always want me to strive for.
The degree to which debt could get into the way of my financial well being in the future seems like something they probably have considered, but may have downplayed.
They didn’t experience student debt themselves so it might seem not as scary to them as it does to students. </p>

<p>I believe I can live relatively frugally, I don’t drink coffee so no 5 dollar daily starbucks, and most of my entertainment is playing music (wish I was good enough to give lessons like Aaron was…) and watching/reading stuff online instead of going out. </p>

<p>I was also thinking about possibly investing a little bit of my own money into forex. I have had moderate success in practice, but then again its very easy to lose a lot of money too.</p>

<p>@Busdriver11
I actually remember reading something about that for UIUC, where you have to have lived in Illinois for a year before enrolling to get instate tuition. Moving to Illionis by myself for a year for that seems like an interesting idea, but I’m not sure if I’m up to it lol. </p>

<p>I think I’ll talk to my parents seriously about helping me out more financially and see what they say. It is hard to bring up the topic but the deadline is coming up so I have to have the talk about it sooner rather than later.</p>

<p>Much thanks ucbalumnus, you brought up a lot of good points, hopefully it will be enough to rethink my parent’s stance on tuition.</p>

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<p>If your parents want to save “face” then they need to put their money where their mouths are. they can’t make demands that they won’t fund.</p>

<p>Paying back those loan will not be an issue of forgoing Starbucks coffees…it will mean forgoing RENT, CAR, and other basic necessities. I don’t think you understand that. You’re talking about debt that will grow while in college and will result in $2000 a month payments for ten years. This won’t be about coffees, this will be about life-choking debt. It will mean having to live with your parents because you won’t be able to afford rent. What is you can’t find a job by your parents home? </p>

<p>You may think…but I’m going to be earning $50k per year, so I can afford to pay $24k per year in loan payments. I can live off the rest. No you can’t. At that income, a single person pays a good amount in taxes. Your “take home” pay will be far less. </p>

<p>Also, I don’t think getting instate rates at those schools is likely either. You’re going to that state for an education. </p>

<p>You need to go to your state school if going to a CC is out of the question.</p>

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<p>@mom2collegekids</p>

<p>I perfectly understand that “forgoing starbucks” (which I don’t even drink ever) will not significantly change my financial status. I am perfectly fine with taking public transportation, as that is how I have been getting around my entire life. I don’t own a car or even a learner’s permit. I do however, own a bike, another excellent transportation method.
Moving back in with my parents isn’t a thing of shame, in fact, my parents actually told me that they don’t mind I come back for a couple of years after school to get things in my life worked out.
If anything I believe I understand it better than most people.
When I first moved to the United States, my parents made minimal wage. We were pretty poor, living in a one room studio apartment that cost a about 300-400 a month.
I am no stranger to money problems.</p>

<p>Please don’t try to assume what I think or judge me without knowing me.</p>

<p>I respect my parents and am proud and grateful for everything they have done for me so far and I want to meet and exceed their expectations. If I find a way go to one of the three schools above, then I’ll give it a shot. If no reasonable solution exist and it means going to my state school, then that’s what will happen.</p>

<p>While I originally created this thread to choose between those three, I have been aware that money is an issue that I can not ignore.</p>

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<p>UW for CS without direct admit is extremely risky.</p>

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<p>If by chance the unnamed state flagship is Stony Brook University (New York), then be aware that it is highly respected and recruited for CS.</p>

<p>PM a user named QCstudent (who transferred to SBU) for more information.</p>

<p>If it is UMass - Amherst, then that school is also well respected for CS.</p>

<p>Agree with others that Washington without being directly admitted to CS means that it is very difficult to get into the CS major.</p>

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<p>Another question is, if the $30,000 you have came from some above-average-pay (for a high school student) work, can you take a gap year while doing that to earn more money for school, while applying to big merit scholarship schools? Can that be “face-saving” enough for your parents?</p>

<p>Really, if they want you to do something expensive for their “face”, they need to put their money where their mouths are.</p>

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<p>Since your parents are unfamiliar with higher education in the US, and evidently don’t have many resources within their own community to draw on for understanding the system here, they might benefit from reading through some of the information at <a href=“https://www.educationusa.info/[/url]”>https://www.educationusa.info/&lt;/a&gt; That website is designed for true internationals, but often proves helpful for people who are living here but haven’t been educated here.</p>

<p>I do understand your parents desire for you to complete the best quality degree program possible. However if you were to do so with the type of loans that you would need to take on, you would be harming your possibilities for marriage, for having children in a reasonable time frame, for buying a home, for helping your children with their own college educations, and for helping your parents in their old age. If your parents take on a boatload of loans for your education, they are limiting their own options in retirement, and setting up the possibility that when you are their age you could be so burdened by the responsibility for their care, that again you wouldn’t be able to help your own children. In the worst case scenario, both you and they will be overloaded with debt and no one will be able to help anyone else in time of need. Google “struggling with student debt” and you will find multiple examples of students and their families who are drowning.</p>

<p>Just like in those instructions on the airplane before take-off reminding us that each person needs to be certain that their own oxygen mask is securely fastened before helping other passengers, both you and your parents owe it to each other to do your level best to ensure your own individual financial safety. That way when the inevitable crisis hits, the chances are better that someone will be in a position of strength, and will be able to help the other.</p>

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<p>I’m not as concerned as most people about debt. If you are going into a highly paid career field (like CS, don’t know about engineering), I think it’s very possible to do this without too much pain. If you were going to live lavishly, major in a low paid career field or go into graduate school right away, it would be a costly mistake.</p>

<p>But you could work as much as possible this summer, get a part time job during the school year, get a highly paid internship in the summer (probably not freshman year), live low, get a 100K+ job after graduation. Keep living low for a few years, pay off the debt with a single minded intensity. With the 30K you have already, seems doable. I wouldn’t give this advice to most people, but if you are dedicated, won’t take more than four years, know you will major in a highly paid field, I think it fits.</p>

<p>Perhaps it’s time to have that uncomfortable talk with your parents. If they could just provide 5K-10K/yr, that would go a long way, and it’s not so painful for them. Especially if they are asking you to take the most expensive option. I would definitely not live in Illinois for a year by myself just to get in state tuition!</p>

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<p>None of the “big 4” schools for CS (CMU, MIT, Berkeley, Stanford) reports an average or median pay level for employed CS graduates over $100,000 in its career survey.</p>

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<p>^^ucb, I think salaries have gone up. Those are last years surveys. I can’t speak for the other three schools, but 2012 CMU graduating surveys were reporting 95K median, 135K max pay, for last years grads. That is base, doesn’t include any benefits or signing bonuses.</p>

<p>My son, who is a graduating senior at CMU, knows many CS students graduating, and thinks the median is about 100K base this year, and top students are getting 140K. He got an offer for 100K base seven months before graduation, and that is with only a CS Minor. I know this is just one datapoint, but it really sounds like CS majors are heavily recruited, with multiple offers. This is one hot career field.</p>

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<p>Ok, one of the “big 4 in CS” schools may be barely reaching $100,000 median pay for employed CS graduates…</p>

<p>If one of the “big 4 in CS” schools is just barely reaching $100,000 median pay for employed CS graduates in a hot job market, then it is unrealistic to make expectations for that pay level at graduation in general – especially since the computer industry can have wild swings in hotness and coldness (students who went into CS during the last hot CS job market graduated 4 years later in one of the worst industry downturns).</p>

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<p>Alright, maybe so. But whether a graduate receives 100K or 90K or 80K or 70K upon graduation, if they live frugally, they can pay off student loan debt fairly quickly. The problem, though, would be that few people could have that sort of self control when they suddenly start making a good income. But no better time to pay off that debt, before one has a house, a family, and responsibilities.</p>

<p>My main point is that it can be a far different scenario graduating in high demand/highly paid majors opposed to low ones. UIUC and UW have very reputable programs (I know nothing about Purdue, not saying anything against them), competent people in tech have quite a future in front of them, I can’t see that going away. A CS major, and sometimes engineering, does pay off.</p>

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<p>Still, $134,000 in debt for UIUC is a lot. Even those who are more willing to accept more student loan debt tend to suggest taking no more than the first year pay level of a new graduate in your major.</p>

20

<p>Fair enough. But due to feeling parental pressure, these three schools seem like they are the only options. And if the OP can earn 30-40K during the four years, starting this summer, via internships, part time work, get parents to fork out 5-10K/yr, that could ratchet it down to a more palatable level. There may be no argument to go to different schools that might be acceptable to both the OP and his parents, but there might be some ways to work it so the debt load is not so bad. It would take a committed student.</p>