<p>My son plans to major in Mechanical and minor in Aero is looking at both schools. We are Illinois residents, but even with the difference of in-state and out-of-state tuition, the cost to attend U of I appears to be nearly double that of Iowa State. (We have no concerns of him being accepted into either schools).</p>
<p>My concern is that Iowa State does not have the same engineering prestige of U of I and that he may be better off in the job market with the U of I degree.</p>
<p>Would appreciate any insight any of you could provide on both programs.</p>
<p>U of I 100%!!! I love Iowa city (I’m from there) <3 although stay away if you hate sports or parties. It gets really crazy there. Iowa state is about the same cost I thought. It’s a huge rivalry.</p>
<p>Not too familiar with U of I, but Iowa State definitely has prestige for it’s engineering (my dad is a successful alum). So if it’s the cost you’re worried about and U of I is significantly more than Iowa State, I’d say go for Iowa State.</p>
<p>Hey look, ISU has a great engineering program (I’m talking about the traditional disciplines such as mechanical), but everyone raves about how great the program is at U of Illinois. If you are a Illinois resident, then you would be foolish not to accept an admissions offer from Champaign Urbana, UNLESS IOWA STATE IS FREE!!!</p>
<p>Thanks for everyone’s responses. To clarify, my son received substantial merit aid and an honors program invitation to Iowa State, which will put overall cost at about $50K less for the 4 years than UIUC - no miscalculation on our part.</p>
<p>Unless $50k is chump change for your family, this is a no-brainer. Go Cyclones! </p>
<p>Beginning salaries for engineers do not depend on the university name on the diploma. If you are concerned about career placement at ISU vs UIUC, pick up the phone and call the career centers on both campuses and ask.</p>
<p>Also an Illinois resident. I have a child who is a junior at Iowa State in engineering. It is a great school and is more than $10,000 per year less than Uof I. She received an IL merit award & engineering awards. </p>
<p>She loves the campus and atmosphere of the school. She visited both and definitely liked the vibe of Iowa State more! She has done well and has had an amazing internship opportunity this past semester. Major aerospace company! Iowa state also has one of the largest college career fairs in the country each fall.</p>
<p>Depends on his future plans and the size of your pocket…
If he does not want to go straight to the job market and he has grad school in mind, Iowa seems like a better option.
But, if his last degree gonna be a BEng, UIUC puts him in better positions. (Both in the job market and a little academically.) </p>
<p>Again, it depends how much spending an extra 50k can be easy/ difficult for you…</p>
<p>I don’t think the “better position” that UIUC supposedly puts him in is going to be worth $50,000 over four years. There’s a poster around here who hires engineers and he consistently says that engineers are not paid based upon what school they went to. Moreover, Iowa State is known as a good engineering school, so your son should be totally fine going there even if he doesn’t plan on a grad degree.</p>