<p>I have been accepted to NYU which I am very happy about. It's my only acceptance. </p>
<p>I do like the school and it's location. I could, however, attend university in Germany for free. I am torn between those two options. The tricky thing is that I will have to commit to NYU by May 1st but won't start applying to German schools before July. I might get into a top university in Germany. </p>
<p>Of course the financial aspect is important. I haven't found out about financial aid yet. I would probably be able to afford attending NYU, still it's A LOT of money. </p>
<p>What do you guys think? I know I have to make this decisions but some opinions would be highly appreciated! </p>
<p>You can accept NYU now, and still apply to the places in Germany. If you cancel your enrollment at NYU before classes start, you will lose your deposit, but that is it. They can’t require that you attend.</p>
<p>Sit down with your parents. Talk about the money. They may be fine with you attending NYU. Talk with your parents’ friends. Find out what they think about NYU in particular and US colleges/universities in general. If you aren’t going to be able to get a job in Germany after graduating from a place here, then you probably don’t want to study here.</p>
<p>Although university in Germany is free, it’s very impersonal… if your parents can afford NYU (and as long as you don’t have your FA I suppose it’s all hypothetical) I’d prefer NYU over a German university BUT I’d apply to a few German universities anyway just to see. The international experience, location, and curriculum at NYU are hard to beat, though. Once again, for emphasis: if your parents can afford it.</p>
<p>My parents are willing to spend way more than I find reasonable. I won’t let them spend 100k+ for my education if I can attend a German university for free. </p>
<p>I am not that set on NYU, so I don’t know if I’d want to apply for grad school. If I’d attend NYU for undergraduate school, I’d probably go on and get my master’s degree in Germany.</p>
<p>I would certainly get into some top universities in Germany. The admission process is NOT holistic and my grades are right where they need to be (if I don’t mess up on my finals, that is). I agree that it’s the system I don’t like. I will have to apply to a binding major and as of now I am very undecided. </p>
<p>NYU has a big student population but has virtually no campus. That seems pretty impersonal to me.
It’s definitely not worth the money. If you want to get a job in the US, just pursue a masters degree here. The shorter duration means less cash and a grad degree is more marketable for an international to seek a job in the US.</p>
<p>I am not sure I want to work in the US. I am just very unsure of my future and think that’s totally acceptable as a 17 year old. Unfortunately I will still have to make a decision. </p>
<p>ChaChaanTeng: Most German universities don’t have campuses either, they’re integrated into the city just like NYU is. The difference is that NYU has sports facilities, support services, student lounges and centers, some residence halls with RA’s and a social program. The university is thought of as a whole. Furthermore, classes include discussion sections with TA’s and some seminars which are very interactive, there are presentations and quizzes (not just one comprehensive test). European students specialize right away, which can be a minus or a plus depending on perspective - some European students like the liberal arts approach of the US system, others prefer the specialized European system. The Abitur with high grades will typically grant between one semester and one year of advanced credits so a German student admitted to NYU could presumably graduate in 3 years too, but those would be 3 very different years. The student could also decide to take advantage of the NYU world network, and spend a semester or a year in Abu Dhabi, Shanghai, or anywhere else.
Overall, I agree that NYU may not be the best classical American college experience and that if a student wants to go to grad school in the US, it’ll be cheaper (or free) for them because they’re likely to be funded. I also know that to get into a grad program in the US, an undergrad would be expected to have worked on research, which can be very hard to come by in the German system at the undergraduate level. So the money saved for undergrad could be spent on paying for a Master’s to help OP get more well-rounded and meeting some American expectations to get into a funded PHD. (An unfunded PHD isn’t worth it since if your work is of any value, it’ll get funded… so an unfunded PHD can be quite a stigma.) It’s not all black and white, those are choices OP must make, since everything has a trade-off.
Two objective facts are that if a student wanted to attend college in the US and his/her parents had the money, it’d be hard to duplicate the education afforded by NYU and the location; and German universities are much cheaper.
Note that I don’t especially like NYU, but OP must have, at some point, since s/he applied.
Since OP can get into excellent German universities, it may simply be worth it for him/her to wait until grad school, but depending on his/her reasons for applying to NYU it may or may not be the best solution.
Overall, it’s true it’s hard to beat free… But if the family has the money in the bank, it becomes a family decision, we can’t judge what they choose to do with their own money.</p>
But if the family has the money in the bank, it becomes a family decision, we can’t judge what they choose to do with their own money.</p>