I have been accepted to both schools of engineering, had the same great scholarships from both. I will visit both in the forthcoming days. Majoring in mechanical engineering. Unsure about social scene. ROI and initial salaries look similar. I would love to play club men’s VB and have internships.
Any comments?
Both schools would be good choices for ME.
Both schools appear to have club men’s volleyball. But note that funding and participation in club sports can be highly variable from school to school, so I would try to learn more about these programs. In general, Lehigh (which is D1 for NCAA sports, including D1 women’s VB) is more noted for athletics than RPI (which is D3 for most NCAA sports, with no NCAA VB). So it wouldn’t surprise me if Lehigh has the stronger program. In fact, Lehigh appears to have tryouts for men’s club VB, so you might need to be a relatively good player to make the team.
https://www.lehighsports.com/sports/2013/6/3/GEN_0603133117.aspx?id=2#mvb
Both schools were traditionally known for engineering and were traditionally male-dominated. This is still the case at RPI; about 70% of bachelor’s degrees are in engineering or computer science, and men outnumber women by about 2 to 1. Lehigh has been steadily moving towards more balanced enrollment between the colleges of arts & sciences, business, and engineering, and towards a more balanced gender ratio. Only about 40% of bachelor’s degrees are in engineering or CS, and the most recent freshman class was only 52% male.
Lehigh is known for an active social and Greek scene; some complain that the partying is excessive. RPI does not have the same reputation; some complain that the social scene is too quiet.
Both schools are located in old industrial towns that are slowly revitalizing. Lehigh is closer to major cities (both Philadelphia and NYC).