<p>^ Amherst costs $58K if you are paying full sticker price. More than half of all Amherst students do not pay full sticker price. The average cost to attend Amherst aid is about $14K. By contrast, the average cost to attend UMass-Amherst after aid is about $13K for in-state students, or about $21K for out of state. So if you do qualify for aid, Amherst might even be cheaper than a state university.<br>
([Personal</a> Finance Tools and Calculators – Kiplinger’s Sortable Rankings of Private College Values - Kiplinger](<a href=“Kiplinger | Personal Finance News, Investing Advice, Business Forecasts”>Kiplinger | Personal Finance News, Investing Advice, Business Forecasts))</p>
<p>There is no simple answer to the topic question. You need to do a little homework and some reflection to decide whether a liberal arts education is something you value. There are universities that offer both solid engineering and solid arts and science programs (Cornell for example). So it’s not as if the choice comes down to a tech/engineering powerhouse and a tiny LAC where you have to do 3+2 to get engineering at all.</p>